The Biden administration continues to deport Haitian migrants

On April 18, the Biden administration deported roughly 50 Haitians to their country, which is currently experiencing confusion and unrest. Although it was the primary U.S.-initiated deportation flight to Haiti in several months, the move was criticized by several advocacy groups.

As reported by the Associated Press, the United States Department of Homeland Security she indicated that she was guided by her politics the return of non-citizens of the United States who don’t establish a legal basis to remain within the United States to their countries of origin. In an announcement, DHS said it’ll “continue to enforce U.S. laws and policies in the Straits of Florida and the Caribbean region, as well as on the southwest border. It is U.S. policy to return non-citizens who fail to establish a legal basis to remain in the United States.”

The Biden administration was in March sent a letter from over 480 human rights organizations, asking the US government to make several concessions for Haitian migrants. These include the immediate release of currently detained Haitian migrants, a halt to deportations from Haiti, an end to all pending deportations of Haitian migrants, and the creation of a brand new Temporary Protected Status for Haitian migrants that will allow individuals who already live within the United States to remain there.

The letter states that if the United States cannot ensure the security of its residents in Haiti, then the possibilities that the Haitian government will ensure the security of those deported by the US will likely be slim. “If the United States cannot ensure the safety of its personnel in Haiti, it is unlikely that the Government of Haiti will ensure the safety of Haitian citizens.”

Although the United States was unable to return migrants by air to Haiti before April 18, it repatriated them by sea. “Individuals subject to maritime interdiction are subject to immediate repatriation in accordance with our long-standing policies and procedures,” a DHS spokeswoman said. The United States is returning or repatriating maritime intercepted migrants to the Bahamas, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Moreover, U.S. officials note that individuals repatriated by sea to Haiti should not sent to the capital, where there may be essentially the most violence, but to less central areas of Haiti. Advocates for Haitian immigrants say this concession shouldn’t be enough given the widespread violence.

Advocates for Haitian migrants also say it was hypocritical for the United States to refuse to provide TPS to Haitian migrants when the US government expanded this system in the summertime of 2023 to cover Venezuelan migrants, whose conditions were less threatening than those in Haiti.

Gurline Jozef, a human rights activist and co-founder of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, a gaggle that led the human rights organization’s letter, said U.S. claims that accepting Haitian migrants into the TPS system would trigger mass migration are exaggerated.

“Leaving Haiti is almost impossible,” Joseph said. “There is no reason to send anyone anywhere in Haiti right now. They use it as an excuse for the unforgivable. The whole country is unstable.”