Former Haitian Prime Minister, Claude Joseph, says he welcomes the decision of President Luis Abinader “to arbitrarily prohibit” him from entering the Dominican Republic, insisting that he will still be speaking out against “anti-Haitiansim” in the Spanish-speaking country.
On Wednesday, President Abinader, in a note addressed to the Director General of Immigration, invoked Article 15 of Law 285-04 of the immigration and its implementing regulations, preventing the entry into the country of foreigners who have a criminal record or who, in the opinion of the competent authorities, constitute a type of threat against national security and the interests of the republic.
As a result, he ordered that Joseph, a former foreign affairs minister and who briefly served as prime minister following the July 7, 2001, assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, be banned from entering the country. The order was also issued against 12 suspected Haitian gang leaders.
But in a statement, Joseph says he views the decision “not as a sanction but as an honor” describing the ban also as “arbitrarily” given his former positions in the Haitian government.
He said the actions fall within the “anti-Haitianism” carried by the president and “considers this decision taken against” him “as a malicious attempt on the part of Mr. Abinader to attack the honor of the former prime minister and to intimidate him in its fight for respect for the sovereignty of Haiti and the dignity of fellow Haitians living in the Dominican Republic.”
Joseph said he is convinced that the decision had been made only by Abinader but remains committed to the “preservation of relations of friendship, respect, and cooperation between the Republic of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.”
Meanwhile, political leaders and other stakeholders in the Dominican Republic have welcomed the decision to ban Joseph from entering the country.
The Mayor of Santiago, Abel Martinez Durán, said Joseph was supportive of illegal migration, and that Haitians are engaged in criminal activities, not only in their country but in the Dominican Republic.
Some members of Congress say they are worried that Joseph is only trying to win the support of Haitians for political purposes, “on the basis of hate speech directed against the Dominican Republic.”
The Commander General of the Dominican army, Major General Carlos Antonio Fernández Onofre said the army is tightening its controls and surveillance, particularly at the Dajabón border.
CMC/
