Senate president Jesus Vazquez has said he opposed allowing large numbers of Haitians onto Dominican soil and declared that the responsibility lies with the international community – which never keeps its oft-repeated promises of help for Haiti.
Former Foreign Minister Hugo Tolentino Dipp, quoted in Hoy newspaper, predicted chaos and said that the government should ponder the options of setting up refugee centers or granting asylum, as as many as 3 million Haitians could be preparing to flee the anarchy in their country. Such a decision, however, could cost the country dearly, said the historian and former minister, who also called for tightened security at the frontier. Another historian, Franklyn Franco, said that the Jesuit Refugee Service’s proposal to set up refugee camps made more sense than an “uncontrolled exodus” of Haitians. He pointed out that the JRS proposal was supported by the United Nations and other international entities, and that given the lack of control along the 400km border between the two countries, this option was the most realistic. “If we place them in an enclosure, under the control and supervision of national and international organizations, they can be repatriated as soon as the political unrest is over, and what’s more, the (Dominican) government would not have to contribute a cent.” Reynaldo Pared Perez, secretary general of the opposition PLD party, has said that while the DR is in no condition to accept a mass influx of refugees, those who were genuinely eligible for political asylum should be allowed in. “Different categories of political asylum would have to be established. In general terms, the country is in no condition to give them refuge,” said Pared Perez, adding that petitions for political asylum should comply with UNHCR requisites. Diario Libre added its voice to most of these sentiments in its main editorial. “We want to see a peaceful and democratic Haiti, but without Dominican intervention.” Hoy newspaper’s “Que Se Dice” columnist agrees that the onus lies primarily with Haiti’s so-called friends, France, Canada and the US, but says that Dominicans should also reflect on their inability to relate to events on the other side of the Massacre River, not look the other way as it has done for the past 150 years. “That is why we are not even fit to be mediators in this conflict, which will inevitably affect us, as demonstrated by the veiled petitions that we receive, in the form of refugees, those who are fleeing the chaos that reigns on the other side of the border.”