Jamaica’s government has been accused of violating international law following its hasty decision to repatriate the latest batch of 36 Haitians in just under 24 hours after they arrived on the island.
According to the Ministry of National Security, following the completion of immigration and security checks, the group was denied entry based on the vetting process.
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“The GOJ is in dialogue with the Government in Haiti and arrangements have been made with the relevant authorities in Haiti to facilitate the group’s safe return,” a ministry statement read.
The group landed at Long Bay, Portland about 6 am Saturday. By early Sunday morning they were being placed aboard a vessel to be returned to Haiti.
This has not gone down well with human rights group Freedom Imaginaries which has accused the Andrew Holness-led government of sending the Haitians home “under the cover of darkness”.
The group has expressed “deep concern” with what it deems as the “forced return of the second group of Haitian migrants who landed in Portland” on Saturday.
Founder, Malene Alleyne has contended that the actions were “without due process, in blatant disregard of United Nations (UN) advisories and international law”. She argued that the government’s decision to return the Haitians without due process could have been a deliberate effort to impede their access to legal support and information on their rights.
She has also written to the prime minister outlining her concerns.
“We are also concerned that this decision could be indicative of an emerging policy of draconian responses to vulnerable Haitian migrants in an unlawful attempt to deter future flows of Haitians to Jamaica,” Alleyne stated.
“This is a flagrant violation of Jamaica’s obligations under international law. The 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol prohibit the forced removal of people to a place where they may face risk of persecution, torture or other serious or irreparable harm. This entails a requirement that Haitian migrants must have access to efficient procedures that guarantee an individualized evaluation of protection needs,” Alleyne noted.
Alleyne was ignored by the government who claimed that it sent the Haitians home because “it was found that there were members who had been previously removed from Jamaica for breaches of entry”.
