Chapter 2 The Right to Nationality and Judgment TC/0168/13 of the Constitutional Court | 47 82. 83. problems are different and should be treated separately and independently, with responses tailored to suit each problem. The Inter-American Commission recognizes that issues related to nationality and immigration are two of the most complex and controversial topic in any society. Over the years, the various forms of discrimination against these two groups have materialized in affairs of state and in relations between private parties, through various measures or the lack thereof. Despite integrating various aspects of their lives into Dominican society, having established their principal family, social, and cultural ties there, Dominicans of Haitian descent nonetheless experience a generalized prejudice that, in the Dominican Republic, is more pervasive against Haitians. For the sake of clarity, it must be emphasized that this is not to say that all Dominican society discriminates against Haitians and persons of Haitian descent. Indeed, aware of this historic problem, a number of actors in Dominican society have worked to promote equal protection without discrimination for these persons for decades. Since the report on its 1991 visit, the Commission observed that children did not have Dominican identification documents because their parents did not have immigration papers. Whether because the hospital officials refused to provide a record of live birth or because civil registry officers refused to register the children and provide them a birth certificate, ultimately the attitude of the State authorities made it virtually impossible for Dominicans of Haitian descent to obtain their Dominican identification documents. The pretext used as far back as 1991 was that the parents were only in possession of a document identifying them as temporary workers, which meant that they were classified as foreigners in transit, despite the fact that they had lived in the Dominican Republic for years. 66 Since that time, the IACHR has maintained that: (…) the prevailing law in the Dominican Republic is that of jus soli, and the exceptions established by the Dominican Constitution in its Article 11 refer to "the legitimate children of foreign residents in the country as diplomatic representatives or individuals in transit in the country." With regard to the second exception, we cannot say that the persons who have been expelled were "in transit," since many of them have lived 20, 30, and even 40 years in the Dominican Republic. 67 84. In 1999, when it discussed this situation again in its Report on the Situation of Human Rights in the Dominican Republic, the Commission observed that one of the main problems for Haitian immigrants in the Dominican Republic was their permanently irregular migratory status. It added that “a large number of Haitians have lived in the Dominican Republic for 20, 30 or more years, without ever having legal status. Many countries grant citizenship after lengthy periods of residency, 66 IACHR, Annual Report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights 1991. OAS/Ser.L/V/II.81 Doc. 6 rev1, th February 14 , 1992 p. 292. IACHR, Annual Report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights 1991. OAS/Ser.L/V/II.81 Doc. 6 rev1, th February 14 , 1992 p. 292. 67 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights | IACHR