The former President of Spain José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero visited this week. He offered praise for the migratory programs of the Dominican government. He met at the Ministry of Interior and Police with Minister Carlos Amarante Baret and received an honoris causa title from the state university.
While hosting Rodríguez Zapatero, Minister Amarante announced the government had invested more than US$50 million in the implementation of the National Foreigner Legalization Plan (PNRE) that primarily sought to legalize the status of hundreds of thousands of undocumented Haitians living in the country. The fact that in Haiti few citizens of that country have identity documents, has brought major problems to the Dominican Republic when these Haitians migrate without having any documents that prove their identity or legal status. The PNRE sought to correct that situation, with a focus on addressing the legal status needs of long-time residents.
As reported, 249 thousand foreigners applied for the program and 225 thousand received free temporary residence status from the Dominican government in a process that followed accepted human rights standards. 98% of the beneficiaries of the program were Haitians.
Amarante Baret made the remarks in his welcome speech on occasion of the visit of the former Spanish president.
Rodríguez Zapatero was the guest speaker at the “Forum for the Discussion of Migratory and Social Inclusion Policies: Comparative Perspectives.” The event was organized by the National Institute of Migration of the Dominican Republic and the Club de Madrid.
Speaking at the event, Rodríguez Zapatero highlighted that thousands of people lose their lives trying to migrate to other countries. He was critical of recent immigration measures of US President Donald Trump, who he said seems to want to instigate an immigration crisis.
Speaking at the event, Minister of Interior and Police Carlos Amarante Baret said that migration is a universal phenomenon and have been part of human kind since its early days. He said that more than a source of conflicts, migrants contribute to economic development and to expanding the cultural and tolerance horizons.
During his visit here, Rodríguez Zapatero was honored with a honoris causa title at the state university, UASD.
During the government of Rodríguez Zapatero, the Spanish government implemented a program that enabled hundreds of Dominicans of Spanish descent to benefit from Spanish citizenship.
Read more in Spanish:
Listin Diario
Hoy
MetroRD
2 February 2017
