Overview:
Some of the deportees who arrived in Cap-Haïtien viewed their deportations as unjust because they were returned to a country currently facing multiple crises, including escalating insecurity due to gang violence.
CAP-HAÏTIEN — Fifty-two Haitians arrived here Thursday on the first deportation flight from the United States to Haiti in several months, according to a Haitian National Police (PNH) source. The deportees, some of whom view their deportation as unjust, landed in a country where rampant gang violence, among numerous crises, restricts their ability to return safely to hometowns far from the city.
One deportee, Mehu Milord, expressed his frustration while waiting around at the police’s Northern Departmental Directorate (DDN), wearing a gray jail uniform.
“They’re really cruel,” he said, raising his voice. “Look at what’s happening in this country, and they sent us here. They weren’t supposed to do this to us at all.”
Milord, deported for illegally crossing the Mexico-U.S. border in September 2023, is originally from Arcahaie, a commune about 25 miles from Port-au-Prince. He cannot travel there, though he wants to reunite with his wife and a 2-year-old son living there, because gangs control the road there. He plans to stay at a friend’s house in Cap-Haïtien until it is safer.
“That’s going to take a lot of time, but I don’t have a choice,” Milord, 33, said. “I will pass the time in Okap until I can be set free to go. I will do everything I can to stay connected with my wife and my son so I can satisfy them a little bit.”
Milord was among approximately 22 deportees, including 13 women, who left the DDN while others remained in a small cell there as of Thursday evening. Many of them were deported for illegally crossing the Mexico-U.S. southern border after traveling to Nicaragua last year. In contrast, others were sent back to Haiti for crimes such as robbery and battery after serving their sentences in the United States.
PNH in Cap-Haïtien did not release those who served time for committing serious crimes, a reliable source at the departmental police told the Haitian Times. Some deportees said they were given 5,000 gourdes, or about $US 37 each. Some went to hotels in groups, while others went to the homes of relatives or friends until they could return to their hometowns.
Among the deportees staying at a friend’s home is Milord, who attempted to move to the U.S. mainly due to the ongoing gang violence crisis. He paid $US 2,000 for a plane ticket to Nicaragua in September 2023. While on his way to the airport in Port-au-Prince, armed bandits stopped the van he was in, and the driver had to pay them to pass through.
“They’re really cruel. Look at what’s happening in this country and they sent us here. They weren’t supposed to do this to us at all.”
Mehu Milord, deportee
Last year, over 31,000 Haitians traveled to Nicaragua, taking advantage of the country’s no-visa requirement for entry. Upon arrival, they journeyed by bus to the Mexico border, where they scheduled appointments to seek asylum in the U.S. using CBP One, a mobile application from U.S. Customs and Border Protection designed for specific immigration programs. However, once the loophole allowing easy access through Nicaragua was recognized, Haiti was compelled to halt all flights to Nicaragua in October, dashing many Haitians’ hopes of reaching the U.S. via this route.
Like thousands of other migrants, Milord never scheduled an asylum appointment. He instead paid smugglers $US 4,500 to help him cross the border but was caught by U.S. immigration officers upon arrival. He spent two months at a detention center in Texas and another two in Miami.
Jessica Joseph, a pseudonym for another deportee, was intercepted after crossing the border from Nicaragua in November 2023. Originally from Carrefour, a commune in the southern part of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, she is avoiding her hometown due to persistent gang violence. Joseph is now aiming to relocate illegally to the Dominican Republic. In the meantime, she will stay at a hotel in Cap-Haïtien along with other female deportees.
“Where am I going to pass through to go to Carrefour?” Joseph, 32, said. I’m going to find a way to the Dominican border. Haiti is no good. There’s no way to make a living in Haiti.”
Human rights organizations and fair immigration policy advocates have repeatedly urged the U.S. government to suspend deportation flights to Haiti, highlighting the dire conditions in the country. Despite Haiti being designated for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which bars the deportation of Haitians present in the U.S. as of a specific date, deportations have continued. Given the ongoing crises, these advocates have called on the Biden administration to extend and redesignate TPS for Haiti.