Opposition parties, GHRA concerned about US-Guyana deportee scheme

Last Updated on Monday, 7 September 2026, 22:33 by Writer

Guyana’s three parliamentary opposition parties and the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) have raised grave concerns about an agreement that allows the United States (US) to send a maximum of 144 deportees to Guyana until their immigration cases have been concluded one way or another.

The main opposition We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) regarded that number as an “influx” of non-Guyanese, saying it would put additional pressure on Guyana’s health, electricity and security sectors.

The WIN General Secretary and Chairman of the parliamentary sectoral committee on foreign affairs, Odessa Primus, urged the government to provide information about the third-country nationals, six of whom arrived last Friday in Guyana.

“I think the government should make the information available. We would like to know who these people are where they are going to be,” she told Demerara Waves Online News.

Questions were also raised about the eventual settlement of third-country nationals in Guyana and what implications that could have for Guyana’s elections in the future.

The Guyana government said those arriving here would not be criminals and would be vetted, but Ms Primus cast doubt on their integrity saying “I am not sure what magnitude of crime, if any, was committed and that is reason for concern.”

She said the Guyana Police Force was serving under severe pressure and would now have to grapple with “high-tech criminals” coming here and adding to the Venezuelans and Cubans.

“That, for me, is very scary because we clearly are not solving crime fast enough in the ways that we should have,” she said.

Under the one-year deal, the third-country nationals would remain here until the US decides whether they would be allowed to return failing which they would be sent to their countries of origin.

However, Mr Primus said the US should have kept them or send them where they ought to go “because they certainly don’t belong here.”

Forward Guyana Movement’s (FGM) leader Amanza Walton-Desir queried in a statement whether any of deportees is suspected, though not convicted, of any activity of concern.

Questions also raised by FGM include whether they would be eligible to apply for adjustment to Guyanese residency or citizenship, and if so, on what conditions and after what waiting period.

Ms Walton-Desir called on the government to publicly disclose the agreement in full by laying it in the National Assembly “at the earliest opportunity.”

Further she wants to see the Guyana government provide details of each third-country national.

“And for every person brought into Guyana under it, the Government must lay before the National Assembly, without naming the individual out of regard for their own safety and protection, the reason for their deportation to Guyana, their skill set if any, and whether they intend to remain in Guyana beyond the period contemplated by this arrangement,” she said.

She also said the Guyana government should identify the coordinating body acting on its behalf, and the specific office or officer within the domestic framework directly responsible for each individual received under this arrangement.

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM), with assistance from the United States (US), is supporting much of the third-country migrants’ transportation to Guyana and accommodation.

APNU parliamentarian Ganesh Mahipaul wants to know where the third-country nationals would be housed, how they would be monitored, what happens if they violate the conditions of their stay, how complaints will be investigated and what safeguards are in place to ensure that political influence does not interfere with the administration of the programme.

“Guyana can be compassionate without being careless. We can be hospitable without neglecting our own citizens. We can cooperate internationally while insisting that our institutions are strong enough to protect the interests of everyone involved,” he said.

Meanwhile, the GHRA is also calling for the prompt release of the text of the agreement between Guyana and the U.S. covering the acceptance and treatment of deported persons.