This Monday, Events Editor Alison Hog attended the first of Columbia’s World Leaders Forum events: a conversation with President Abinader Corona, the president of the Dominican Republic.

Columbia’s World Leaders Forum (WLF) is arguably one of the most important events hosted by the University. Founded by former Columbia President Lee Bollinger in 2003, it strives to create a space where members of the Columbia community can annually come together to engage with world leaders of all fields. This year’s World Leaders Forum was significant to the extent that, following Bollinger’s term, it was the first one under President Minouche Shafik.

The opening event for this year’s World Leaders Forum was a conversation with the current president of the Dominican Republic Luis Abinader. Co-sponsored by Columbia Global and the Institute of Latin American Studies, it took place this Monday, September 18 at Low Library Rotunda.

President Abinader, who was scheduled to attend the WLF last year but could not make it because of Hurricane Fiona, engaged in conversation with Maria Victoria Murillo, the Director of ILAS and the moderator of the event, and students in attendance.

The excitement in the room while waiting for the event to begin was palpable, particularly from students from the Dominican Republic who joined together for a photo to commemorate the moment. Once President Abinader finally made an appearance, the entire room erupted into applause. 

In attendance were also other members of the Dominican government including the Minister of Economy, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Ambassador to the United Nations. 

President Shafik opened the event by delivering some words acknowledging the history of the WLF and introducing President Abinader. Shafik made sure to highlight the ties between Columbia and the Dominican Republic—from the faculty to the students, and from the courses offered to the research conducted in all fields. 

President Shafik then turned the podium over to President Abinader. Throughout his speech, he generously focused on highlighting his country’s, particularly his government’s, multiple successes—substantial infrastructure development, improvement of renewable energy, successful recovery from the pandemic, steps against corruption, a thriving tourism industry. 

While President Abinader listed the many accomplishments that his government has completed over the years, there was one that was kept at the front and center of his speech: economic growth. His philosophy? “To drive the private sector, to drive the creation of jobs.” As evidence of this, President Abinader, for instance, stated that the Dominican Republic was the country that grew the most in Latin America in 2021.

President Abinader claimed to be hopeful about the future of his country. “It doesn’t mean that we don’t have any problems, we have a lot of problems to resolve (…) The most important thing is a curve upwards of development in our country.”

President Abinader then took a seat to start the interview section with Professor Victoria Murillo. Murillo’s first question revolved around President Abinader’s steps toward ending corruption, which is an issue that has undoubtedly plagued the island for many years, and the lessons he has learned on the way. Impressively enough, the Dominican Republic is the country in the region that has improved the most in terms of the index of transparency. While decisions are “tough,” particularly because of the small size of the island, President Abinader considers it  worth it as “at the end, this is to survive.” Corruption is unacceptable, even within his own party, and transparency must be at the forefront. 

After discussing President Abinader’s plans to continue growing economically in a sustainable way, Murillo’s final question revolved around a current, complicated issue that the island currently faces: the heightened migration to the Dominican Republic from Haiti, its neighbor, and the recent closing of the border.

President Abinader claimed that both the people of the Dominican Republic and Haiti have been living in peace for years while acknowledging the “difficulties” that exist—namely, the high levels of poverty in Haiti and the deep political crisis it faces.

“We have not changed any migration policies. What we are doing is just to protect our country from the bands and the gangs that are in parts of the territory, and also for political extremism that does not respect even the Haitian government,” President Abinader explained. He then went on to claim that 34% of the maternity beds and 16% of the health system are occupied by Haitians. 

“The international community has to go and help them,” President Abinader stated in response to criticism. “The solution of Haiti is not in the Dominican Republic.”

Students were then allowed to ask questions. Once again, Haiti was at the heart of the conversation. A student inquired about how the government’s decision to close the borders has affected the livelihood of people from both territories. While President Abinader acknowledged the impact on the economy, particularly commerce, he declared that for him, what is important is to keep those extreme groups not affiliated with the Haitian government out of their borders. Security, for him, trumps economic measures.

“We have to take these drastic measures that nobody wants, especially not me (…) And we are looking for other alternatives but is necessary for the security of our country at this moment,” President Abinader confessed. 

A moment of tension was reached when one student confronted President Abinader about alleged colorism evidenced in the “maltreatment of Haitian people, especially pregnant Haitian people already in the Dominican Republic (…) along with homophobic and transphobic laws and attitudes.”

President Abinader responded to these accusations by arguing that there has “never been an issue of race” in his country, at least in a widespread way, which can be attributed to the fact that “85% of the Dominican people are mixed race.” The student interjected to deny his answer. President Abinader cited his country’s aid to Haitian mothers in hospitals, claiming that there is “no other country in the world with these statistics.” The student, once again, intervened mid-answer to argue that there are records of mistreatment in these hospitals. After President Abinader asserted that these were just her opinions, rather than facts, the student proceeded to walk away. 

One final student touched on the Haiti case by asking, “How are we going to mitigate closing borders to protect the country, but still make sure that Haitians are not being severely affected economically?” President Abinader, relentlessly, insisted that the government of Haiti needs to pacify its territory and only after that, a process of collaboration can happen. 

As evidenced by this first event with President Abinader, the World Leaders Forum is a unique opportunity for students of the University to engage with different leaders in a direct way. It provides an enriching experience for all members of the community, offering organized spaces to discuss current topics pertaining to nations worldwide.

Watch the event video on the Columbia University World Leaders Forum website, here.

President Abinader and Professor Murillo at the World Leaders Forum event via Alison Hog