Facade Diplomacy: When Dominicans Want to Plead Haiti's Case

SANTO DOMINGO.— President Luis Abinader, accompanied by his predecessors Hipólito Mejía, Leonel Fernández, and Danilo Medina, wrote to the international community on June 5, requesting urgent intervention from the United Nations (UN) in Haiti. This initiative comes at a time when the security crisis in Haiti continues to deteriorate.

The letter justifies the urgency of such an intervention, stating that «the current MSS mechanism does not respond with the urgency or rigor that the situation demands», warning against the proliferation of armed gangs that threaten to transform Haiti into a hotbed of criminality, drug trafficking, and terrorism.

Luis Abinader insists on the need for the Security Council to make a decision before the end of June, to avoid a security vacuum linked to the imminent rotation of Kenyan forces currently deployed there.

The letters are notably addressed to the heads of state of powers such as the United States, China, and France, advocating for a transformation of the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) into a hybrid operation, entirely placed under the aegis of the United Nations.

This initiative comes as the political climate in the Dominican Republic has intensified. The Haitian case may be used to embellish the image of Santo Domingo, tarnished by the inhumane treatment inflicted on Haitians at home, as well as the anti-Haitian ultra-nationalism that has become an outpouring of Dominican patriotism.

An ironic situation when one considers the mass deportations of Haitians under dehumanizing conditions. The stigmatizing and humiliating behavior of Dominican leaders towards the very Haitian people they claim to defend on the international stage suggests diplomatic maneuvers aimed at maintaining a benevolent facade for the Dominican Republic.

Jean Mapou