Deportation jitters

TWO OF the 11 people aboard a GlobalX charter flight from America that landed at Piarco on March 28 were not criminals.

Their only offence seems to have been their unlawful presence in the US, which is punishable by civil, not criminal penalties.

The rest mostly did not appear to conform to the usual profile of those historically targeted for deportation, namely individuals who have committed crimes such as homicide, kidnapping, robbery, grand larceny and fraud.

Instead, if the details that have circulated so far prove true – and we call for higher levels of disclosure – one person was apparently arrested for selling heroin, another cocaine. A woman in the group was wanted for two warrants but officials have not confirmed for which offences. Nor were amounts specified in relation to the drugs.

In this drip feed, one person seems to emerge as having been arrested for armed robbery, another for an offence termed false imprisonment.

There is nothing in what has so far arisen that suggests anything other than a slapdash approach being adopted by US deportation officials in pursuit of Donald Trump’s policies.

"Criminal" migrants were the target. But a presidential promise to remove millions – when most migrants are careful to avoid breaching the law and attracting police – requires an indiscriminate approach.

This country needs to adopt the highest standards possible in our acceptance of deportees, balancing not only individual rights, national security considerations and our longstanding co-operation with the US but also the clear and present dangers involved in participating in processes that may well turn out to be irregular.

There are a lot of worries about how the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been operating.

The current US administration’s approach to deportation poses challenges in terms of both substance and scale.

The situation demands the highest levels of transparency here.

For instance, what was the exact immigration status of all onboard? Was due process really followed? Was this flight the first of its kind under Trump?

"This has been happening for years," the Prime Minister said breezily on March 31, suggesting not. But that is exactly why the paucity of information flow is concerning.

The assurances given by Mr Young and by acting Commissioner of Police Junior Benjamin mean little if the full nature of what is happening cannot be ascertained and analysed.

While this case involved 11 people, there is an ICE dataset suggesting at least 1,197 TT nationals are already under removal orders.

That number could grow in the coming months. This means the March 28 flight is not likely the last.

For very unusual reasons, that should be a cause for concern. Our nationals must be treated properly at home and abroad.