Watchdog reports forced labor persists in DR sugarcane

A peer-reviewed investigation by Corporate Accountability Lab found ongoing forced labor on Central Romana Corporation’s sugarcane plantations in the Dominican Republic, affecting up to about 8,000 workers, many of whom are Haitian migrants or stateless. The plantations are a major source of sugar exports to the United States, the country’s largest market, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection previously banned imports from Central Romana in 2022 for abusive practices, a ban that was reversed last year under the Trump administration. The report highlights ownership ties between Central Romana and influential U.S. figures, including President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and the Florida-based Fanjul Corp. Civil society groups describe wages below the minimum, cramped housing lacking basic services, and abuses including forced overtime and retaliation against workers. The groups are calling for the U.S. to reinstate the import ban and for Central Romana to improve labor rights, enroll workers in social security, ensure fair wages, and allow independent unions. Lawmakers have pressed for more transparency over the reversal of the ban, warning that trade policy should not be swayed by politically connected interests.