Jamaica receives first US third-country deportation flight of 22 people
Jamaica received 22 third-country deportees from the US on Tuesday under a June agreement. Jamaica's opposition questions why the deal is secret, while the US policy faces a Supreme Court review in December.
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The story, neutrally told
Mixed · 2Jamaica received its first flight of third-country deportees from the United States on Tuesday, when 22 people landed at Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston. Al JazeeraLC “On Tuesday, 22 deportees from the US arrived at Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica.” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Fox NewsR “Tuesday's flight saw 22 migrants land at Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport in Jamaica.” Read at Fox News ↗ Left · 1Al Jazeera, citing media reports, said the deportees were put on a bus and taken to an undisclosed location. Al JazeeraLC “Media reports indicate they were subsequently boarded onto a bus and taken to an undisclosed location.” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Mixed · 2Jamaica signed a memorandum of understanding with the US in June; Fox News reports it caps arrivals at 25 "per fortnight". Al JazeeraLC “Jamaica signed a bilateral memorandum of understanding in June to receive third-country deportations.” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Fox NewsR “The agreement caps the number of migrants arriving to 25 "per fortnight."” Read at Fox News ↗
Mixed · 2A joint statement from Jamaica's Ministry of National Security and Peace and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade called it a transit arrangement to return third-country nationals to their countries of origin or other receiving countries, supported by the International Organization for Migration and not funded by the Jamaican government. Al JazeeraLC ““The government reiterates that this is a transit arrangement intended to facilitate the return of Third Country Nationals to their country of origin or other receiving countries,”” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Fox NewsR “"The arrangement will not be funded by the Government of Jamaica," it continued.” Read at Fox News ↗ Mixed · 2The government has pledged that no one with a criminal record will be accepted. Fox NewsR “"No third-country national with criminal antecedents will be permitted to transit through Jamaica."” Read at Fox News ↗ Al JazeeraLC “The country’s government has also pledged not to accept any deportees with criminal records.” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Left · 1Opposition leaders criticised the deal as a security threat and asked why it has not been debated publicly; Fitz Jackson, the opposition spokesperson on national security, said Jamaicans were being asked to trust "a secret document". Al JazeeraLC ““Jamaicans are being asked to trust a secret document that touches their security, their communities and their public services,” said Fitz Jackson, the opposition spokesperson on national security.” Read at Al Jazeera ↗
Left · 1Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith replied that the questions "have all been answered" and that the US had not agreed to publish the agreement. Al JazeeraLC “Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith argued that any questions about the deportation deal “have all been answered”.”““Some countries have had their agreements made public, but our partner has not agreed for this one to be.”” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Left · 1According to Third Country Deportation Watch, at least 35 countries have third-country deportation agreements with the US, and the Washington Post reported that the Trump administration has earmarked roughly $410m for such efforts. Al JazeeraLC “At least 35 countries have entered into third-country deportation agreements with the US, according to Third Country Deportation Watch”“The Washington Post reported last month that the Trump administration has earmarked roughly $410m to support such efforts.” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Right · 1The policy is the subject of legal dispute in the US: the Supreme Court is due to consider its legality in December, and in September it allowed deportations to continue meanwhile, with Justices Sotomayor, Kagan and Jackson saying they would have denied the stay. Fox NewsR “the Supreme Court is set to consider the legality of the policy in December. The Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration in September to continue its deportations while the question is being litigated.”“Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson said they would have denied the administration's request for a stay.” Read at Fox News ↗
Mixed · 2Critics, including human rights groups cited by Al Jazeera, question the legality of such removals, argue they deny due process, can send people to dangerous places and can sidestep court protection orders; Fox News says lower courts have not banned the removals but required procedures to let people raise persecution or torture claims. Al JazeeraLC “Opponents have even said the third-country deportations are being used as a backdoor method for circumventing court protection orders.” Read at Al Jazeera ↗ Fox NewsR “Lower courts have not categorically prohibited those removals but have required procedures intended to give aliens an opportunity to raise claims that they could face persecution or torture in the destination country.” Read at Fox News ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left1 outlet
- Framing
- Leads with Jamaican opposition questions about a secret deal and places the flight within criticised, legally contested US mass-deportation policy.
- Emphasis
- Opposition criticism, secrecy of the agreement, human rights and due process concerns, cost and number of agreements.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not mention the 25-per-fortnight cap or the upcoming Supreme Court review.
- Charged language
- “backdoor method”“to scare people”
- For example
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“Opposition leaders in Jamaica, however, spoke out against the deportation, framing the deal as a threat to the island’s security.” — Al Jazeera
“Opponents have even said the third-country deportations are being used as a backdoor method for circumventing court protection orders.” — Al Jazeera
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right1 outlet
- Framing
- Leads with the flight and the agreement's terms, framed around the looming Supreme Court battle and the administration's legal position.
- Emphasis
- The 25-per-fortnight cap, the joint statement, Supreme Court timeline and the September stay ruling.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not report Jamaican opposition criticism or the secrecy of the agreement.
- Charged language
- “illegal aliens”“heavy attacks from critics”
- For example
-
“Third-country deportations have faced heavy attacks from critics of the Trump administration, and the Supreme Court is set to consider the legality of the policy in December.” — Fox News
“The dispute centers on the Trump administration's efforts to remove illegal aliens to third countries.” — Fox News
What every side reports
- 22 third-country deportees from the US arrived in Kingston on Tuesday.
- Jamaica signed an MOU with the US in June.
- Jamaica's joint ministry statement calls it a transit arrangement supported by the IOM and not funded by Jamaica.
- Jamaica says no one with a criminal record will be accepted.
Where accounts differ
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How to characterise the policy and its legality
- Left
- Stresses condemnation from human rights groups, due process concerns, risk of danger and a Senate Democrats' report quoting an official saying the aim is to scare people.
- Right
- Describes it as a policy for migrants who claim home countries are dangerous, notes the Supreme Court let it continue, and says lower courts have not banned it but required procedures.
Jamaica place
The government calls the deal a transit arrangement, unfunded by Jamaica, excluding people with criminal records; the foreign minister says questions are answered and the US has not agreed to publication. The opposition calls it a secret document touching security.
““As I explained before, some countries have agreed to receive criminals, we have not,” she wrote on social media.” — Al Jazeera
““Jamaicans are being asked to trust a secret document that touches their security, their communities and their public services,”” — Al Jazeera
Donald Trump person
The Trump administration is pursuing third-country deportations as part of a mass deportation campaign; the Supreme Court has allowed them to continue while the case is heard.
“as part of Trump’s effort to implement the largest mass deportation campaign in US history.” — Al Jazeera
“The decision gives the administration the immediate relief it sought as it presses ahead with third-country removals” — Fox News
Left1 article
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Jamaica accepts first flight of third-country deportations from US
Critical Foregrounds opposition and rights-group criticism of a secret deal within a contested deportation policy.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right1 article
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Jamaica accepts first flight of third-country deportations from US amid looming Supreme Court battle
Neutral Reports the flight and agreement terms in the context of the pending Supreme Court case, with some partisan vocabulary.
- 14 Oct 02:44 First Al JazeeraLC Jamaica accepts first flight of third-country deportations from US
- 14 Oct 16:29 +13h 45m Fox NewsR Jamaica accepts first flight of third-country deportations from US amid looming Supreme Court battle
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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