Political scientist Rosario Espinal writes in today’s Hoy newspaper that it is time that the DR took a proactive stance on the migration issues with Haiti and establish a firm migration policy. She states that the country needs to establish orderly migratory policies and be willing to assume the social cost of hosting destitute immigrants. The other option is to reduce to the minimum the migration of Haitians, withstanding the complaints of some Dominican businessmen, the Haitian government or any international organization.
She highlights in her op-ed contribution that the country cannot ignore the reality that 70% of the adult population in Haiti is unemployed, there is no functioning state, and there does not seem to be a political solution on the horizon. This mass of undocumented workers that is willing to work for low wages and without benefits depresses wages in the DR and working opportunities for poor Dominicans. On the other hand, internationally the DR is getting a bad rap as a country that tolerates and takes advantage of the over-exploitation of Haitian labor.
“It is time to end the Dominican complacency with civilian and military officers that are not fulfilling their duty of controlling the border. And it is time to combat the semi-slavery business practices, characterized by low wages and lack of benefits that make Haitian labor attractive,” she writes. She urges that the government and Dominican society need to take on the definition and implementation of a migration policy with clear judicial parameters that are in line with human and labor rights as a national priority.