The arrival in Eswatini of five "criminal illegal aliens" deported from the US under Washington's tough anti-immigrant measures has sparked a rare wave of public dissent in the small African kingdom. Rights groups and the main opposition party are concerned over the lack of transparency involved in the operation.
The five, nationals of Vietnam, Laos, Yemen, Cuba and Jamaica, were flown to Eswatini's administrative capital of Mbabane on 16 July on a US military plane and imprisoned after US authorities labelled them "criminal illegal aliens".
The US Department of Homeland Security said the men were convicted of violent crimes "so uniquely barbaric that their home countries refused to take them back".
Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, is Africa’s last absolute monarchy and has been ruled by King Mswati III since 1986.
The government has confirmed the men's presence. They are being held in the Matsapha Correctional Centre, 30 kms south of Mbabane.
The facility, notorious for holding political prisoners and overcrowding, has been undergoing renovations and expansions since 2018, reportedly funded by the United States as part of a programme covering all 14 of the country's penal centres.
Spokesperson Thabile Mdluli said the five men would not stay permanently, and "will be repatriated in due course to their different countries".
But such reassurance has failed to quel concerns from both rights groups and the Pudemo opposition party.
Lack of transparency
Civic and rights groups are wondering whether further deportees from the United States will arrive, and what rights the five detained men have.
Sources within the penitentiary administration said the men were being held in solitary confinement in a high-security section of the facility. Their requests to make phone calls were denied.
The sources said the men have access to medical care and the same meals as the thousand other inmates, as well as a toilet, shower and television in their cells.
On Wednesday a coalition of women’s rights organisations in Eswatini delivered a petition to the US Embassy in Mbabane.
It called for the urgent recall of “the deported criminals which were sent without proper consultation with citizens,” a coordinated dialogue and stopping the “forcing” of migrants into the country.
It also called for clarity and accountability from both the United States and Eswatini governments over the legal status and treatment of the deported individuals.
On Friday arçund 150 women protested outside the US embassy demanding the prisoners be returned to the US.
Eswatini, formerly Swaziland, holds elections where the king calls the shots
'Criminal dumping scheme'
Eswatini’s largest opposition party, the People’s United Democratic Movement (Pudemo), said in a statement last week: “Pudemo vehemently condemns the treacherous and reckless decision by King Mswati III’s regime to allow the United States of America to dump its most dangerous criminals on Swazi soil.
“This is not diplomacy but human trafficking disguised as a deportation deal. It is an insult to all Emaswati who value peace, security, and the sanctity of our homeland.”
Prime Minister Russell Dlamini has dismissed calls by lawmakers and civil society groups for the secrecy surrounding the agreement with Washington to be lifted.
"Not every decision or agreement is supposed to be publicly shared," he said.
Eswatini is the second African country to receive such deportees from the United States, after South Sudan earlier this month accepted eight individuals.
The situation has sparked concerns about the potential implications for Eswatini, a country already grappling with its own challenges under the absolute monarchy of King Mswati III.
The 57-year-old ruler has been criticised for his lavish lifestyle and has faced accusations of human rights violations.
Mswati III buys new fleet of luxury cars as eSwatini economy falters
Controversial third-country deportations
US President Donald Trump has used the threat of high tariffs against other countries, such as Colombia, to coerce them to take in people deported from America.
Eswatini is currently facing a baseline US tariff of 10 percent – less than the 30 percent levelled at neighbouring South Africa – which the government has said will negatively impact the economy.
Trump has directed federal agencies to work hard on his campaign promise to expel millions of undocumented migrants from the US.
His government has turned to so-called third-country deportations in cases where the home nations of some of those targeted for removal refuse to accept them.
Rights experts have warned the US deportations risk breaking international law by sending people to nations where they face the risk of torture, abduction and other abuses.
Trump mass deportation pledge faces legal, economic barriers
(with AFP)
