Thousands of Haitians leave Dominican Republic to avoid deportation

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, June 17 (UPI) -- Thousands of Haitians are leaving the Dominican Republican to avoid possible deportation as a Dominican government immigration program ends Wednesday.

There are more than 500,000 Haitians estimated to be living within the Dominican Republic, making up the largest group of foreigners in the country. Government officials expect to grant legal status to about 200,000 Haitians who have signed up to the Dominican government's National Plan for Foreigner Regularization.

Haitians who applied to the government program will receive either permanent residency or a temporary work visa. Since Tuesday, it is reported that many Haitians have been boarding buses heading to the border. The Dominican government may start deporting undocumented immigrants from Haiti after 45 days, leading many Haitians to leave voluntarily.

The departure of Haitian workers will affect the agriculture sector of the Dominican Republic greatly, as about 50 percent of Haitian agriculture workers, about 200,000, could potentially leave. Some segments of the country's agriculture industry are made up of about 70 percent Haitian labor. Banana and livestock production will be the most impacted by the Haitian departure.

The 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti in 2010 and killed up to 316,000 people also displaced 1.5 million people initially. Thousands left Haiti to settle in the Dominican Republic, regardless of legal status. The earthquake is not the only reason some Haitians choose to leave, as many are economic immigrants. The Haitian government is also accused of corruption and instability, which decreases the confidence of its constituents who may seek elsewhere to live.