Saturday September 9, 2023, after the inauguration of a polytechnic school in Santiago. President Luis Abinader recognized during a press briefing that the closure of the Dajabón border passenger affects commercial exchanges between the two countries, but that "national security comes first" adding "The northern zone of the Dominican border with Haiti will remain closed until the Government of Haiti reacts to the construction of the canal on the Haitian side..."

Let's remember that the Dominican-Haitian border has been closed at Dajabón since September 6 due to existing tensions between the two countries, after the reactivation of the digging of a water diversion canal from the Massacre River towards Haitian territory for irrigation purposes, by businessmen whom President Abinader described as uncontrollable."

This work, according to the Dominican Government, would violate the Treaty of Peace, Perpetual Friendship and Arbitration of 1929, the Border Agreement of 1935 and the Border Revision Protocol of 1936, signed by the two countries,

The binational market which is held on Mondays and Fridays in Dajabón did not operate on Friday. Although this measure has been in force since Wednesday September 6, dozens of Haitians presented themselves at the Ounaminthe bridge which gives access to Dominican territory to stock up on food (chicken, eggs, sausages, bananas, green bananas, vegetables, flour and others...), the food security of Haitians living in the North-East of Haiti depends on the Dajabón market. They also buy items for personal hygiene and others.

The president of the Dajabón Merchants Association, Abigail Bueno, reiterated her support for the government measure, even if Dominican merchants are strongly affected "Even though there are already a lot of losses, we understand that there are acts as a measure to defend our sovereignty."

Many trucks loaded with various materials intended for businesses in Haiti are stuck in a long line in the hope of the opening of the border...

Also read about the Haiti Irrigation Canal affair :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-40450-haiti-flash-diversion-channel-the-dominican-republic-sends-armored-vehicles-to-the-northern-border-with-haiti.html

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