PNP Women’s Movement demands answers on reported Third Country Nationals Arrangement

The PNP Women’s Movement is calling on the Government to provide immediate answers regarding reports that Jamaica may be participating in a Third-Country Nationals (TCN) arrangement with the United States.

Reports suggest that a senior Jamaican Government official volunteered Jamaica’s participation in such a programme. If true, Jamaicans deserve to know why.

Our concerns are heightened by comments made by United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio in an April 2025 interview, in which he stated that the United States was seeking countries willing to accept individuals he described as “perverts, paedophiles and child rapists” and “some of the most despicable human beings.”

If that is how the United States views the individuals it is seeking to remove from its territory, then the Government must explain why Jamaica would seek to become a destination under such an arrangement.

As women, mothers, caregivers and community leaders, we are particularly concerned about the implications for the safety and wellbeing of women and children.

The Government must answer the following questions:

• Did a Jamaican Government official volunteer Jamaica’s participation in this arrangement?
• What national interest is being served by Jamaica’s involvement?
• What categories of individuals could be transferred to Jamaica?
• Will persons convicted of sexual offences against children or other serious crimes be eligible for transfer?
• What vetting and screening processes will be conducted before any individual is accepted?
• Which Jamaican agencies will be responsible for monitoring and supervising those transferred?
• What safeguards will be put in place to protect women, children and vulnerable communities?
• What financial and social costs would Jamaica be expected to bear?
• If, as Secretary Rubio indicated, these are individuals whom the United States is unable to return to their countries of origin, how does the Government reconcile that reality with Minister Chang’s assertion that 94 per cent will ultimately return to their home countries?

These questions are even more urgent in light of statements indicating that individuals transferred under such an arrangement would not necessarily be detained but could live within Jamaican communities.