On July 25, 2024, the United States forcibly repatriated Haitians for the third time since April. The Biden administration had previously paused deportation flights to Haiti in January 2024, only to resume them just a few months later despite the continued widespread, extreme violence in the country. Both the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees have urged the United States to suspend forced returns to Haiti at this time.
“The U.S. government’s ongoing deportation flights and forced returns to Haiti violate the U.S.’s commitments to non-refoulement and are part of a long history of law and policy designed, in the name of prevention through deterrence, to disparately target and impact Black people in transnational migration, who are merely exercising their rights,” says Erik Crew, Staff Attorney with Haitian Bridge Alliance.
Instead of endangering Haitians seeking safety, it is crucial that the United States take steps to provide Haitians with meaningful access to lawful pathways to seek safety from the violence engulfing their country.
The current unrest in Haiti can be traced back to the 2021 assassination of then-President Jovenel Moise, which resulted in siege conditions, significant internal displacement, dire food insecurity, and other life-threatening circumstances. As of June 2024, the International Organization for Migration reports more than half a million people are internally displaced, with the rate of displacement increasing over the course of 2024. Certain demographics are especially vulnerable to harm from armed groups. For example, about 300,000 women and girls have been internally displaced, and violence and rape have been utilized as a tactic to control access to humanitarian assistance.
In addition to these immediate dangers, climate change and natural disasters present pervasive, severe risks and exacerbate internal displacement. Approximately 96% of Haiti’s population is exposed to climate risks such as intensified hurricanes and rising temperatures. In 2023, torrential rains resulted in the destruction of 34,000 homes, leaving approximately 200,000 people without adequate shelter.
It is in this context that the Biden administration has prioritized immigration deterrence measures: interdicting Haitians fleeing to the United States by sea, flying repatriation flights, and obliterating access to asylum at the U.S. southern border. Such deterrence measures inevitably result in people undertaking more dangerous journeys in pursuit of safety. Just last week, on July 17, 2024, 40 Haitians died after their boat caught fire en route to Turks and Caicos.
“The U.S.’s ongoing deportations and forced returns to Haiti are an emblematic example of persisting structures of racial inequality and racial injustice,” says Crew.
The United States should cease deportation flights to Haiti. IRAP applauds the Biden administration’s extension and redesignation of Haiti for Temporary Protective Status (TPS). However, TPS is temporary by definition and only applies to certain Haitian nationals already residing in the United States. It is also crucial the Biden administration abandon any plans to detain Haitians interdicted at sea at Guantánamo Bay and ensure that everyone interdicted at sea and on land have meaningful access to credible fear screenings, legal counsel, and the asylum process.
This summer, two contingents of Kenyan police officers arrived in Haiti as part of a United Nations-backed Multinational Security Support mission whose aim is to retake the country from gangs. Yet it remains to be seen whether the mission will achieve sustained results. In the meantime, in the words of the UN humanitarian coordination office chief in Haiti, the “entire social fabric of families is unraveling.” In this excruciating context, the Biden administration must respect the human rights of Haitians and not send people back to danger.
Nicholas Aime is the 2024 Policy and Communications Intern at IRAP. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and International Affairs from Wake Forest University.