Dominican Republic authorities expelled 1,800 children to Haiti without their families

Dominican Republic authorities have expelled around 1,800 Haitian migrant children this year without their families, sending them back to a country in crisis, UNICEF said on Wednesday.

The Dominican Republic, which shares a 240-mile (390-kilometer) border with Haiti, denied the claim, despite intensifying its crackdown on the influx of Haitian migrants during the last few months. 

Haiti has been plagued by violent gang wars that have left many without a home, scarcity of basic goods, and a cholera outbreak this year, prompting many to seek refuge in their neighboring country. 

Among those fleeing the crisis-stricken country are minors. According to UNICEF, Dominican authorities are sending the minors back to Haiti through different border points without adult company and are being received by UNICEF partners at the border. 

According to an exclusive report by CNN, many of the children are being deported without any documentation among adult deportees. It is unclear if the minors arrived in the Dominican Republic alone or were separated from their families during their journey. 

The recent crackdown on Haitian migrants has brought criticism by international observers, who accuse Dominican authorities of mass deportations, racial profiling, and detaining migrants in facilities with poor conditions, reported The Associated Press. 

The U.S. Embassy in Santo Domingo warned that “darker-skinned Americans” could face “increased interaction” with authorities in the country as they continue to crack down on migrants. 

“There are reports that detainees are held in overcrowded detention centers, without the ability to challenge their detention and without access to food or toilets, sometimes for days, before being released or deported to Haiti,” the U.S. notice added.

Around 43,900 migrants have been deported from the Dominican Republic between July and October, according to figures from the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In September and October, deportation numbers increased by 50%.