10 petitioners that are consistent and in agreement with the evidence available and patterns and context that the Commission has confirmed and that the State has not contested by supplying concrete and sufficient evidence to the contrary. 55. Having made this clarification, the Commission will examine the following points under the chapter on “THE FACTS”: A) Laws and regulations governing the alleged victims’ deportation processes; B) The expulsion of the alleged victims and their situation; C) The situation of the alleged victims subsequent to the expulsions and affected family members; D) The context of massive deportations of Haitians and Dominican-Haitians from the Dominican Republic to Haiti; and E)The difficulties of registering children of Haitian descent born in Dominican territory. A. Framework of laws that apply to the alleged victims’ deportation processes 56. The alleged victims were expelled from the Dominican Republic to Haiti between 1994 and 2000. The following are provisions of the laws in force in the Dominican Republic at the time of the facts alleged in this case. 57. Article 11 of the Constitution of the Dominican Republic 12 provided that Dominicans were: All persons born in the territory of the Republic, with the exception of the legitimate children of diplomats or other people who are “in transit” in the Republic. […] Naturalized citizens. The law shall prescribe the conditions and formalities that must be observed for naturalization. 58. The relevant clauses of Article 8 of the Constitution of the Dominican Republic 13 were as follows: 2.b. No one shall be imprisoned or deprived of his liberty except by a reasoned, written order from a competent judicial authority, except in a case of flagrante delicto. 2.c. Any person deprived of his liberty without cause, without the legal formalities, or for a cause other than those prescribed by law, shall be immediately released either at his own request or at the request of any other person. 2.d. Any person deprived of his liberty shall be brought before the competent judicial authority within forty-eight hours of his detention; failing that, he shall be released. 2.e. An arrest shall be either nullified or the person arrested shall be taken to prison within fortyeight hours of being brought before the competent judicial authority; within that forty-eight hour period, the interested party shall be notified of the measure ordered in his case. 2.g. Any person who has a detained person in his custody shall be required to present said person as soon as the competent authority so demands. The Habeas Corpus Act shall determine the procedure to be followed to rapidly comply with the provisions set forth in letters a), b), c), d), e), f) and g) and shall determine the appropriate sanctions. 2.j. No one shall be judged without being heard or summoned and without following the legally prescribed procedures to ensure an impartial trial and the right of defense. Hearings shall be public, except in those cases that the law establishes, in cases in which the publicity would be detrimental to public law and order or good custom. 12 1994 Constitution of the Dominican Republic. Available [in Spanish] at: http://pdba.georgetown.edu/Constitutions/DomRep/domrep94.html#mozTocId177135. Translation ours. 13 1994 Constitution of the Dominican Republic. Available http://pdba.georgetown.edu/Constitutions/DomRep/domrep94.html#mozTocId177135. Translation ours. [in Spanish] at: