Under the theme "Conviviality and cooperation for better bi-national relations", the 7th edition of Diaspora Week in the Dominican Republic, considered as the most important event of the community, will be held from April 13 to 20 in 5 Dominican cities Santiago, La Altagracia, Dajabón, Barahona and Santo-Domingo and aims to project another image on Haiti and the Haitians in Dominican society and in the world

A team of multidisciplinary experts from the Zile (Island) Foundation has begun working on the set up of the activities planned for the celebration of the day of the Haitian Diaspora in the Dominican Republic, on April 20th.

Edwin Paraison, Executive Director of the Foundation along with members of the Coordinating Committee of Dominicans and Local Haitians and also living in the United States, Canada and some Caribbean islands began work on editing activities that will last a week which will begin on April 13th. More than 25 activities ranging from a football tournament to thematic conferences, cultural performances, radio and television programs are planned in the Program.

An innovation this year, all activities will be broadcast live on social networks with the possibility for participants on site and Internet users to interact from anywhere in the world. Two Haitian filmmakers Raynald Delerme and Watson Balmir, members of the committee, offered their help to make this point a reality.

The Haitian diaspora, who also understand his descendants born in Dominican territory, "is necessary to the Dominican economy since the late 1880s," says a Zile Foundation document of this meeting that highlights that "The Zile Foundation since its inception in May 2005 understood the need to contribute to a better understanding of the migrations that occur at the island level, being the two countries that send migrants to other destinations. The document also recalls that this objective is relevant if we take into account the sometimes conflictual historical past between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, as well as the manipulation of the migration issue by certain sectors.

This week of the Haitian diaspora in the Dominican Republic will be carried out in partnership with the diplomatic missions in coordination with other Haitian and Dominican state entities.

The project of a lunch between the two heads of state of the island, not concretized last year because of the political context, will be relaunched this year.

The Diaspora Week will end on April 20th with the Diaspora Awards in 13 categories.

SL/ HaitiLibre