EDITORIAL: The Commemoration of Judgment 168-13 Has Been a Matter for Reflection Every September since 2013
The commemoration of Judgment 168-13 has been a matter for reflection every September since 2013. Although there is not much to celebrate in 2020 in general, there are small advances toward more durable solutions for the tens of thousands of people denationalized by the ruling, mostly Dominicans of Haitian descent.
As is well known, Law 169-14, adopted by the Dominican Congress in May 2014, separated the affected persons into two groups: those whose births had already been registered (Group A) and those whose birth had never been registered (Group B). Its purpose was to provide a route for recognition of nationality for Group A and a path toward naturalization for Group B. A noteworthy development was the July 16 decree of former President Medina that opened the way for the naturalization of 750 people in Group B. These people are stateless in situ but had not been recognized as such by the Dominican government. Thus, they had been issued residence documents in which they appeared as though they were Haitian. In this way, the law hindered the full right to nationality insofar as they had to register as foreigners and begin a complex process of applying for naturalization as Dominicans, instead of being able to acquire nationality automatically.
Despite the approval of Law 169-14 in 2014, this group of people is the first group that the government has committed to naturalize and, although it is a step in the right direction, there is still a long way to go to reverse the human rights violations caused by the Judgment. It remains to be seen how this decree is intended to be implemented and whether it is the prelude to other naturalizations. President Abinader, who took over from President Medina in August, has the responsibility of finding solutions. Indeed, the Dominican Republic has the opportunity to set a good example in the insular Caribbean in a context where other countries are challenged to be inclusive in their policies and practices regarding the granting of nationality by the right of birth on their territory, that is jus soli. An article in the present bulletin accounts for the challenges Trinidad and Tobago faces on its twin islands with regard to the rights of children born to Venezuelans in movement. Hopefully 2020 will stand out not only as the year when the pandemic struck but, in the case of the Dominican Republic, as a decisive year for the right to nationality of those persons stripped of their citizenship in 2013.
Bridget Wooding
Director, OBMICA