Marchers urge Canada to take action against Dominican Republic’s Haitian deportations

MONTREAL – Politicians and activists are hoping to pressure the Canadian government into taking action to help Haitians who they say are facing deportation in the Dominican Republic.

Dozens of people took part in a march Saturday afternoon in Montreal to denounce the Dominican Republic’s decision to deport Haitians who had their citizenship revoked in 2013.

An organizer said hundreds of thousands of descendents of Haitians became stateless when the Dominican ruled that children of undocumented migrants were no longer citizens, and many were not able to apply for residency despite a government program allowing them to do so.

The march’s organizers have written letters to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to ask him to denounce the deportations, and a Parti Quebecois MNA will introduce a motion in Quebec’s legislature this fall.

Marchers are also calling for Canadians to boycott travelling to the Dominican Republic or purchasing products from the country.

Other marches of solidarity have been held in cities including Toronto, New York, Miami and Paris.