CARIBBEAN MASS MIGRATION - PROBABLE DOMINICAN

S E C R E T SANTO DOMINGO 000075 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR PRM, WHA/CAR, WHA/PPC, WHA/EPSC E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/11/2027 TAGS: PREL PREF XL XM XR DR SUBJECT: CARIBBEAN MASS MIGRATION - PROBABLE DOMINICAN REACTION REF: STATE 3439 Classified By: EcoPol Counselor Michael Meigs. Reason: 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (S) Santo Domingo country team considers that the Dominican government would NOT/NOT be willing to receive any Haitian migrants in the event of a mass migration event and that it would NOT/NOT be willing to place Cuban migrants in a camp or under any similar system of controls. In the unlikely event that the Dominican authorities were to agree to the transfer to the national territory of Cuban migrants, many of those migrants would be likely to enter into existing illegal human smuggling circuits designed to deliver individuals to Puerto Rico. 75 miles away. ¶2. (S) Responses below keyed to reftel: a) The Santo Domingo country team considers that the Dominican authorities would not agree to the establishment of a refugee camp on national territory, regardless of funding or management arrangements. Note that during Haiti's February 2004 political crisis, the Dominicans granted permission to Southcom to establish a forward operating base at the southeastern town of Barahona but explicitly barred any talk of establishing refugee camps. b) not applicable c) The Dominican authorities would not/not take any Haitian migrants. The country has a resident population of mostly undocumented Haitian nationals and Dominican-born individuals of Haitian ancestry, totaling up to 12 percent of national population. Issues of documentation, residence and nationality of these individuals are extremely controversial - - to the extent that the current process of constitutional reform is likely to result in changes intended to bar these individuals from Dominican nationality. The Dominican authorities might be persuaded to accept a limited number of Cuban migrants -- probably far fewer than the 1,000 mentioned in reftel query. Given the historical ties between the Dominican Republic and Cuba, as well as the desire of the Fernandez administration to position itself as friendly both to the USG and to the government of Cuba, the country team expects that the authorities would not exercise any control over any migrants accepted temporarily into the country. d) The death of Fidel Castro would not change Dominican consideratiuons. e) An approach to the Dominicans on this subject would not be successful. The Dominican authorities would strongly and publicly reject any suggestion to accept Haitian migrants. Concerning Cuban migrants they would be likely to make no reply unless pressed repeatedly; the initiative would certainly be leaked promptly to the press and would become an issue of controversy. f),g),h) not applicable. HERTELL