Appeal withdrawn in Venezuelan migrant case

AN appeal filed by the Chief Immigration Officer challenging a preliminary decision of a High Court judge was withdrawn as the matter involving the detention of a group of Venezuelans is set to be litigated before the judge.

On Thursday, Senior Counsel Fyard Hosein said the immigration division was no longer pursuing its appeal of certain orders made by Justice Devindrda Rampersad in April.

The judge had ordered the Chief Immigration Officer to make arrangements for the local UNHCR to meet with the group of eight, which includes children, to confirm their asylum-seeker status.

He also ordered immigration officials to release them on orders of supervision pending the outcome of a request for a permit from the National Security Minister and their claim for asylum.

On Thursday, Hosein said the division decided to release the applicants on orders of supervision, and the children were released into the custody of relatives and are being supervised by the Children’s Authority.

He said while the State felt strongly about the appeal, since the applicants are not challenging their detention order, nor did they advance a plea on the issue of refugee status, they were asking for ministerial consent, which will be litigated before Rampersad.

“What is left for the judge is the notice of deportation will trump a ministerial consent and if the latter is appropriate…but that is for the court to decide.”

In allowing the State to withdraw the appeal, the Appeal Court judges – Justices Gregory Smith and Vasheist Kokaram – departed from their usual cost order and ordered "cost in the cause" to be assessed by a registrar.

Rampersad is expected to rule on the substantive matter in May 2023.

The migrants are represented by Criston J Williams.