Jamaican deportees in Eswatini decline return to Jamaica, says Johnson Smith

KINGSTON, Jamaica—Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator Kamina Johnson Smith says her ministry has made contact with two of three Jamaican men deported from the United States to Eswatini, however, they have advised that they do not wish to return to Jamaica at this time.

Senator Johnson Smith in a press release on Thursday, said the ministry received an official report from the Consulate General of Jamaica at Miami following a telephone call initiated by one of the men, who was accompanied on the call by his attorney. A second Jamaican national subsequently joined the call.

During the discussion, the men were reportedly advised of the consular assistance available to them and of the Government’s readiness to facilitate their return to Jamaica. They were also reportedly advised that the Government of Jamaica could not determine their immigration status in the United States or secure their return there. However, both men reportedly maintained that they do not wish to return to Jamaica.

Johnson Smith further advised that Jamaica’s High Commission in Pretoria, South Africa, which is accredited to the Kingdom of Eswatini, is continuing efforts to establish direct contact with the third Jamaican national.

The ministry said its engagement follows earlier outreach by the Jamaican Embassy in Washington, DC

to the relevant authorities in the United States, seeking information on the circumstances of the men’s removal to Eswatini, as well as formal representations by the High Commission in Pretoria to the Government of Eswatini.

The ministry said its consular support remains available in this matter and more broadly, to Jamaican nationals overseas whose circumstances may require its intervention.

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