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CAMINANTE PROYECTO EDUCATIVO AND THE RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY OF THE DOMINICAN
REPUBLIC
Caminante Proyecto Educativo and The
Religious Community of the Dominican
Republic
BY GLOBAL MINISTRIES ON FEBRUARY 19, 2014
On September 23rd, 2013 the Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic passed
Judgment No. 0168-2013 that will strip people, who were previously legal citizens of
the Dominican Republic, of their citizenship based on heritage.
take a stand for Human Rights in response to Court Decision 168-2013
On September 23rd, 2013 the Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic passed
Judgment No. 0168-2013 that will strip people, who were previously legal citizens of
the Dominican Republic, of their citizenship based on heritage. The court decision
refers to those born after 1929, most of who are of Haitian decent and whose families
were tra cked to the Dominican Republic to work in sugar cane plantations and/or
construction industry. The court decision de nes 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation children
of Haitian decent and residents of the Dominican for up to 80 years as “in transit”
back to their “native country,” Haiti. Those a ected were born in the Dominican
Republic and have spent their entire lives with Dominican birth certi cates and
passports. They will be stripped of citizenship and nationality, resulting in civil rights
violations of crisis of legal identity and the loss of opportunities to study, work, travel,
marry, and move freely. With decision 168-2013 the Dominican Republic violates
international agreements. Caminante Proyecto Educativo and Director, Denisse
Pichardo is standing with the religious communities in defense of a historically
Global Ministries

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oppressed group of people.
CONDOR, a conference of religious leaders in the Dominican Republic wrote a press
release on October 9th, 2013 stating its “unanimous condemnation” of the decision
that strips people of basic human rights based on racist sentiments. They also shared
sympathy for and solidarity with those who are a ected by the judgment. CONDOR’s
statement quoted Pope Francis’ message for World Day of Migrants and Refugees to
be given on January 2014, “Here we nd the deepest foundation of the dignity of the
human person, which must always be respected and safeguarded. It is less the
criteria of e ciency, productivity, social class, or ethnic or religious belonging which
ground that personal dignity, so much as the fact of being created in God’s own image
and likeness (cf. Gen 1:26-27) and, even more so, being children of God. Every human
being is a child of God! He or she bears the image of Christ!”
The Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI) also released a letter to Dominican
President, Danilo Medina Sánchez on October 22nd, 2013. The CLAI represents 20
Latin American Countries and in the DR alone represents two Global Ministries
Partners: Iglesias Evangelica Dominicana and el Servicio Social de Iglesias
Dominicanas (SSID). The CLAI stated their refusal of court decision 168-2013 and
reminded the President that in September 2005 the Inter-American Court on Human
Rights found the Dominican Republic guilty of an illegal attempt to strip the rights and
nationality of two Dominican born girls of Haitian decent. The council respected the
Nation’s ability to write migration law, but con rmed that it is inhumane and illegal
under the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to refuse nationality of those born
in the Dominican solely based on the foreigner status of their decedents.
In a third response from the Christian community, a Coalition of Catholic Priests
reminded the nation of three separate laws in contrast to the newly decided 168-
2013: Article 18.2 of the Dominican Constitution states that nationality and legal
protections are determined at time and place of birth. The Constitution also states
that it is illegal to increase the vulnerability of the poor (Article 74.4) and to create
retroactive laws that revoke previously given rights (Article 110). The priests strongly
stated that a ected people are, without doubt, brothers and sisters in Christ and
equally part of the Dominican people. They nished by saying that it is the duty of the
Christian Community to enforce justice and brotherhood and to uplift the poor and
the oppressed, “God upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the
hungry… the Lord lifts” (Psalm 146, 7-9).

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The religious community of the Dominican Republic will stand in opposition to racism
and the violation of human rights. They will continue to protest court decision 168-
2013 while working to protect and support those a ected by the decision. Caminante
Proyecto Educativo, as a Christian organization, will continue to promote, educate,
and protect the internationally given rights children regardless of race, religion,
decent, nationality, or lack of legal status.
Ashley Holst
Ashley Holst serves as a Global Mission Intern with Proyecto Caminante in the Dominican
Republic. Her ministry is possible because of funds provided by Week of Compassion of the
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). She works with the children in Caminante’s Outreach
Ministry.
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
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