Dominican border town tense as arsonists torch offices

Dajabón, Dominican Republic.- Car tires and debris were torched in front of the local Border Solidarity offices in Dajabón Tuesday morning by a group of unidentified arsonists, some of tem allegedly involved in the bi-national market held in that border city every Monday and Friday.

The arson was in apparent reprisal for the protest headed by Border Solidarity coordinator Regino Martinez, who requests that hundreds of undocumented Haitians be allowed to cross the border into Dominican Republic, where they allegedly have jobs to return to, after spending the holidays in their country.

“It was a criminal action by outlaws looking to burn down the building belonging to the Catholic Church, a repudiated fact which didn’t materialize because of the rapid response of this city’s Fire Department,” Border Solidarity said in a statement.

It said the arsonists, to commit the crime, set fire to eight tires, but weren’t able to torch the garage where the institution’s more than 10 motorcycles are stored.

"It w??as a conspiracy, so both the Police and the provincial prosecutor must arrest them and bring them to justice to answer for the damage caused," Border Solidarity said, adding that witnesses to the incident affirmed that the group of outlaws sought to set fire to the motorcycles stored in the garage, but got scared and hurled a burning tire at the building’s main entrance and fled the scene.