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Deportations to Jamaica increased in 2022

Published:Tuesday | August 1, 2023 | 3:55 PM
A little over 40 per cent of the Jamaicans deported were found to have overstayed the time they were allowed in the foreign country, had entered the country illegally or were guilty of an illegal re-entry. 

For the first time in five years, the number of Jamaicans who were deported to the island has increased, with the majority being sent home from the United States (US) in 2022. 

The 2022 Economic and Social Survey of Jamaica (ESSJ) released by the Planning Institute of Jamaica revealed that 562 persons were deported to Jamaica last year compared to the 501 who were sent home in 2021. 

This is a reverse of the steady decline in the number of deportees that Jamaica has been seeing in recent years. In 2017, it was reported that 1,393 people were deported to the island. This reduced to 1,183 in 2018, and in 2019, it further declined to 1,051. Only 653 people were deported in 2020. 

According to the 2022 survey, 80.3 per cent of the deportees last year were males. 

The US accounted for 328 of the people deported. Forty-seven were deported from Canada, 25 from England and 162 from other countries. 

A little over 40 per cent of the Jamaicans deported were found to have overstayed the time they were allowed in the foreign country, had entered the country illegally or were guilty of an illegal re-entry. 

A further 21 per cent were deported for drug possession. 

“However, for the USA, England and Canada it was involvement in criminal activity rather than overstaying, illegal entry or re-entry, at 72.9 per cent, 72 per cent and 55.3 per cent, respectively,” the survey stated. 

The survey revealed that last year, 84 persons were deported from the United States for possession of drugs, 14 for firearm-related offences, and 34 for murder, manslaughter or attempted murder.

Meanwhile, England saw an increase of 8.7 per cent in the number of people deported. Five were banished for possession of drugs, five for sexual offences and seven for overstaying, illegal entry or illegal re-entry. 

Meanwhile,  a total of 15 persons were extradited from Jamaica, 13 to the US and two to England  for a number of reasons, including lottery scamming, drug-related offences, international money laundering, and murder.

-Sashana Small 

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