Dominican Republic: conference on statelessness and the right to nationality
16 October 2011
WASHINGTON DC 15 October 2011 — As rising numbers of Dominican citizens of Haitian descent in the Dominican Republic are having their nationality revoked by the Dominican government, an international coalition of leading human rights groups announced plans today to examine the legality of those actions and the impacts on people who have lost their nationality rights, in a one-day conference in Washington DC and a surrounding week of dialogue with Dominican advocates, US administration, Congress and other policymakers.
On 12 October, JRS Dominican Republic accused the government of confiscating or annulling nearly 1,600 birth certificates belonging to residents of Haitian descent.
Ms Sonia Adames, JRS Dominican Republic Director told reporters the group's investigation found 72 percent of those affected are between 15 and 30 years old and have been unable to find a job, open a bank account or enroll in school as a result. Forty-eight percent also have been unable to register their children as Dominican citizens, she added.
David Robinson, Acting Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration US Department of State, will keynote the 24 October conference on Statelessness and the right to nationality in the Dominican Republic, which will be held at the Georgetown University Law Center's Human Rights Institute in Washington DC.
The coalition will also join visiting members of Dominican civil society groups in a public thematic hearing for discussions with the Dominican government and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Washington based human rights branch of the Organization of American States. The dialogue will focus on the Dominican Republic's retroactive denationalisation policy that is stripping1 thousands of Dominicans of Haitian descent of their previously established citizenship, denying them access to their existing identity documents, and effectively rendering their children and future generations stateless.
Organizers of the 26 October conference and 24-28 October advocacy events are Jesuit Refugee Service USA, the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL), Church World Service, Christian Aid, the Episcopal Church, Refugees International, and The Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights (RFK Center).
"The retroactive application of this new Dominican law is forbidden by the American Convention on Human Rights, to which the government of the Dominican Republic is a party"2, said Melanie Teff, Senior Advocate, Refugees International.
In a joint statement, the US-based coalition declared:
The coalition is urging the Government of the Dominican Republic to recognize all people born in their territory prior to the change of their constitution in January 2010 as Dominican citizens. It further calls on the Dominican Government to ensure that no children born after the change in the constitution are left effectively stateless.
As a rising modern, democratic country, the Dominican Republic gained international admiration for its humanitarian compassion and assistance to Haiti following the devastating 2010 earthquake. We are confident that the Dominican government wishes to continue building on that reputation by complying with human rights conventions affecting a very vulnerable group of citizens.
The 26 October Washington conference and advocacy efforts on behalf of denationalized Dominicans of Haitian descent follow the 50th anniversary (30 August) of the United Nations 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness and the launch of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees' new campaign on statelessness. To date, the Dominican Republic has signed the 1961 Convention but has yet to ratify it.
Click here for conference agenda, registration and further information.
Lesley Crosson/Church World Service, (+1 212) 870-2676, lcrosson@churchworldservice.org
or Jan Dragin,(+1 781) 925-1526, or mobile: (+1 339) 236-0679, jdragin@gis.net
16 October 2011
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| A checkpoint on a highway in the Dominican Republic near the border with Haiti. (Christian Fuchs/JRS) |
| The coalition is urging the Government of the Dominican Republic to recognize all people born in their territory prior to the change of their constitution in January 2010 as Dominican citizens. It further calls on the Dominican Government to ensure that no children born after the change in the constitution are left effectively stateless. |
On 12 October, JRS Dominican Republic accused the government of confiscating or annulling nearly 1,600 birth certificates belonging to residents of Haitian descent.
Ms Sonia Adames, JRS Dominican Republic Director told reporters the group's investigation found 72 percent of those affected are between 15 and 30 years old and have been unable to find a job, open a bank account or enroll in school as a result. Forty-eight percent also have been unable to register their children as Dominican citizens, she added.
David Robinson, Acting Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration US Department of State, will keynote the 24 October conference on Statelessness and the right to nationality in the Dominican Republic, which will be held at the Georgetown University Law Center's Human Rights Institute in Washington DC.
The coalition will also join visiting members of Dominican civil society groups in a public thematic hearing for discussions with the Dominican government and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Washington based human rights branch of the Organization of American States. The dialogue will focus on the Dominican Republic's retroactive denationalisation policy that is stripping1 thousands of Dominicans of Haitian descent of their previously established citizenship, denying them access to their existing identity documents, and effectively rendering their children and future generations stateless.
Organizers of the 26 October conference and 24-28 October advocacy events are Jesuit Refugee Service USA, the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL), Church World Service, Christian Aid, the Episcopal Church, Refugees International, and The Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights (RFK Center).
"The retroactive application of this new Dominican law is forbidden by the American Convention on Human Rights, to which the government of the Dominican Republic is a party"2, said Melanie Teff, Senior Advocate, Refugees International.
In a joint statement, the US-based coalition declared:
The coalition is urging the Government of the Dominican Republic to recognize all people born in their territory prior to the change of their constitution in January 2010 as Dominican citizens. It further calls on the Dominican Government to ensure that no children born after the change in the constitution are left effectively stateless.
As a rising modern, democratic country, the Dominican Republic gained international admiration for its humanitarian compassion and assistance to Haiti following the devastating 2010 earthquake. We are confident that the Dominican government wishes to continue building on that reputation by complying with human rights conventions affecting a very vulnerable group of citizens.
The 26 October Washington conference and advocacy efforts on behalf of denationalized Dominicans of Haitian descent follow the 50th anniversary (30 August) of the United Nations 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness and the launch of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees' new campaign on statelessness. To date, the Dominican Republic has signed the 1961 Convention but has yet to ratify it.
Click here for conference agenda, registration and further information.
- US Department of State, 2010 Human Rights Report
- In English:Organization of American States, American Convention on Human Rights, O.A.S.Treaty Series No. 36, 1144 U.N.T.S. 123, entered into force July 18, 1978, reprinted in Basic Documents Pertaining to Human Rights in the Inter-American System, OEA/Ser.L.V/II.82 doc.6 rev.1 at 25 (1992)
Lesley Crosson/Church World Service, (+1 212) 870-2676, lcrosson@churchworldservice.org
or Jan Dragin,(+1 781) 925-1526, or mobile: (+1 339) 236-0679, jdragin@gis.net
Press Contact Information
James Stapleton
international.communications@jrs.net
+39 06 6897 7465
international.communications@jrs.net
+39 06 6897 7465
