Overview
Under the Dominican Constitution, children of foreigners born in the Dominican Republic have the right to Dominican nationality. Although children of Haitian origin were often denied this right, some migrants were able to register their children born in the Dominican Republic using their temporary worker’s cards, known as the “ficha”. A new Migration Law, passed in 2004 and illegally applied retroactively, left an increasing number of Dominicans of Haitian descent functionally stateless.

Current Humanitarian Situation
In December 2007, the Dominican government issued Resolution No. 12-2007, which authorized the provisional suspension of “irregular” state civil registry documents, including birth certificates and national identity cards. The suspension could only be lifted by an express decision by Dominican registry offices after a period of investigation. Dominicans of Haitian ancestry are still denied use of their previously-issued identity documents, despite the fact that the Resolution violates fundamental human rights.

While the exact number is not known, hundreds of thousands of people will be left in legal limbo if the documents issued to them by the registry offices are placed “under investigation”. In practice, this means people born in the Dominican Republic and issued birth certificates and identity documents are unable to use their documents for essential activities requiring proof of citizenship, including obtaining a passport or an official copy of their birth certificate to enroll in school exams or college, or registering their infants born in the Dominican Republic.

Despite the over-simplified claims made by the Dominican government, not all Haitian descendents who live in the Dominican Republic have access to Haitian nationality. In addition, many Dominicans of Haitian ancestry have no connection to Haiti. 

Actions Needed
The Dominican government needs to ensure that any investigation into identity documents is conducted with due process, with written notices to individuals and a right of appeal to a court. The international community, particularly the US government, should hold the Dominican government to its international legal obligations, including compliance with the decisions of the Interamerican Court of Human Rights in the case of Yean v Bosico in 2005, which ordered the Dominican Republic to provide access to nationality rights without discrimination.