A plane carrying the second group of Asian migrants deported from the United States has arrived Africa, marking the latest phase of Washington’s controversial third-country deportation program
- A plane carrying deported Southeast Asian migrants from the United States recently arrived in Eswatini
- This program, involving largely secretive agreements, has drawn criticism from rights groups
- Eswatini has reportedly agreed to accept up to 160 deportees in exchange for a monetary arrangement
- Other African nations such as Ghana and South Sudan have also participated
A plane carrying a group of Southeast Asian migrants deported from the United States landed in Eswatini on Monday, marking the latest move in Washington’s third-country deportation program.
The arrangement, struck under largely secretive bilateral agreements, has drawn sharp criticism from rights groups and exposed divisions among African nations over whether to accept deportees from outside the continent.
Tin Thanh Nguyen, a U.S.-based lawyer representing two of the deportees, confirmed that his clients, both Vietnamese nationals were aboard the flight as reported by The Associated Press
However, according to the BBC, Eswatini’s prison authorities reported that ten deportees had been received, stating that all individuals have been “securely accommodated” and do not pose any threat to the public.
But human rights lawyer Mzwandile Masuku told the BBC he was “shocked and dismayed” the government accepted them despite a pending court case over five earlier arrivals.
Human Rights Watch said the U.S.-Eswatini deal allows up to 160 deportees in exchange for $5.1m to bolster “border and migration management capacity.”
The Southern African Litigation Centre (SALC) argued the move was unconstitutional.
“We would have expected this milestone to reflect a maturation of our democracy – stronger rule of law, greater accountability, and clearer separation of powers,” the SALC’s Melusi Simelane told the BBC.
Four men from Cuba, Laos, Vietnam, and Yemen had already been sent there in July and are currently held in a maximum-security prison. Lawyers say they have been denied due process, raising questions about how Pretoria’s neighbor will manage an influx of foreign deportees.
A Controversial Program With Regional Ripples
Eswatini is not the only African nation to have signed on to Washington’s deportation push. Since July, at least 30 migrants have been flown to African countries, including South Sudan, Rwanda, and Ghana.
In South Sudan, six deportees remain in undisclosed detention facilities. Rwanda has not revealed where its group is being held.
In Ghana, eleven West African deportees are suing the government after alleging they were held in dire conditions at a military camp near Accra.
The U.S. maintains that all those sent abroad had existing deportation orders and, in some cases, criminal records.
African Governments Split on Accepting U.S. Deportees
While Eswatini and Rwanda have signed deals to host deportees, other African nations have resisted.
Uganda was previously mentioned as a potential partner in the U.S. third-country deportation program but withdrew following domestic backlash and international criticism over human rights concerns.
Nigeria, for its part, has firmly stated that it will only accept verified Nigerian citizens and has rejected any suggestion of hosting non-Nigerian deportees under such arrangements.
Ghana’s decision to accept 14 West African deportees from the United States has sparked debate, but the move quickly yielded diplomatic dividends.
Washington has fully restored Ghana’s non-immigrant visa privileges, with B1/B2 visitor visas reinstated to five-year multiple-entry validity and F1 student visas to four years.
Ghana’s government insists no financial payments were involved, framing the deal as a product of “strategic diplomacy” rather than a trade-off.
Rights groups argue that accepting non-African deportees risks turning African countries into “dumping grounds” for migrants the U.S. wants to expel.
For Eswatini, the latest arrivals test both its international standing and its ability to manage detainees in a country already facing criticism for rights abuses and political repression.
As more deportation flights are scheduled for October, the issue could further strain relations between Washington and African governments unwilling to be seen as complicit in what activists describe as “outsourced deportation.”
