News Digest

Haitians scramble as Dominican Republic readies to resume deportations

The head of the Dominican Republic’s immigration agency says the country is ready to resume deporting non-citizens without legal residency after putting the practice on hold for a year, sparking Haitians and other non-citizens stood in long lines across the country in last-minute bids to secure legal residency. Foreign residents, who are overwhelmingly from neighboring Haiti, sought to submit papers before a 7 p.m. Wednesday deadline. Many said they have had to spend all day and return multiple times after being told they lacked sufficient documentation to complete the applications.

They always tell me it will come but they give me nothing.

Molaire Cadon, a 66-year-old who came across the border as a 13-year-old to work

Under an initiative begun last year aimed at regulating the migration of workers, the government said it would consider granting legal residency to non-citizens who could establish their identity and prove they arrived before October 2011. Officials estimated up to 500,000 people were in this category, and relatively few have been able to provide sufficient documentation. Interior Minister Ramon Fadul said about 250,000 people have at least started the application process but only 10,000 had met all the requirements for legal residency. So far, only about 300 have actually received permits.