A/HRC/34/73 Rights Committee also recommended that Haiti should “ensure that no persons are evicted from the camps unless another solution has been found for them and their families and that all persons displaced by the earthquake are able to benefit from lasting solutions”.29 2. Statelessness and the rights of Haitians and persons of Haitian origin migrating from the Dominican Republic 88. In his previous reports, the Independent Expert has commented on the need to protect Haitians and persons of Haitian origin living in the Dominican Republic whose rights, including the right to a nationality, are not respected or even recognized. These people are at risk of being deported and ending up stateless in Haiti. The Government stated that “these persons benefit from the principle of jus sanguinis” and that “the Government has always provided a birth certificate to Haitians who did not have one.”30 However, there is still a need to take special legal measures to recognize the rights of these persons in Haiti more effectively, since they encounter practical difficulties in proving their right to Haitian nationality. 89. In March 2016, the Independent Expert visited Ouanaminthe, on the northern border, where a considerable number of Haitian nationals have been deported since August 2015. In February 2016, there were approximately 2,500 deportees (including some 300 adult women and over 150 minors). They were, for the most part, agricultural workers taken in by Haitian public, civil and religious organizations, which did an admirable job in very difficult circumstances. The Independent Expert learned that the deportation of unaccompanied minors was continuing. He reiterates his call for the Haitian authorities to take measures to prevent this from occurring and to improve the State’s capacity to guarantee the rights of individuals who have ties, albeit difficult to prove, to Haitian society. 90. The Independent Expert was informed by the Haitian authorities that relations with the Dominican Republic had improved during the course of 2016 and he encourages them to seize the opportunity to improve the legal status of persons of Haitian origin living in the neighbouring country so as to afford their rights stronger protection. 91. It is reassuring to know that, in the end, the Government of Haiti did not oppose the recommendation made to it during its universal periodic review to update the memorandum of understanding with the Dominican Republic on repatriation mechanisms in accordance with international standards or the recommendation to issue documents to persons of Haitian origin living in the Dominican Republic in order to regularize their status and thus avoid deportations, in coordination with the International Organization for Migration. 31 The Independent Expert invites the Haitian authorities to discuss with him the reasons for the Government’s initial refusal to accept these recommendations during the review. 3. Victims of cholera 92. Another situation that needs to be resolved urgently is that of the victims of cholera. According to the most conservative figures, 9,415 people have died of cholera and more than 792,153 have been infected since October 2010.32 The situation worsened towards the end of 2016 owing to the passage of Hurricane Matthew, which led to an increase in the number of victims and allowed the epidemic to spread by making it more difficult to control. 93. The Independent Expert, like his predecessor, has invited the United Nations to act commensurately with the seriousness of the problem and its responsibilities. To this end, the Independent Expert has proposed establishing a truth, justice and redress commission 29 30 31 32 16 See CCPR/C/HTI/CO/1, para. 18. “Response of the Government of Haiti to the report of the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Haiti”, para. 4. A/HRC/34/14, paras. 116 and 117. Ministry of Public Health and Population, case report, 1 Sep. 2016, see http://mspp.gouv.ht/site/downloads/Rapport%20Web%2001.09.2016_Avec_Courbes_Departementale s(1).pdf. GE.17-03747