The Dominican Republic on Tuesday announced that it has started deporting or repatriating thousands of Haitians this past week, including those who fled Haiti due to gang violence and poverty.
Haiti has struggled with a surge in gang violence since the late-President Jovenel Moise was assassinated in July 2021, prompting mass migration to nearby countries, along with the United States.
The Dominican Republic government announced last week that it would deport up to 10,000 Haitian migrants each week, because relations between the neighboring countries have worsened recently. Nearly 11,000 migrants were deported or repatriated this week. At least half a million Haitians are currently residing in the Dominican Republic, according to the Associated Press.
Haitian officials called for an emergency meeting at the Organization of American States, where they warned that the mass deportations would worsen Haitian infrastructure and force the migrants to arrive without support or resources.
“The forced and mass deportation of our Haitian compatriots from the Dominican Republic is a violation of the fundamental principles of human dignity,” Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille wrote on the social media platform X on Tuesday.
Dominican-based National Coalition for Migrations and Refugees coordinator William Charpentier said the mass deportations have resulted in an increase in abandoned children in the Caribbean nation, and said even migrants in the country legally are being deported.
Dominican officials said 7,591 Haitian immigrants were deported and 3,323 were repatriated between Oct. 1 and Oct. 7.
