WHA DAS DUDDY VISITS THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC JAN

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 000243 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR WHA, WHA/CAR, WHA/EPSC, INR/IAA, DRL E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: DR PGOV PHUM PREL SUBJECT: WHA DAS DUDDY VISITS THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC JAN 11-12 REF: A. SANTO DOMINGO 00171 ¶B. SANTO DOMINGO 0238 ¶1. (U) Summary: Following his visit to Port au Prince, WHA DAS Patrick Duddy visited the Dominican Republic January 11-12 where he met President Fernandez (ref a),the congressional leadership, the Secretary of Foreign Affairs (ref b) and several other cabinet -level officials. Much of the discussion concerned the Dominican-Haitian relationship. Other important topics of conversation were CAFTA-DR , border security and drug trafficking. DAS Duddy emphasized to interlocutors that he left Haiti optimistic that elections will take place on February 7. He assured government officials that the United States and the international community have not abandoned Haiti and stressed USG desire for close coordination on CAFTA-DR implementation. End Summary. ¶2. (U) WHA DAS Patrick Duddy visited the Dominican Republic January 11-12, where he met President Fernandez, the congressional leadership, and several cabinet -level officials. In a meeting covered by the press, Senate President Andres Bautista and House of Representatives President Alfredo Pacheco received Duddy during a recess in budget discussions. Both presidents had invited spokespersons from all parties to attend the meeting. Discussion was brief, with DAS Duddy commenting on his recent trip to Port au Prince and expressing optimism about the scheduled Haitian elections. The fact that congressional leaders took an evening break in budget discussion to meet with Duddy indicated the strength of Dominican congressional interest in the United States. ¶3. (U) On January 12 during an hour-long discussion of DR-CAFTA which included CAFTA-DR team leader Vilma Arbaje, AmCham VP Bill Malamud stressed the importance of U.S. assistance in the form of trade capacity building and asked for more. Leading attorney Luis Heredia Bonetti commented that the country,s dilemma is how to deal simultaneously with Haiti, energy, illegal drugs, other criminal activity and DR-CAFTA in a system lacking proper institutions to do so. ¶4. (U) DAS Duddy,s visit received considerable press coverage and he gave separate interviews to leading Dominican dailies Hoy and Listin Diario. Discussion with Cabinet Officials - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶5. (SBU) During lunch at the Ambassador,s residence, DAS Duddy provided senior Dominican officials his readout of his recent visit to Haiti and election preparations. Among those attending were the ministers of interior & police, foreign affairs, health, and the armed forces, as well as the ambassadors of the United Kingdom and Italy. After trading impressions of the political prospects for Haiti, the Dominicans described the difficulties the country faces vis-a-vis that country. Health Minister Rojas said that in many rural hospitals half of the beds are occupied by Haitians; he estimated that 19 percent of the health budget is spent on non-Dominicans. Malaria outbreaks are associated with the presence of Haitians. For malaria and dengue fever, typically half the cases are Haitian. ¶6. (SBU) Historian Frank Moya Pons commented on the growth of the Haitian population resident in the Dominican Republic. A 1983 census had found 27,000; currently there are no reliable estimates. The Dominican community is divided over the approach to the issue of Haitian migration; measures to deport Haitians prompt protests from abroad. The issue has profound social and ecological impacts, especially in the absence of a well defined policy. MFA Haitian affairs coordinator Amb. Inocencio Garcia spoke of the sharp rise in migration in recent years due in large part to deterioration of the Haitian economy. ¶7. (SBU) Migration Director Amarante Baret said that the Haitian presence offers both positive and negative aspects but the two populations share an island that is separated by a fragile frontier. Migration has "exploded" since the 1980's. He offered the example of the tourist area of Bavaro on the eastern coast -- of the 10,000 inhabitants of this previously relatively barren area, 7,500 are Haitians. He said that the presence of Haitians is associated with crime and disease, and they make tourists uncomfortable, leading to a tourism repeat rate of 23 percent, compared to 66 percent for the Mexican resort of Cancun. "The government will have to exert control, and I hope the U.S. government will understand." ¶8. (SBU) After a brief exchange over the probable timetable for CAFTA-DR implementation, the talk turned to labor and again to the role of Haitian workers in the Dominican economy. Migration Director Amarante said that the government intends to move against employers who disregard the rule that 80 percent of the workforce must be Dominican. Interior Minister Almeyda said that draft implementing regulations for the 2004 Migration Law, following a period for public comment, are now with the President awaiting signature. Almeyda asked for USG understanding and said the government intends to handle the issue in a responsible manner. The census authorized with the regulations will provide the information necessary to manage the issue. The Migration Council's suggestion of permanent residency for foreigners in the country for more than ten years has provoked debate. Almeyda considers that such cases make up a "minority." The government needs to resolve quickly the question of its general approach, so as to prevent an "uncontrollable increase." Dominicans and Haitians are different peoples, he stressed, with different cultures. ¶9. (SBU) Dominican participants in the lunch were frank about their misgivings about the issue of Haitian migration, but they approached the theme mostly with generalities and in the abstract. No one mentioned the headlined investigation underway of the deaths of 24 would-be immigrants, all of them Haitians asphyxiated in an unventilated closed cargo van. Only Moya Pons, from the previous administration, mentioned the highly sensitive topic of protests from abroad concerning Dominican handling of Haitian repatriations. By accepting the invitation, however, the ministers and other notables were in effect delivering the same message to DAS Duddy: a stiff but emphatic request for understanding of the domestic and international difficulties they face in dealing with migration. HERTELL