A motor adventure. But also on foot, through the jumble of the forests, where you have to grease the paws of Dominican soldiers, the main beneficiaries of border trafficking
350 US dollars.
According to the smuggler, this is the minimum fare for a trip to the Dominican Republic.
A motor adventure. But also on foot, through the jumble of the forests, where you have to grease the paws of Dominican soldiers, the main beneficiaries of border traffic.
For the history and geography teacher in Bas Delmas — stronghold of Jimmy «Barbecue» Chérizier ─, it’s a life preserver on rough seas from gang confrontations with police, kidnapping and burning of businesses this March.
A dive “into the unknown” which, with a little luck, will bring him to Uncle Sam, describes the man, also a communications student at the State University of Haiti (UEH).
It’s a life preserver on rough seas from gang confrontations with police, kidnapping and burning of businesses this March.
Departure is set for dawn on March 20, 2023.
That day, the professor hastily left the stronghold of Barbecuea former police officer who is now a terrifying gang leader, finds a way to Croix-des-Bouquets – stronghold of another gang – to get to Belladère by bus.
For this part of the path, the atmosphere “gives a cold sweat down your back,” he says.
On the bus to Belladère, the passengers look like zombies on their way to purgatory. A heavy silence – disturbed only by the purr of the vehicle’s engine – falls on the passengers, devoured by fear.
“The atmosphere is tense,” the man said. All phones are off.”
The smugglers know the terrain. Each time, the driver pays 10,000 gourdes during the passage between half a dozen toll booths, each with around twenty heavily armed gang members.
Read also: Cornered by bandits, many drivers leave the sector
Around one o’clock in the afternoon, the professor and his traveling companions arrived at Belladère, on the border.
In this town, three Haitian motorcyclists are waiting for them to continue their journey. They plan to bypass a checkpoint at Elías Piña and find a discreet path through a mountain.
The unknown bikers identify the native of Delmas and his companions thanks to photos previously obtained via WhatsApp messaging.
To be able to clandestinely cross the border, “the drivers bribed a Dominican guard post with around 1,000 pesos,” relates the professor.
Illegal payments are only just beginning.
Further on, in the Carisal area, three dangerous toll booths await travelers.
There, hooded individuals, armed with machetes and in a threatening tone, demand money before allowing access, claiming that they themselves dug the road through the mountain.
The drivers agree and pay a few hundred gourdes.
To be able to clandestinely cross the border, “the drivers bribed a Dominican guard post with approximately 1,000 pesos.”
The rest of the way will be uneventful until Elías Piña, reached around 5 p.m.
Arriving late in the city, the small group misses their bus to Santo Domingo.
As the sun slowly goes out, the professor and his three companions decide to rent a small hotel room for the night, at a cost of 40 US dollars.
The establishment includes a dozen narrow rooms. So narrow that some rooms can only accommodate a single bed with unsanitary supplies.
Read also: Renting a house in the Dominican Republic, a real headache for Haitians
The next day, they continued their journey on motorcycles through the town of Elías Piña, in order to avoid various paid checkpoints.
The motorcyclists providing their transport, visibly very young, are hired in advance by the smuggler who organizes the trip.
In some places, these bikers ask passengers to take paths through the forest in order to bypass law enforcement officers.
“At times, they make us hide in dense forests and watch for the arrival of police or migration agents on the roads,” explains the professor.
In some places, these bikers ask passengers to take paths through the forest in order to bypass law enforcement officers.
The traveler claims to have been attacked by a motorcyclist due to the awkward movements of his feet and the latter’s fear of losing his balance on his motorbike as he was traveling at high speed. Additionally, one of his comrades was slapped because he had not properly adjusted his feet on the motorcycle’s footrests.
It’s a relatively mild treatment, compared to what typically happens, according to reports.
Migrants are murdered or brutally attacked.
Dominican drivers often beat passengers while insulting them with racist remarks: “¡Maldito haitiano diablo, coño!” », Testifies the professor, who says he received “a lot of kicks and elbows”.
Then, they arrive at the town of San Juan.
On site, a convoy made up of two recent cars, including a white Kia and a Jeep, awaits other Haitian migrants heading to the capital.
During the journey to Santo Domingo, one car carried seven people and the other around twenty. Some passengers were piled on top of each other, while others were placed inside the trunks of the cars.
Dominican drivers often beat passengers while insulting them with racist remarks: “¡Maldito haitiano diablo, coño!” »
On this route, the smuggler must pay around 1,000 pesos per person to avoid roadside checks. However, he cheats out of paying the full charges for everyone in both vehicles, by lying about their number.
The convoy manages to cross six road checkpoints, with the exception of one last, in a place commonly called “Ti Pilon”, known to be inflexible since the guards do not seem to allow themselves to be bribed, relates the professor.
There, they take the motorbikes again to avoid the checkpoint, then join the cars waiting for them to take them to Santo Domingo. Despite the efforts made, the young professor admits: “At least we are sure to stay alive.”
Hundreds of other Haitians, perhaps thousands, also choose to take this difficult route.
The smugglers know the terrain. Each time, the driver pays 10,000 gourdes during the passage between half a dozen toll booths, each with around twenty heavily armed gang members.
The situation in Haiti remains explosive in the country.
Since February 2023, a coalition of gangs named “Live together ” Directed by Barbecueregularly attacks public and private institutions, forcing the population to flee.
Last March, around 95,000 people left the capital to seek refuge in the south of the country, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The Dominican Republic continues its mass deportations despite widespread paralysis.
In March 2024, according to IOM data 12,598 people were forcibly returned to Haiti at the border points of Ouanaminthe and Belladère.
Despite the unrest in Haiti, the Dominican Republic continues a policy considered hostile, xenophobic and racist towards its neighbor, according to human rights defenders.
Read also: Electoral choices in DR do not delight Dominicans of Haitian ancestry
The country has closed its consulates and repatriated its staff. On March 5, 2024, the Dominican Civil Aviation Councilhas stopped passenger and cargo flight operations to and from Haiti.
Inside the country, racial profiling is intensifying with arbitrary arrests and expulsions, as well as reported cases of rape.
Contacted by AyiboPost, a Haitian smuggler requested 42,500 gourdes to facilitate a trip to the Dominican Republic.
She indicated that she was due to return to Haiti on Wednesday, March 27.
The passenger should also – according to her – have 2,500 gourdes to ensure their travel from Port-au-Prince to the border, with additional costs.
Travelers should minimize their luggage to avoid suspicion, according to the smuggler.
Edwin Paraison, coordinator of the Fondación Zile, confirms the existence of this trafficking and emphasizes that it is a chain of complicity from Haiti to the Dominican Republic. He also points out that authorities on both sides are taking advantage of this situation.
Cover image published by AyiboPost to illustrate the clandestine journey of a man from a district of Port-au-Prince controlled by gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier. Note that the man in the image is not the professor mentioned in the story.
Watch this AyiboPost report on the violence instigated in the Haitian capital by the “Viv Ansanm” gang coalition, led by former police officer Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier:
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