Making Foreign: Legal Identity, Social Policy and the Contours of Belonging in the Contemporary Dominican Republic Eve Hayes de Kalaf BA(Hons), PgDip, MA A thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Citizenship, Civil Society and Rule of Law at the University of Aberdeen School of Language, Literature, Music and Visual Culture 2018 Declaration Page This thesis has been composed and completed by Eve Hayes de Kalaf. It has not been accepted in any previous application for a degree and is my independent contribution. All quotations have been distinguished by quotation marks and the sources of information specifically acknowledged. Eve L. Hayes de Kalaf ©2018 All Rights Reserved. All translations are author’s own Dedicated to the memory of my friend, colleague and mentor Phillip Wearne who, whenever I wanted to give up, always replied: ‘Kenbe fėm, pa lage!1‘ 1 Hang in there, keep going (Haitian kreyòl). i Abstract This empirical, multidisciplinary study offers a critical perspective into social policy architectures primarily in relation to questions of race, national identity and belonging in the Americas. It is the first to identify a connection between the universal provision of legal identity in the Dominican Republic with arbitrary measures to restrict access to citizenship paperwork from populations of (largely, but not exclusively) Haitian descent. The study highlights the current gap in global policy that overlooks the possible alienating effects of social inclusion measures, particularly in countries that discriminate against migrant-descended populations. It also supports concerns in scholarship regarding the dangers of identity management, noting that as administrative systems improve, new insecurities and uncertainties can develop (Seltzer and Anderson, 2001; Bigo, 2006; Lyon, 2009). The project therefore serves as a warning about the potential use of social policy architectures for authoritarian practices. In this regard, it offers a timely critique of global policy measures to provide all people everywhere with a legal identity in the run-up to the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). ii Table of Contents MAKING FOREIGN: LEGAL IDENTITY, SOCIAL POLICY AND THE CONTOURS OF BELONGING IN THE CONTEMPORARY DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ..................... I DECLARATION PAGE .................................................................................................... II ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................... II LIST OF IMAGES AND TABLES ........................................................................................ VI ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................. VII LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................... XI GLOSSARY OF DOMINICAN TERMS AND PHRASES ...................................................... XVI CHAPTER 1 LEGAL IDENTITY: AN UNDER-APPRECIATED REVOLUTION .......... 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 1 1.1 UNDER-REGISTRATION IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN ........................... 6 1.2 HOW LEGAL IDENTITY IS DEFINED AND WHAT IT PROMISES ................................... 7 1.3 LEGAL IDENTITY: A PASSPORT TO PROTECTION? ................................................... 11 1.4 PERMANENTLY FOREIGN? NATURE AND SCOPE OF THE DOMINICAN CASE ............ 17 1.5 INCLUSION OF THE EXCLUDED: PRINCIPAL THEMES AND ISSUES ........................... 21 1.6 RESEARCH QUESTIONS ........................................................................................... 24 1.7 CONTRIBUTION ....................................................................................................... 25 1.8 POSITIONALITY AS A BRITISH-DOMINICAN RESEARCHER ....................................... 26 1.9 CHAPTERS OVERVIEW ............................................................................................ 27 CHAPTER 2 DEHAITIANISING APPROACHES TO THE DOMINICAN CASE: LITERATURE REVIEW AND RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ................................... 34 2.0 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 34 2.1 LEGAL IDENTITY AS A DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION ............ 35 2.2 CURRENT TRENDS IN SCHOLARSHIP ON CITIZENSHIP, NONCITIZENSHIP AND STATELESSNESS ........................................................................................................... 41 2.2.1 A Brief Commentary on Identity Cards, Biometrics and Biopower ........................... 