Antigua and Barbuda is staying firm in its refusal to admit 14 Cameroonians who are being held in St Kitts and Nevis after being rescued from a sinking boat in March.
The government had earlier stated that the West Africans would be accepted if they were released from the custody of immigration officers on St Kitts and Nevis. However, Prime Minister Gaston Browne declared that the government was changing its policy due to concerns that they may try to flee Antigua and Barbuda again.
At yesterday’s post-cabinet press conference, Information Minister Melford Nicholas revealed that the government’s decision occurred after some of the migrants and one Antiguan fled from the St Peter’s Community Centre, which is located just outside the St Kitts and Nevis capital, Basseterre.
“If the people detained in St. Kitts managed to flee, it was clearly not with the intention of returning to Antigua.” “There appears to be an intent for them to continue pursuing entry into a US border,” he said.
According to Nicholas, the administration does not want Cameroonians to utilize Antigua as a transit point.
It is now up to St. Kitts and Nevis to deport the Cameroonians.
Nicholas stated that the administration is still assessing the remaining West Africans in Antigua & Barbuda.
Once the assessment, which is being conducted in collaboration with the UNHCR and IMO, is completed, a decision on who will be deported and who will be permitted to remain in Antigua will be made.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Minister of Health notified the cabinet that one of the Cameroonian ladies who arrived in December 2022 will give birth in less than a week.