The Immigration Department of Bahamas have repatriated a first group of 115 illegal Haitian migrants to Port-au-Prince [76 men, 32 women and 8 children]. 86 of them are part of a group which arrived in the Yamacraw area on board a sailing boat, on August 1st. The remaining 29 had been taken to the Carmichael Road Detention Centre after being found without proof of status.

Then Wednesday, the department repatriated to Port au Prince a second group of 37 Haitian, [all men]. This group was found to be residing and or working in The Bahamas without status, according to Jack Thompson, Director of the Immigration Department.

Mr. Thompson said that "the operation [115 migrants] was the first repatriation of the fiscal year" stating that the Department of Immigration, has a budget of one million dollars for this type of operation. Each repatriation flight costs at the Department of immigration of the Bahamas, $26,000 when they use the services of "Bahamasair."

In July of this year the Bahamian authorities had announced that it would not follow the request of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to suspend the repatriation on Haiti https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-3298-haiti-social-the-bahamas-will-continue-to-repatriate-illegal-haitian.html The Minister in charge of immigration, stated that the Government of the Bahamas gave the correct answer by ignoring the request of the UN. Recalling that the two richest countries of the hemisphere are the United States and Canada and if these countries want to host thousands of Haitian refugees, they can afford.

HL/ HaitiLibre