Human rights group demands details on Haitians seeking asylum in Jamaica

Concerned about their welfare, human rights group Freedom Imaginaries is pressing the Government for details on the Haitians who are seeking asylum in Jamaica.

In a letter to Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade; Dr Horace Chang, Minister of National Security; and Ambassador Alison Stone Roofe, Permanent Secretary Ministry of National Security, the group requested an urgent meeting to discuss “due process issues and request for access to information in respect of Haitians seeking asylum in Jamaica”.

Freedom Imaginaries is representing the immigrants.

Among several concerns outlined, the group noted that, “we consider that the applicants are in a serious and urgent situation that poses a risk of refoulement, which is strictly prohibited under international law.”

Freedom Imaginaries, headed by attorneys Malene C. Alleyn, Hugh Small and Marcus Goffe, said this is the second time they have made a written request for details on their clients, but to no avail.

See full letter below:

Freedom Imaginaries writes further to our letter dated August 4, 2023, on behalf of 37 Haitian nationals who requested asylum in Jamaica (“applicants”). We write to reiterate our request for a meeting in light of recent developments in the asylum procedure and to request immediate access to information that we need to prepare the applicants' cases.

On August 8, 2023, immigration officers completed the screening interview phase of the asylum procedure without remedying the concerns set out in our August 4th letter.

We remain deeply concerned that arrangements were not made for child applicants to be interviewed, as this undermines their rights to be heard and to have their best interests taken into account as a primary consideration in the decision-making process.

Moreover, despite our requests, immigration officers concluded the interview process without establishing a trauma-sensitive, gender and differentiated approach that would have allowed applicants to tell their story as completely as possible.

Importantly, at this critical juncture in the process, the applicants and their legal representatives are still being excluded from access to basic information, including the applicants' written statements and application forms that were completed by immigration officers.

We still do not have detailed information on the next procedural steps, timeframes, and modalities for participation and disclosure, even as we advance to a phase in which an adverse decision could be taken against the applicants.

We have reviewed the Government of Jamaica's recent press release dated August 8, 2023, which appears to be a response to our August 4th letter. As a preliminary matter, the press release mistakenly states that the applicants' attorneys used their own interpreters during the initial screening process. That is incorrect. The Government made the arrangements for interpretation.

More fundamentally, the press release maintains that the applicants are being treated in line with Jamaica's Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms and the Refugee Policy. However, we maintain that the Government's systematic exclusion of the applicants from the enjoyment of basic rights – including the right to due process and its guarantees, the right to legal representation, the right to be heard, the rights of the child to special protection measures, the right to access basic information on the asylum procedure, the right to non-discrimination, the right to an effective asylum procedure, and the right to appeal to a judicial body – is inconsistent with human rights principles and standards enshrined in the Charter, the UN Refugee Convention, and binding international human rights treaties.

Furthermore, the treatment of the applicants falls short of the limited requirements of Jamaica's Refugee Policy, which explicitly states that persons applying for refugee status shall be treated in a manner consistent with internationally recognized human rights standards. In this context, we consider that the applicants are in a serious and urgent situation that poses a risk of refoulement, which is strictly prohibited under international law.

We therefore reiterate the requests outlined in our August 4th letter and urge you to pause the process until we can meet to establish minimum procedural guarantees that are necessary to ensure the principle of non-refoulement and to protect the constitutional and international law rights of the applicants in this process.

In addition, given the urgency of the situation, we request immediate access to the following documents that the applicants need to effectively participate in the asylum procedure:

• The Preliminary Determination Forms and Refugee Determination Forms completed by immigration officers for each adult applicant;

• Audio recordings of the screening interviews;

• All other written or recorded statements made by the applicants in the context of their arrest, detention, and conviction for illegal entry and subsequent application for asylum;

• Any other information that is relevant to the refugee status determination process and that will be presented to, or considered by, the Eligibility Committee (e.g. background information and investigative reports on the Applicants).

We kindly request that you respond by August 11, 2023 at 3:30 pm with a proposed meeting date and the information outlined above.

Please respond by return email to Malene Alleyne at malene@freedomimaginaries.org. Please accept the assurances of our highest consideration.

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