Rioters burned tires and threw stones near the Presidential Palace in Port-au-Prince, in protest against President Leonel Fernandez’s visit, while he was attending a ceremony with Haitian President Boniface Alexandre aimed at strengthening the friendship ties between the two nations, as reported in Diario Libro. A press release by the Dominican ambassador to Haiti, Jose Serulle Ramia, which was distributed last night by the Presidential Press Office, stated that Fernandez’s visit was cut short to “avoid an unpleasant situation”. The riots led to the suspension of part of the President’s official program, including the delivery of a check by Education Minister Alejandrina German, which was to be used to start building a school. Also suspended was a meeting that Fernandez had planned with leaders of different political parties. The rioters climbed the fence surrounding the palace but were controlled and dispersed by police using water cannons. The official press release states that the security of President Fernandez and his entourage was never compromised. Later, the President traveled to Cancun, Mexico, to attend the Central American Integration System (SICA) summit where an energy agreement with Mexico that will benefit the DR with US$200 million in financing is expected to be reached.
Listin Diario reports that a crowd of rioters, mostly students, burned photographs of President Fernandez in protest at his migratory policies. They were shouting “Fernandez, racist, stop killing Haitians”. The riots resulted in at least three injuries. Serrulle’s press release attributes the riots to extremist groups that do not want friendship between the Dominican and Haitian peoples.
According to El Caribe, the Haitian government has made assurances that it will identify those responsible for acts of violence against Dominican President Leonel Fernandez during his visit to Port-au-Prince yesterday. The President had to leave Haiti because of the protests. According to a special press release, the Haitian Foreign Ministry condemned the violence that forced the Dominican leader to leave the country without completing his official agenda there. The rioters threw stones at the Dominican President’s vehicle, something that is “inexcusable and intolerable”, according to the Foreign Ministry. The Haitian government considers that these incidents hinder the normalization of relations between the two countries and expressed its respect towards the protocols that should exist between civilized nations.
Clave Digital reports that according to Presidential Spokesman Rafael Nunez, some of the shots heard during the violence in Haiti’s capital yesterday were made by the rioters while others were made by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) who used their weapons to shoot into the air to make way for the Presidential four-vehicle convoy. Nunez played down the significance of the incident, describing the protesters as a small minority.