Stand Up for Jamaica and Jamaicans for Justice are once again urging the Government to take immediate action to protect the rights of Haitians and ensure they are treated with dignity in accordance with international standards.
On Saturday October 5, 2024, a group of twenty of Haitian refugees landed in Kensington, Portland. On Monday October 7, 2024, the media reported that the twenty refugees were repatriated on Sunday night of October 6th.
JFJ and SUFJ is strongly condemning this move by the authorities as we are seeing once again where Haitians seeking refugee status are being denied to right to refugee status and have their applications duly processed.
We also note with concern that Attorney-at-law Malene Alleyne, Head of Freedom Imaginaries, who has advocated for and supported the rights of Haitian refugees entering the island, was denied access to visit them. This is despite correspondence by Freedom Imaginaries to the Ministry of National Security requesting that the individual protection
needs of each refugee is assessed. These persons now join a pool of over 130 Haitians who have sought asylum since July 2023, most of whom have already been expelled from Jamaica without being granted access to asylum procedures or legal counsel.
The continued undermining Haitians’ legal right to an attorney and due process are
flagrant violations. The lack of access to legal representation and immediate institution of criminal charges makes it nearly impossible for persons to make their intention to seek refugee status, as provided for under Jamaica’s refugee policy of 2009, known.
Local media reports highlight concerns about refugees, including children and pregnant women, being charged with
illegal entry and held in poor conditions. Treated as criminals without any evidence of wrongdoing; and despite fleeing violence, hunger, and instability.
They deserve proper assessments to determine their refugee status rather
than automatic criminalization by Jamaican authorities.
The Government's unempathetic response contrasts with the recognition, both locally and internationally, of Haiti's severe human rights crisis, which has prompted the deployment of national security resources to the region.
Therefore, we call on the Government to launch a full investigation into the treatment of Haitian migrants and asylum seekers in Jamaica, with a view to examining that processes to determine their status are in line with those detailed in our Refugee Policy as well as an examination of reports of abuse and unnecessary or arbitrary detention.
Furthermore, we remind the Government of its obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol, which prohibit deporting individuals to life-threatening conditions. We urge the Government to heed the call from the UN Refugee Agency to suspend the forced return of Haitians and uphold its duty to protect those seeking
refuge from persecution and harm.
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