Regular Session 2015-2016 House Resolution 0431 P.N. 2080

PRINTER'S NO. 2080

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE RESOLUTION

No.

431

Session of

2015

INTRODUCED BY J. HARRIS, ROZZI, COHEN, SCHLOSSBERG, V. BROWN,

DAVIDSON, C. PARKER, THOMAS, KIRKLAND, BOYLE AND MILLARD,

AUGUST 10, 2015

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, AUGUST 10, 2015

A RESOLUTION

Urging the Congress of the United States to oppose the forced

removal of Haitians and people of Haitian descent from their

homes by the Government of the Dominican Republic.

WHEREAS, Pennsylvania has a long proud history of diverse

activism and advocacy regarding issues of equality and civil

rights; and

WHEREAS, In September 2013, the Constitutional Court of the

Dominican Republic issued a ruling that affected all persons

born in the Dominican Republic dating back to 1929; and

WHEREAS, The ruling stripped the children of undocumented

immigrants of Dominican citizenship, despite their Dominican

birth and registration, effectively denationalizing

approximately 200,000 Dominicans of Haitian descent; and

WHEREAS, In May 2014, responding to the Constitutional Court

ruling, the Dominican Republic passed Naturalization Law 169-14,

requiring persons affected by the ruling to be re-recognized as

citizens or to apply to gain state recognition based on their

birth status and year; and

WHEREAS, At the same time, the Government of the Dominican

Republic was setting unrealistic timetables and overly-

burdensome registration requirements that had a disproportionate

and discriminatory impact on Dominicans of Haitian descent; and

WHEREAS, The Inter-American Court of Human Rights deemed the

2013 and 2014 actions of the Dominican Republic to be a

violation of the Constitution of the Dominican Republic; and

WHEREAS, In a clear act of defiance in response to the Inter-

American Court, the Government of the Dominican Republic

declared that it no longer recognizes the authority of the

Inter-American Court, effectively removing one of the few

options that all Dominicans have: the right to appeal to a

higher authority for judicial review on the human rights impact

of the decisions of the Dominican Republic; and

WHEREAS, By the time deadlines set by the Naturalization Law

had run their course, tens of thousands of Dominicans of Haitian

descent were rendered unregistered and vulnerable to

deportation, discrimination and loss of livelihood; and

WHEREAS, Now, those same individuals are essentially

stateless and subject to the risk of deportation from the

country of their birth, solely based on their heritage; and

WHEREAS, On June 23, 2015, Caribbean-American Congresswoman

Yvette D. Clarke, who represents the 9th Legislative District of

New York, warned of an exacerbated humanitarian crisis in Haiti:

"Today, hundreds of thousands of Haitian nationals and

individuals of Haitian descent are threatened with deportation

from the Dominican Republic, a policy that will only exacerbate

the humanitarian crisis in Haiti, which has not yet recovered

from the earthquake in 2010, and displace many families from

their homes. Many of the people scheduled for deportation were

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born in the Dominican Republic or have been there for almost

their entire lives."; and

WHEREAS, In the absence of due process, the recent threats of

deportation faced by Dominicans of Haitian descent, many of whom

have no family or social support network in Haiti, further

underscore the precarious situation to which those Dominicans of

Haitian descent are constantly subjected; and

WHEREAS, Article 15 of the Universal Declaration of Human

Rights, of which the United States and the Dominican Republic

are key signatories, provides the following: "No one shall be

arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to

change his nationality"; and

WHEREAS, Both the Constitutional Court ruling and the

Naturalization Law continue to separate Dominicans of Haitian

descent from the larger Dominican community, thus allowing them

to be easier targets of discrimination and violence by those

perpetrating those acts, whether or not on behalf of the

Government of the Dominican Republic; and

WHEREAS, Civil rights, human rights, academic, legal,

political and dozens of other groups across the United States,

including The National Bar Association, the Robert F. Kennedy

Center for Justice and Human Rights, Amnesty International, The

Coalition of Dominicans Against Racism, The Haitian American

Caucus, The Haitian Roundtable and Friends of Haiti 2010, are

calling for immediate action by the Government of the Dominican

Republic to reverse the Constitutional Court ruling and the

Naturalization Law; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania urge the Congress of the United

States to oppose the forced removal of Haitians and people of

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Haitian descent from their homes by the Government of the

Dominican Republic; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania pause in its deliberations to

express concern and outrage over the increasing violence against

and forced removal of Haitians and Dominicans of Haitian descent

from their homes by the Government of the Dominican Republic;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania urge the Congress of the United

States to support the provisions contained in 2013 H. Res. 443,

introduced by Congressman Gregory W. Meeks, who represents the

5th Legislative District of New York, opposing the

Constitutional Court ruling that effectively places thousands of

Dominican-born persons at risk of statelessness; and be it

further

RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to

the presiding officers of each house of Congress, to each member

of Congress from Pennsylvania and the Permanent Representative

to the United Nations from the Dominican Republic.

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