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Jamaica Expresses “Grave Concern” over Dominican Citizenship Ruling

By: Caribbean Journal Staff - November 16, 2013

Above: Jamaica PM Portia Simpson Miller

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Jamaica Prime Minister has expressed “concern” with the recent constitutional case in the Dominican Republic that could strip hundreds of thousands of Dominicans of Haitian descent of their citizenship.

The ruling by the Dominican Republic’s Constitutional Court retroactively modifies citizenship for those born in the Dominican Republic from 1929 to 2010 to those who were considered to be “in transit” while in the country.

In a statement issued following her meeting with Haiti President Michel Martelly, Simpson Miller said the situation had “dire human rights implications for a significant number of persons of Haitian descent.”

She also reiterated that Jamaica would “continue to express its grave concern in international fora on this issue, which is a violation of human rights and international law.”

Simpson Miller is the latest Caribbean leader to express concern over the issue, following the lead of others like St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves.

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