President Danilo Medina stated that the country was under international pressure regarding migration issues. Speaking earlier today, Tuesday, 25 March, Medina said that the problem was not the pressure in itself, but having the conviction to do what has to be done in response to the situation. “There is international pressure. You see it every day. Many people are in agreement with the ruling and others are not. Our problem is not the pressure. The problem is the inner conviction of what we have to do and that is why I am consulting the leadership of the country,” said the President.
President Danilo Medina met with former President Leonel Fernandez yesterday, Monday 24 March, to discuss the Constitutional Court ruling and the Naturalization bill as part of a series of consultations he is having on the issue this week. The meeting took place at the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (Funglode) in Santo Domingo and lasted almost an hour.
The President has met with Presidential legal advisor Cesar Pina Toribio, the president of the National Migration Council and the Minister of Interior and Police Jose Ramon Fadul, as well as Central Electoral Board (JCE) president Roberto Rosario.
Today, Tuesday 25 March, President Medina is due to meet with the former President Hipolito Mejia of the opposition PRD.
The Executive Branch is holding the discussions prior to sending Congress the bill drafted to uphold the human rights of hundreds of people who claim Dominican citizenship.
Minister of Interior and Police Fadul says that the implementation of the Foreigner Legalization Plan is in the hands of the President and its success will depend on high-level meetings with Haiti, the next of which is set for 8 April. Haiti’s cooperation is needed to document the immigrants for the subsequent naturalization process.
www.elcaribe.com.do/2014/03/25/medina-consulta-con-leonel-proyecto-fallo
www.elcaribe.com.do/2014/03/25/danilo-problema-del-pais-saber-que-hacer-con-tema-migratorio