43 2.3 DOMINICAN OR NOT DOMINICAN? RACE, IDENTITY AND BELONGING IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ................................................................................................. 47 2.3.1 Dominicanidad and Antihaitianismo ......................................................................... 50 2.3.2 Haitian-Descended Populations, the Dominican-Haitian Border and the Batey ...... 53 2.3.3 Statelessness, the Right to a Nationality and NGOs .................................................. 56 2.3.4 Haitian-Descended Populations and Access to a Dominican Legal Identity............. 58 2.4 ADDRESSING THE ‘HAITIAN’ QUESTION: OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND LIMITATIONS ........................................................................................................ 61 2.5 ETHICAL CONCERNS, RISK AND SAFETY ................................................................ 66 2.6 CONCLUSION .......................................................................................................... 67 CHAPTER 3 LEGAL IDENTITY, DOCUMENTATION AND SOCIAL POLICY IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN.................................................................. 70 3.0 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 70 3.1 SOCIAL POLICY: A BRIEF OVERVIEW ..................................................................... 72 3.2 TARGETING THE POOR: THE CONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFER (CCT) ..................... 74 3.3 THE ROLE OF DOMINICAN STATE ARCHITECTURES IN DOCUMENTING DOMINICANS ................................................................................................................ 75 3.4 PROBLEMS IDENTIFYING CITIZENS ......................................................................... 84 iii 3.5 DETECTING ‘INCONSISTENCIES’: THE CREATION OF THE SOCIAL CABINET AND THE DATA SWEEP ................................................................................................................ 90 3.6 THE NATIONAL PLAN FOR THE PROVISION OF IDENTITY DOCUMENTS ................... 97 3.7 THE WORLD BANK SOCIAL PROTECTION INVESTMENT LOAN .............................. 102 3.8 THE SOCIAL PROTECTION INVESTMENT PROJECT (CDD-PIPS) ........................... 106 3.9 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................ 110 CHAPTER 4 A LIFE ‘IN TRANSIT’: THE ROLE OF STATE ARCHITECTURES IN IMPEDING ACCESS TO LEGAL IDENTITY DOCUMENTATION FROM DOMINICAN-BORN POPULATIONS ......................................................................... 113 4.0 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 113 4.1 NATIVE-BORN HAITIAN-DESCENDED POPULATIONS IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ................................................................................................................... 115 4.2 ACCESS TO DOCUMENTATION, THE ROLE OF DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL NGOS AND THE INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM ............................................................... 119 4.3 RECTIFYING ‘ADMINISTRATIVE OVERSIGHTS’: GENERAL MIGRATION LAW 285-04 AND THE REGISTRY OF FOREIGNERS .......................................................................... 125 4.4 ‘CLEANING UP’ THE CIVIL REGISTRY: ADMINISTRATIVE AND BUREAUCRATIC CHALLENGES TO LEGAL IDENTITY DOCUMENTATION ................................................ 128 4.5 AN END TO JUS SOLI CITIZENSHIP: THE 2010 DOMINICAN CONSTITUTION AND THE CONSTITUTIONAL TRIBUNAL SENTENCIA 168-13 ........................................................ 135 4.6 NATURALISING CITIZENS: LAW 169-14 ................................................................ 138 4.7 THE NATIONAL REGULARIZATION PLAN FOR FOREIGNERS IN AN IRREGULAR MIGRATORY SITUATION (PNRE) ............................................................................... 141 4.8 A NEW EXPRESSION OF DOMINICANIDAD: LAUNCH OF THE NEW BIOMETRIC CÉDULA ..................................................................................................................... 143 4.9 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................ 146 CHAPTER 5 THE PENDULUM SWINGS TOO FAR: STAKEHOLDER RESPONSES TO THE EXPANSION OF LEGAL IDENTITY ........................................................... 148 5.0 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 148 5.1 PART I FIELDWORK ANALYSIS: METHODOLOGY AND KEY INFORMANTS ............. 149 5.2 THE WHITE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM: THE USE OF SOCIAL POLICY AND TARGETING MECHANISMS TO IDENTIFY POOR DOMINICANS ......................................................... 157 5.3 CLOSING THE ‘GAPS’: THE EXPANSION OF THE DOMINICAN SOCIAL CABINET