Caribbean Solidarity Group to Picket Dominican Embassy in London

Picket of the Embassy of the Dominican Republic to take place on Monday 2nd December from 2.00pm to 3.30pm – 139 Inverness Terrace, Bayswater London W2 6TF (Information kindly shared by the Caribbean Labour Solidarity Group)

Never Again! ¡Nunca Más! Plus Jamais Ça!

The high court of the Dominican Republic announced in September that it could legally strip citizenship from tens of thousands of its citizens of Haitian decent. The ruling means that any citizen born after 1929 who is unable to prove the validity of at least one of their parents’ legal status in the country at the time of their birth may face having their Dominican citizenship retroactively revoked. The ruling has dire implications for people of Haitian descent.

Here is a statement recently released by CARICOM on the issue:

 

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) condemns the abhorrent and discriminatory ruling of September 23, 2013, of the Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic on nationality which retroactively strips tens of thousands of Dominicans, mostly of Haitian descent, of citizenship rendering them stateless and with no recourse to appeal. It is especially repugnant that the ruling ignores the 2005 judgement made by the Inter­American Court on Human Rights (IACHR) that the Dominican Republic adapt its immigration laws and practices in accordance with the provisions of the American Convention on Human Rights. The ruling also violates the Dominican Republic’s international human rights obligations.

 

Furthermore, the ruling has created an environment where, with the abrogation of rights that flow from citizenship, arbitrariness can flourish as illustrated by recent media reports of the forced deportation to Haiti of persons claiming to be Dominican and with no linguistic or familial ties to that country.

 

“The Community, at this time, will suspend consideration of the request by the Dominican Republic for membership of the Caribbean Community,” said Caricom in a statement.

Please join this protest to show your outrage at this ruling.

For more information, please click here.