Four additional men deported from the United States have arrived in Eswatini, according to a lawyer and a prison official, as Washington continues to expand its controversial third-country deportation program.
The four men two from Somalia, one from Tanzania, and another from Sudan arrived late Wednesday at the Matsapha Maximum-Security Correctional Centre, located outside the capital Mbabane.
A prison official confirmed that the deportees were in good condition and had begun an orientation process at the facility.
“They are in perfect health,” the official said, adding that the individuals were undergoing administrative procedures following their arrival.
Growing deportation program
The latest arrivals join 15 other migrants sent to the southern African kingdom last year as part of agreements between Washington and several African countries to accept undocumented migrants who are being removed from the United States.
Authorities at the correctional facility have indicated that the center could eventually receive around 140 additional deportees under the arrangement.
The deportation program is part of broader U.S. efforts to manage migration by relocating undocumented migrants to third countries willing to temporarily host them.
Financial agreement and capacity building
According to documentation from Human Rights Watch, the Eswatini government agreed to accept up to 160 deportees in exchange for approximately $5.1 million in funding aimed at strengthening the country’s border management systems.
Officials in Eswatini maintain that the migrants are being held only temporarily while arrangements are made to repatriate them to their countries of origin.
Legal concerns raised
However, the policy has drawn criticism from lawyers and civil society organizations, who argue that the migrants are effectively being held indefinitely without formal charges.
Several legal challenges have been filed in local courts questioning the legality of detaining deportees in correctional facilities while their repatriation is pending.
Human rights advocates have raised concerns about the transparency of the agreements and the conditions under which migrants are being housed.
Wider regional participation
Eswatini is not the only African nation involved in such arrangements. Other countries, including Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Rwanda, and South Sudan, have also accepted deportees from the United States under similar bilateral agreements.
The agreements have sparked debate among migration experts and human rights groups, who say the practice raises complex legal and humanitarian questions about the treatment of migrants and the responsibilities of host nations.
