ICE may deport seriously ill migrants from Florida to Africa — The Guardian
Relatives of detained migrants and human rights advocates said that the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) may soon deport seriously ill people from two detention centers in Florida to African countries. The Guardian reports.
According to the Workers Circle organization, the flights could take place as early as this week. Its migrant rights representative, Arianne Betancourt, said detainees had been called in for interviews with staff responsible for deportations. They were allegedly told that Mexico would not accept them because of their health conditions, so they would be sent to Africa.
Possible flights to the CAR and Burundi
Immigration lawyer Shalyn Fluharty said that, according to information from detainees, two flights to Africa are planned — likely to the Central African Republic and Burundi. She stressed that long flights could be particularly dangerous for people with heart conditions, a risk of stroke, or diabetes, who need regular meals and insulin.
Fluharty also said that during previous deportations, people were shackled by their hands, legs, and waist. According to her, those who complained were sometimes placed in full-body restraint devices that restricted movement. She linked this information to the experience of previous deportations, rather than to confirmed details of the planned flights.
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Complaints about medical care and overcrowding
Among the detainees who may be deported is 41-year-old Cuban national Noslen Sendra, who is being held at the Krome North center in Miami. His wife, Anisley Cortes, said that her husband has uncontrolled diabetes and acute pancreatitis, for which he spent several weeks in a hospital earlier this year. According to her, he has lost more than 50 pounds while in detention and has not received medication or enough food.
The matter also concerns people held at the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach. Both facilities are privately operated on behalf of ICE. Last month, government inspectors reported severe overcrowding at Krome: 1,102 people were held at the center, whose maximum capacity is 882. The report stated that this jeopardizes the facility's safe and orderly operation.
Inspectors also recorded an insufficient number of working toilets, sinks, and showers. In response to The Guardian's inquiry, a spokesperson for the US Department of Homeland Security asked for the detainees' personal information, but did not provide a further response after receiving information about Sendra.
According to the outlet, the US Supreme Court last month approved the practice of deportations to so-called third countries. Hundreds of detainees have already been deported to at least a dozen African states with which they had no ties.
