Photo credit: SKB Energy
Two Jamaican nationals deported from the United States to St Kitts and Nevis under controversial third-country national agreement have reportedly decided to remain in the country.
Jamaica’s Ministry of National Security confirmed that checks were conducted after it learned that two of its citizens had been sent to St Kitts and Nevis by the United States.
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According to a report by Television Jamaica, the ministry was subsequently advised that both individuals had chosen to remain in the twin-island Federation.
The development is likely to intensify scrutiny of the agreement between the Government of St Kitts and Nevis and the United States, particularly over assurances that the Federation would serve only as a temporary destination for people whom Washington is seeking to remove.
The two Jamaicans were reportedly among the first group of third-country nationals transferred to St Kitts and Nevis under the arrangement. A Belizean national was also reported to have been included in that group.
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The decision by the Jamaicans to remain in St. Kitts and Nevis now raises several unanswered questions, including the immigration status under which they are being allowed to stay, whether they have applied for asylum or another form of residence as Caricom nationals, and who will bear responsibility for their accommodation and longer-term support.
It also raises a wider question about whether people brought into the Federation under the agreement can simply choose not to return to their country of nationality.
The St Kitts and Nevis Government has previously sought to reassure the public that persons accepted under the programme would be carefully screened and would not include individuals with criminal records. However, the full memorandum governing the arrangement has not been made public.
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Prime Minister Dr Terrance Drew’s administration has faced growing calls to disclose the agreement and explain what financial, diplomatic or immigration commitments the Federation has assumed.
The latest revelation suggests that the programme may involve more than temporarily receiving deportees while arrangements are made for their onward travel.
If individuals transferred to St Kitts and Nevis can seek permission to remain, the agreement could result in the Federation becoming a permanent destination for some people whom the United States cannot—or will not—return directly to their home countries.
That possibility places renewed pressure on the Government to tell the public precisely what it has agreed to, what rights are available to the deportees after arrival, and what limits, if any, have been placed on the number of people who could ultimately remain in the Federation.
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Neither the identities of the two Jamaicans nor the precise basis on which they intend to stay has been publicly disclosed.
The United States has pursued similar third-country arrangements across the Caribbean, Latin America and elsewhere as part of the Trump administration’s intensified deportation programme.