Liberia, a West African country, announced on Tuesday (August 18) that it has agreed to receive up to 1200 third-country deportees from the United States within the next 12 months.
The Liberian government stated that the first flight carrying 20 deportees is set to arrive on Thursday (August 20), but initially did not disclose the nationalities of these returnees.
The U.S. government issued a statement on the 18th saying that the deportees are from “African and Western Hemisphere countries,” without specifying which countries. The State Department also did not provide detailed information about the nationalities of the deportees.
Liberia’s Minister of Information, Jerolinmek Piah, told Reuters on the same day that the majority of illegal immigrants deported from the U.S. to Liberia come from Latin American countries such as Cuba and Venezuela. Authorities are preparing to receive the first deportation flight on August 20.
Piah stated, “Most of them are from Latin American countries, some from Venezuela, Cuba, Colombia, and other countries.” He mentioned that the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the UN Refugee Agency will assist Liberia in providing services similar to those offered to other African countries.
In most cases, individuals deported to a third country would receive legal protection from being returned to their home country after a U.S. immigration judge determines that they face risks of torture or other abuse in their home country. Washington asserts that these agreements to deport to third countries are legal, but human rights organizations and advocates argue that the details of the agreements are opaque, with many deportees ultimately being sent back to their home countries.
Liberia government stated on Tuesday that the deportees will be received as “guests”, and they are free to leave at any time or apply for asylum in Liberia.
The country’s statement mentioned that Monrovia, the capital of Liberia, has not requested compensation but will receive support to “assist in managing the program and more broadly strengthen the immigration system.”
The U.S. has allocated $5 million to Liberia this year for immigration management.
(Reference: Reuters)