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As fallout spreads, Dominican Republic starts tally of Haitians’ offspring

Santo Domingo.- The government of the Dominican Republic on Wednesday issued a temporary residency permit to Juliana Dequis Pierre, whose parents are undocumented Haitians, as the first step within the nationwide plan to regularize foreigners living in the country illegally.
The measure stems from the ruling which has fueled protests in Miami, Port-au-Prince and San Juan, while in Mexico, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights hears testimony from alleged Dominicans who say they were expelled because of their Haitian origin.

UNICEF says court ruling could have ‘devastating impact’ on thousands of children of Haitian descent

UNITED NATIONS, CMC – The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned that a ruling by the Constitutional Court in the Dominican Republic depriving Dominican-born persons of Haitian descent of their right to citizenship could have a “devastating impact” on thousands of children.
“Without a nationality, stateless children can be denied access to basic social protection programmes, cannot earn education certificates or graduate, or obtain an identity card or a passport,” said UNICEF in a statement on Wednesday.

Former Jamaica prime minister wants Caribbean leaders to speak up on Dominican Republican action

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Former Jamaica prime minister PJ Patterson says the 15-member Caribbean Community (CARICOM) grouping needs to strongly condemn recent developments in the Dominican Republic that could render stateless, thousands of persons of Haitian descent.
The Constitutional Court in Santo Domingo has ruled in favour of stripping citizenship from children of Haitian migrants. The decision applies to those born after 1929 — a category that overwhelmingly includes descendants of Haitians brought in to work on farms.

House Approves CARICOM Act Amendments

KINGSTON, Jamaica - The House of Representatives Tuesday passed a bill which seeks to amend the Caribbean Community (Free Movement of Skilled Persons) Act.
The bill was passed without the parliamentary Opposition contributing to the debate.
Labour and Social Security Minister Derrick Kellier opened debate on the bill last week, after which it was suspended. However, yesterday, no member of the Opposition rose to make an input in the debate, and government members stayed silent.

‘Support CARICOM’

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - Former Prime Minister of Jamaica P. J. Patterson is urging CARICOM members to fully support the initiatives afforded by the agreement. Speaking during his delivery of 18th edition of the Frank Worrell Memorial Lecture on Tuesday night at the Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination at the Cave Hill Campus, Patterson spoke to the importance of the Caribbean Court of Justice.

CCJ judgment validates RTC

RTC PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad - Does the judgment of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in the Shanique Myrie case open the door for someone to have the court rule that governments of Caricom are violating the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas (RTC) and should therefore be forced to end their continuing resistance to having the CCJ replace the British Privy Council as their final court of appeal? It is a question I shall return to later in this column.

Myrie Scored A Victory For Us All

KINGSTON, Jamaica - Shanique Myrie, a Jamaican woman of humble background, sued the Barbados government and apparently won several rights for all CARICOM citizens. She spoke up for equal rights and justice. It was financially costly and time consuming. Myrie's attitude and actions can be considered heroic.

CCJ judgment to shift way in which business is conducted in CARICOM

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC - Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Irwin LaRocque, says the recent judgment by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in the case of Shanique Myrie and the Government of Barbados will lead to a shift in the way affairs in the Community are conducted.

IICA and the European Union will support the development of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures in the Caribbean

During the Caribbean Week of Agriculture, currently underway in Guyana, an agreement to benefit agricultural trade and production was signed by 15 nations in the region.

Georgetown, Guyana, 10 October, 2013 (IICA). The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the European Union (EU) signed an agreement on October 10 for supporting the development and modernization of the sanitary and phytosanitary measures that are applied in the Caribbean, with a view to improving access to the European markets for agricultural products from this region.

EU, IICA sign deal to strengthen Caribbean food standards

The European Union (EU) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) have signed an agreement which will see the regional bloc providing some 11.7 million euros to boost Caribbean food access to the EU markets.

The agreement was signed Wednesday night as the Caribbean Week of Agriculture activities continued in Georgetown, Guyana.

Head of the EU Delegation Guyana Robert Kopecky noted that they had signed another agreement with IICA earlier in the year but said Wednesday’s had a special importance for the region.

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