Where Data Tells the Story
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Eight men deported from the U.S. arrived in South Sudan on Friday after being held for weeks in Djibouti while their legal process was carried out in court. South Sudan is on the United State’s no-travel list due to “crime, kidnapping and armed conflict.” The eight had been convicted of violent crimes in the U.S. and had either completed or been near the end of finishing their sentences.
The group had initially been sent towards South Sudan in May. However, they were redirected to Djibouti when Judge Brian E. Murphy in Boston said that the men were not given “meaningful opportunity” to object that the deportation could put them in danger. According to AP, the group was flown out of the U.S. just hours after receiving notice with no chance to contact lawyers. Last week, the supreme court overturned Judge Murphy's ruling.
The case is being compared to the UK’s highly-criticized and now abandoned Rwanda deal, as South Sudan is not the country of origin for all of the men but rather a ‘third-country’. While one of the eight is from South Sudan, the others are from Cuba, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar and Vietnam. U.S. authorities state that most of the men’s home countries had refused to accept them.
According to reporting by The New York Times, the U.S. is intending to expand its network for third country deportations, having asked or planned to ask at least 58 countries to take in people who are not their citizens. So far, eight countries have reportedly accepted the offer: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Kosovo, Mexico, Panama, Rwanda and now South Sudan.
Nations earmarked by the Trump administration as possible additional places for deportations include Ukraine and Syria. However, as this chart shows, the majority of the 51 nations cited by the NYT are in Africa (31 countries), including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Libya. Many of these countries are subject to a new full or partial travel ban to the U.S. or are being considered for one.
Previous deportations of nationals to third countries have already taken place this year. This includes the more than 130 Venezuelans sent to an El Salvador prison and an estimated 200 migrants, including 80 children, from countries including Afghanistan, Russia, China and India, sent to Costa Rica.