Chang clarifies Jamaica will not host US deportees on a permanent basis

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security and Peace, Dr Horace Chang, has moved to set the record straight on reports suggesting Jamaica would welcome a controlled flow of people being removed from the United States.

His comments follow coverage that Kingston had signalled willingness to take in non-nationals facing deportation from America. The Gleaner reported that negotiations were lined up around a possible deal that could involve more than 10,000 people who are not Jamaican citizens.

In a formal statement, Chang told the country that protecting the safety and security of Jamaicans and everyone on the island, together with the Government’s duties under international law, shaped each stage of talks on a memorandum of understanding with Washington on third country nationals.

“These are nationals of other countries other than Jamaica who are being facilitated through a structured process to transit through Jamaica to a third territory, including return to their home countries,” he said.

The security minister stressed that Jamaica never traded away its independence at any stage of the process.

“This is an MOU and not a binding agreement and does not come into effect until the completion of agreed pre-implementation requirements, including the finalisation of operational guidelines and procedures,” he said. “It also does not create an automatic obligation for Jamaica to accept any individual, and either country retains the ability to terminate the arrangement.”

Chang added that American authorities have given assurances they will bear the full expense of moving people through the system and covering linked arrangements.

On the widely cited 10,000 figure, he said it “does not represent an agreed quota or commitment under the MOU”.

“The process will be controlled and phased. While the understanding contemplates transfers of up to 25 individuals every two weeks, this is subject to an important operational safeguard,” he said. “Where the number of individuals pending transfer or remaining in Jamaica exceeds a threshold of 10 persons, the process will be paused until conditions are reviewed and normalised. This is to ensure that there is no more than 10 TCNs remaining in Jamaica within any 30-day window.”