Haiti - Social : Blocking of the border Anse-à-Pitres/Pedernales
Thursday, at the entrance of the border of Anse-à-Pitre/Pedernales (south-east), large stones and barricades of burning tires had been put, completely paralyzing the commercial activities.
Friday, market day, the situation was the same. Dozens of people including changers, motorcycle-taxi drivers and merchants have maintained the barricades put in place the day before "We started this movement to force the Dominican authorities to cancel the new tax of 2,500 pesos, claimed on passports issued from the Dominican Republic," told the users to a representative of the Support Group for Repatriates and Refugees (GARR) on site.
Samuel Délouest, the representative of associations of traders at the border of Anse-à-Pitre/Pedernales, announces the continuation of this protest until the week of February 18, if this measure is not waived by the Dominican authorities. "The taxes of 2,500 pesos on passports is completely irregular," told to the GARR a former official of the Haitian diplomatic in the Dominican capital.
Faced with this situation of repeated tension to the various border points, the GARR, renews to the leaders of the two states on the island, its recommendations for a true migration agreement taking into account the rights of multiple users of the border, which should be a space of conviviality and mutual respect rather than confrontation between the two neighboring peoples.
