2009 IWOC award nomination of Sonia Pierre

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 001394 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL KWMN PHUM PGOV KPAO DR SUBJECT: 2009 IWOC award nomination of Sonia Pierre REF: A) 07SDO335; B) SDO 865; C) SDO 962 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Embassy Santo Dominigo nominates Sonia Pierre, founder and leader of MUDHA (Movement of Dominican-Haitian Women) for the 2009 International Women of Courage (IWOC) award. Ms. Pierre has, for years, demonstrated courage, leadership and perseverance in advancing the cause of Haitian and Haitian-descended women and men in the face of threats, racism and host government opprobrium. Accordingly, she merits this award which might produce some well-deserved discomfort among parts of the Dominican Republic's society - who have benefitted far too long from the exploitation of low-cost and vulnerable labor by illegal Haitians and undocumented Haitian-descended persons. Ms. Pierre was nominated by this embassy in 2007 (reftel A) and the time has come for her to receive the award. End Summary Background ¶2. (SBU) As noted in reftel A, Pierre founded and has led MUDHA for years, despite receiving death threats and periodic criticism from government officials and business leaders. MUDHA works to address the problems that Haitians and their children born in the Dominican Republic (DR) face, principally the social and economic insecurity generated by the failure of the governments of the Dominican Republic and of Haiti to document such people properly. This vulnerable population is then often denied social services and benefits. For example, undocumented children cannot stay in school beyond eight years of age and undocumented workers are often denied their labor rights and their access to social security, pensions and severance pay . Conditions in bayetes (rural settlements in sugar-cane growing areas, reftel B) are often appalling - poor-quality housing, poor sanitation (or access to water),and poor education and health facilities. The move in recent years of large numbers of people of Haitian descent from the countryside to the cities has exacerbated tensions between them and Dominicans. As has been reported repeatedly (e.g., reftel C),violence against Haitians, those of Haitian descent, or even those thought to be Haitian, occurs with some frequency. Record of Accomplishments ¶4. (SBU) The successes of Sonia Pierre and MUDHA include, but are not limited to: a) Keeping MUDHA going, despite threats against her and her family (reftel A) and verbal attacks from government officials and business leaders. b) In 2008, MUDHA built a total of 47 houses in two bateyes that are among the poorest of the poor and which had yet to recover from hurricanes Noel and Olga. (Note: Such housing was not part of any Government plan. End Note). c) MUDHA, with the support of various individuals, instituted a program in several bateyes to provide food and medicine. d) MUDHA has ensured that at least 12 elderly people are receiving benefits, although the CEA alleges that these persons do not qualify for a pension, despite their having worked for decades in the sugar industry. e) MUDHA supported the construction of an aqueduct in the community of Palmarejo , thus benefiting 250 families. f) MUDHA also has formed networks to provide services to address issues of adolescent pregnancy and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs, including HIV/AIDS). g) MUDHA has been instrumental in raising the human rights concerns with respect to Dominicans of Haitian descent, in Washington and at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. (Note: As stated in reftel A: Sonia Pierre herself was a petitioner in the landmark case before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Yean and Bosico v. Dominican Republic, in which the Court ordered the Dominican Republic to reform its discriminatory procedures with respect to birth registration. She has been a leading voice in the fight to urge the government to respect that ruling, as well as in other fundamental struggles in defense of the rights of the Haitian-Dominican community. End Note) h) Despite hostility, MUDHA has also persevered in maintaining channels of communication with Government agencies; it even appears that the flow of information has improved recently. ¶5. (U) Biographical Note: Solange Pierre (known as Sonia Pierre) was born in 1963 on Dominican soil to parents of Haitian descent. She won the 2006 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights award, as well as the Human Rights Ginetta Sagan Fund Award from Amnesty International in 2003. She is now the General Coordinator of MUDHA, the address of which is: Aptdo. Postal 136-B, Calle Pedro ¶A. Lluberes No. 1, Gazcue, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (tel.: (809) 688-7430, fax: (809) 689-3532). ¶6. (U) For all of the foregoing, Embassy Santo Domingo nominates Sonia Pierre for the 2009 International Women of Courage Award. Please direct any questions to Poloff Anthony Jones, at: joneam3@state.gov. Lambert