SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) – Authorities are prepared to resume deporting non-citizens without legal residency in the Dominican Republic after largely putting the practice on hold for a year, the head of the country’s immigration agency said Tuesday.
Army Gen. Ruben Paulino said his agency, with help from the military, will begin patrolling neighborhoods with large numbers of migrants Thursday, following the expiration of a deadline for non-citizens without legal residency to register to adjust their status under an initiative begun last year.
“If they aren’t registered, they will be repatriated,” Paulino said.
His remarks seemed to contradict a statement from Interior Minister Ramon Fadul, who had said there would be no mass deportations or sweeps when the deadline for registration expired Wednesday evening.
Paulino, however, said that his agency has 12 buses, seven light trucks and two ambulances ready for migration patrols and that agents and soldiers have been given additional training in human rights in preparation for deportation operations.