Thursday, September 7, 2023, the meeting between the Haitian and Dominican authorities on the issue of closing the Dajabón border post and stopping the digging of a water diversion canal from the Massacre River to Haitian territory for irrigation purposes, was concluded without any agreement.

At the end of the meeting, Luma Demetrius, the mayor of Ounaminthe explained that during the meeting, they discovered that the work is not viable because "certain technical aspects" are missing. He promised to bring this concern to the farmers carrying out the project so that the observations are taken into account and do not affect either Nation.

Demetrius also expressed his country's willingness to correct the necessary defects and continue work on the waterway, considering that the construction of the canal is legal and necessary to irrigate agricultural lands on the border.

The Dominicans did not make any statements to the press following the meeting, but maintained the closure of the Dajabón border (North), where commercial activity is the most important between the two Nations from the island.

Furthermore, the same day troops and armored equipment were sent as reinforcements and deployed in the northern zone of the border with Haiti, the Dominican Government maintaining its opposition to the resumption of the construction of a canal on the Haitian side for the diversion of water from the Massacre River which divides the two countries.

Some Dominican media had reported that after the border was closed, the construction of the canal had been stopped, which in the confusion turned out to be false, the canal construction site continued.

Dominican authorities assure that the construction of the canal is the work of Haitian businessmen whose objective is to sell canal water to Haitian farmers.

"Prime Minister a.i. Ariel Henry expressed his concern about this construction. He also indicated that a delegation from the (Haitian) Ministry of the Interior had been sent there to seek a definitive solution to this situation. Henry was categorical and affirmed that the project was not governmental," recalls the official Dominican communication.

Read also on the Haiti Irrigation Canal affair :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-40406-haiti-politic-the-dr-asks-haiti-to-stop-the-resumption-of-work-on-the-diversion-channel-of-the-massacre-river.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-36174-haiti-politic-claude-joseph-deplores-the-stoppage-of-the-construction-of-the-irrigation-canal-of-the-massacre-river.html

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-34875-icihaiti-rd-resumption-of-works-of-the-massacre-river-irrigation-canal.html

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-34389-icihaiti-dr-stop-in-haiti-of-the-construction-of-the-canal-to-collect-water-from-the-massacre-river.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33974-haiti-dr-the-construction-of-the-haitian-canal-on-the-massacre-river-on-the-way-to-becoming-an-international-affair.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33953-haiti-flash-dominican-geologist-osiris-de-leon-denies-haiti-s-assertions.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33945-haiti-flash-canal-on-the-massacre-river-in-haiti-dominican-president-abinader-raises-the-tone.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33854-haiti-flash-president-abinader-announces-the-construction-of-a-dam-on-the-artibonite-river-in-dominican-soil.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33823-haiti-agriculture-diversion-of-the-massacre-river-in-search-of-a-solution-with-the-dr.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33596-haiti-flash-conflict-with-the-dr-over-a-canal-diverting-the-massacre-river-to-haiti.html

SL/ HaitiLibre