PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – Haitian and Dominican Republic senior government officials have talked to calm the tensions that have escalated this week following the protest against the patrols carried out by the Dominican army since the closure of the border in September.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs informs that the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs, Jean-Victor Geneus, spoke with his Dominican counterpart, Roberto Alvarez, following the events of Tuesday, November 7, along the Haitian-Dominican border…during which Dominican soldiers, supported by armored vehicles and a helicopter, according to observers, violated Haitian territory, apparently in reaction to what they consider to be a Haitian incursion on their territory,” the Chancellery of Haiti said in a statement.
The statement said that faced with this situation, which has generated great tension in the area and discontent among the population, “the two Chancellors agreed to work to calm tensions, to avoid any escalation while awaiting a satisfactory solution by international law.
”The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs reiterates the Government’s desire to continue dialogue and negotiation with the Dominican party and takes the opportunity to appeal for calm and serenity,” the statement added.
On Wednesday, the Dominican Republic confirmed that a group of Haitians entered the country on Tuesday to protest against the patrols.
But speaking at a news conference in the Dominican Republic, Álvarez called on the Haitian authorities to assume their responsibilities.
“We are launching a strong appeal to the Haitian authorities to assume control of order on their territory and avoid new situations which continue to aggravate the already delicate situation, such as the incidents recently perpetrated by some of its citizens which provoked the Dominican military,” he said.
Álvarez also denied a press statement issued by the Haitian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in which he is reported to have said that “the incidents that occurred on November 7 were caused by provocative actions carried out by the Army of the Dominican Republic, which include alleged violations of Haitian space, both air, and land.
“We affirm that the Dominican Republic has not violated in any way the territorial integrity of Haiti,” said Álvare, adding that the Dominican Republic reiterates its desire “to engage in frank, transparent and responsible dialogue to resolve the current crisis” but also firmly declares that it will take, by the law, “all necessary measures preserve its territorial integrity.”
On Wednesday, the Dominican Republic confirmed that a group of Haitians entered the country on Tuesday to protest against the patrols carried out by the Dominican army since the closure of the border between the two countries in September.
”The Dominican Government considers this action a provocation to generate a conflict with unpredictable consequences which will only worsen relations between the two countries. We demand that the [Haitian] authorities immediately end this type of violation,” the Government said in a statement, adding, “We warn that our Government will fulfill the constitutional mandate to preserve Dominican territorial sovereignty.”
The Government said the protest occurred around Pyramid 13, located on the border dividing the two countries.
“A group of Haitian nationals entered Dominican territory to obstruct the automobile patrol carried out by the Army of the Dominican Republic on the road on the west side of the intelligent peripheral fence in this border area. This action appears to be due to an apparent misunderstanding by Haitian citizens regarding the boundaries of the borders that separate the two countries.”
In September, the Dominican Republic President, Luis Abinader, issued an order for the complete closure of the country’s border with Haiti, encompassing land, air, and sea routes, as the two countries which make up the Caribbean island of Hispaniola continue to be at odds over the excavation of a supposed canal in Haiti that the Spanish-speaking country says will divert water from the Massacre River and harm its farmers and the environment.
The river runs in both countries and is named for a bloody battle between Spanish and French colonizers in the 1700s.
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