Jamaica in Talks to Accept Third Country Nationals from the United States

KINGSTON, Jamaica – National Security and Peace Minister Dr. Horace Chang says Jamaica’s sovereignty has not been compromised during the ongoing discussions with the United States to accept a limited number of non-criminal third-country nationals and refugees.

“We were clear about our national interests and relied on our experience over many years in managing international migration matters to inform our position throughout the negotiations,” Chang said in a statement.

“This is an MOU (memorandum of understanding) 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. It also does not create an automatic obligation for Jamaica to accept any individual, and either country retains the ability to terminate the arrangement,” said the release.

“Importantly, there will be no transfers until both countries have agreed on the required operational procedures for orderly implementation,” it added.

On Tuesday, the Jamaica Gleaner newspaper reported that Kingston and Washington are expected to begin talks on an agreement first pitched by a senior Jamaican government official that could see the island accepting up to 10,000 non-Jamaicans being deported from the United States.

The newspaper reported that it had seen a document from the United States Embassy in Kingston, outlining the operational framework for the proposed Third-Country Nationals agreement, which has triggered controversy in several countries that have entered into similar arrangements with Washington.

If Jamaica signs the agreement it will join other Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries, notably, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Guyana, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Lucia that have all signed similar agreements.

Chang said that Washington would pick up the tab for all costs associated with the programme and “individuals with criminal antecedents” would not be accepted under the arrangement.

“This process has been approached carefully and deliberately, with Jamaica’s national interest at the centre. The Government will continue to provide updates as appropriate, as implementation discussions progress,”

Earlier, as he addressed the 11th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference at Montego Bay Convention Centre,  Chang, the deputy prime minister, dismissed reports that Jamaica is in discussions to accept up to 10,000 deportees from the United States.

He said Kingston would accept not more 25 individuals under the Third-Country Nationals (TCN) agreement, adding “there are no intentions to bring 10,000 illegal immigrants from the United States.

“The numbers involved will be under 50 per fortnight, and they are designed with United Nation International Organization for Migration [which] is working with the country. So they will be sent on to their own country,” Chang said as he responded to a question from one of the delegates attending the diaspora conference, who had sought clarification on discussions sparked by the Jamaica Gleaner report.

Chang told the conference that the arrangement currently under consideration relates to the temporary processing of individuals under a broader regional framework.

“What we are discussing, and what I have agreed to, is this whole question of third country nationals that may have to transition to Jamaica,” he said,  noting that Washington has negotiated with a number of countries in the Caribbean including Costa Rica, Panama, Belize, St Kitts, Antigua, and others.

“And the essence is that those who are going into United States as illegal immigrants, before they stay there to appeal for asylum, they send them to a third country where they’ll be sent on to their own home country afterwards,” Chang said.

He insisted that the numbers involved would be minimal and tightly managed, and argued that there are safeguards in place if the volume of deported foreign nationals becomes cause for concern.

“It’s a transitional moment for a small number of migrants. It’s an MOU. If some choose to stay in Jamaica and apply for asylum, which they can do under international law, then the programme stops. So there will never be more than 25 people in Jamaica at any one point in time,” he added.