The bateyes, or sugar cane cutter communities located adjacent to sugar mills, have traditionally been the poorest in the DR. After privatization, things have only gotten worse. Many sugar mills have been abandoned by foreign investors and the already depressed communities, made up in large part by immigrant Haitian families, have been left to become what the newspaper describes as places where people are buried alive. El Caribe newspaper reports that several groups that work in the sugar mills met with the State Sugar Council to study alternatives to start to improve conditions. The Comisión de Apoyo al Desarrollo Barrial and the Plan Presidencial de Lucha contra la Pobreza have been involved. Talks focused on the possibility of planting short cycle crops, granting of land to farmers and the judicial status of the workers. The newspaper reports that President Mejia has plans to visit a sampling of these communities to ascertain for himself the condition of the residents and enact programs to improve their livelihood.
