After news sources in Dajabon reported on the activities of the “Tomando Nuestro Territorio” (TNT) or “Taking Our Territory” group in Dominican border towns with Haiti, further inquiries are raising more questions than answers.
In a commentary published in acento.com.do yesterday, Tuesday 25 February, the former Haitian consul in the Dominican Republic Edwin Paraison denied that the campaign was about the fusion of the island of Hispaniola and said that TNT was an evangelical group. However, he did not give any explanations into the religious aspect of the campaign.
But the president of the Council of Evangelical Churches (CODUE), Fidel Lorenzo said that the TNT campaign was not an evangelical initiative and demanded that former consul Paraison explain the campaign’s true intentions to the Dominican people.
Minister of Defense Sigrido Pared Perez said that if it is a religious group, it should be called “Taking our Faith,” not “our Territory.” He described it as “a confrontation with the Dominican Republic.”
“We reject their pretense of using religious principles to justify it,” he said. “They want to disguise this campaign using religion, which is risible. When talking about religious matters you do not have to recover territory, but recover faith, recover principles, not instigate to occupy territory,” said Pared Perez who headed several events on the occasion of Armed Forces Day yesterday, Tuesday 25 February.
An editorial in Diario Libre speculates that the group’s strategy may be to provoke confrontations. It says that Dominican authorities are aware of the situation, but do not dare act for many reasons, one being to avoid stirring up an international feeding frenzy.
“The former consul is abusing local hospitality and a member of the government should tell him so,” comments the editorial in Diario Libre.
On Tuesday Minister of Interior and Police Jose Ramon Fadul expressed concern about the campaign that is being promoted and supported by Haitian groups in the country. He said the authorities are following the group. El Nuevo Diario reports that Tomando Nuestro Territorio has held marches in Elias Pina, Dajabon and Higuey, areas with large Haitian immigrant populations.
Radio commentator Alvarito Arvelo commented: “It is a cynical, abusive and criminal way of saying that the island is theirs. They are saying: You rebelled, took our island and now we will take our territory, what is ours!” In his morning talk show, Arvelo warned that it could “incite Dominican fanatics to harm Haitians who are wearing the t-shirts and vice-versa, generating a kind of civil war… Whoever is sponsoring this should be tied up and thrown out of the country… Now to the situation between both countries you add this shameless, malicious and satanic action,” said the popular commentator.
Haitian history teaches that the entire island is named Haiti. The Dominican Republic celebrates gaining its independence from Haiti tomorrow, Wednesday 27 February.
www.cristianodigital.net/paraison-miente-al-pais-codue-dice-tomando-nuestro-territorio-no-es-campana-evangelistica/
www.diariolibre.com/opinion/2014/02/26/i500121_gobierno-las-provocaciones.html
www.acento.com.do/index.php/blog/12723/78/Desinformacion.html
http://elnuevodiario.com.do/app/article.aspx?id=364372
http://elnuevodiario.com.do/app/article.aspx?id=364710
www.z101digital.com/app/article.aspx?id=120056