PRESIDENT PREVAL VISIT

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 001729

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA, WHA/CAR,

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM ELAB DR
SUBJECT: PRESIDENT PREVAL VISIT


1. (SBU) On July 12th President Rene Preval of Haiti
completed a 10 hour visit to Santo Domingo. This was his
third trip to the country since his election in February

2006. His agenda included attending a program at FUNGLODE, a
40-minute lunch with President Fernandez in the national
palace, and a visit to Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo
(UASD). The topics announced for the visit were the
environment, the war on drugs, and a celebration of the
Haitian intellectual Jacques Roumain. The visit aimed to
increase the linkages between the two countries. President
Fernandez was quoted as saying that the visit was
exceptional. We will report further on Preval's visit by
Septel.

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Improved Links
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2. (U) Preval arrived at the airport of the Americas with
his Minister of culture and the Environment, Daniel Elie, the
presidential advisor, his chief of security, as well as the
Dominican Ambassador en Port-au-Prince Jose Serulle Ramia.
Dominican government officials from the Ministry of Youth and
Sports had just returned from meetings in Port au Prince with
the Haitian government. Among the proposals discussed was an
intercultural exchange program between the countries.

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Celebration of Roumain
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3. (U) FUNGLODE, a non-governmental organization founded by
President Fernandez, hosted the conference entitled "The
Value of the Work of Jacques Roumain." The event included
Leo-Francois Hoffman, professor of French and Haitian
literature at Princeton University, who led a presentation
about Roumain. The talk was given to senior members of the
Dominican government as well as Haitian dignitaries. Jacques
Roumain is considered among the most notable and significant
figures in Haitian literature, and is famous for his book
"Masters of the Dew" which has been translated into 32
languages. During the conference President Fernandez stated,
"The conference presented us with a great opportunity to
strengthen the fraternal links that should exist between
Haiti and the Dominican Republic through culture. Later in
the day Fernandez and Preval led a talk at UASD where an
auditorium of cheering Dominican and Haitian student greeted
them with flags.

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Creation of Biological Corridor
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4. (U) During the visit Max Puig, Minister of the
Environment and Natural Resources announced the "Declaration
of Santo Domingo", which is a joint agreement Haiti,
Dominican Republic, and Cuba recently signed concerning the
environment. The goal is to create a biological corridor with
the help of the United Nations.

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Comment
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5. (SBU) This visit is a step in the right direction. Even
so, the Dominican government refuses to acknowledge a
"racism" problem, though racism against Haitians and darker
skinned persons in general does exist in the country. This
appears to be the result of the denial of African roots in
the Dominican Republic that has occurred throughout the
nation's history. Expressions of anti-Haitian sentiment are
common at all levels of society and there are occasional
incidents of Dominican violence against Haitian immigrants.
During this brief visit nothing controversial was discussed,
but the message was one of mutual respect and willingness to
work together.
BULLEN