🚫 CBC denies arrest of Cuban asylum seeker during protest
Cuban protester taken away by officers was not arrested, claims Customs and Border Control
The Customs and Border Control (CBC) of Cayman Islands has denied the arrest of a Cuban asylum seeker who was taken away during a protest outside the government building. The protest was staged by around two dozen Cuban migrants following a raid by the CBC at the Bodden Town Civic Centre (BTCC), where two migrants were arrested for escaping lawful detention. The CBC has the power to reject claims of those suspected to be economic and repeat migrants and expedite their deportation. The Cuban asylum seeker who was taken away during the protest was not arrested, according to CBC, but was taken to the hospital for reasons not yet clarified. The CBC has reinstated his temporary admission to Cayman. 🏝️
The two migrants arrested during the raid did not have temporary admission status as they had arrived after a change in law. They were being held at the detention centre awaiting deportation. Meanwhile, several refugees who arrived before the change in law are currently living at the BTCC with temporary admission status, awaiting the processing of their political asylum claims under the old legislation. The CBC has confirmed that an operation was carried out to locate the migrants who had escaped from the official immigration detention centre. The Cuban protesters claim that the CBC officers had initially threatened to arrest everyone, although they had been previously asked by the police to not block the entrance to the building. 🚁
The CBC stated that it provides irregular migrants with accommodation, meals, food vouchers, personal toiletries, and medical attention when needed, in accordance with the International Convention on the Treatment of Refugees. The majority of migrants who remain on the island arrived before a change in law in December 2022, and their asylum cases are progressing through the appeal process. The CBC explained that the legislative reforms allow the director to certify applications as wholly unfounded, thus speeding up the repatriation process of economic migrants. 📑
