Last week a commission of government and business leaders, headed by Foreign Minister Eduardo Latorre, visited Haitian President Rene Preval in Port-Au-Prince. Among the issues discussed and resolutions reached was the creation of a permanent bilateral commission to identify, study and present solutions for problems on the Dominican-Haitian border, particularly illegal Haitian migration to the D.R. and the “informal trade” which is practiced in the area.
In a joint statement signed by Mr. Latorre and his Haitian counterpart, Fritz Longchant, the two nations established the necessity to create legal guidelines for the liberalization of legitimate trade and the elimination of smuggling, as well as the expansion of tourism and reforestation of both sides of the border.
One point of discussion was the legal status of children of Haitians born in the D.R. The commissions also identified ten projects to be funded by the European Union which could be carried out in conjunction with Haiti and the D.R. through the Lome IV convention. Mr. Latorre praised the meetings and the Haitian commission, stating that a new era of economic and technical cooperation between the two nations had begun. President Leonel Fernandez has hinted to the news media that he might visit President Rene Preval in Port-Au-Prince in early 1997.