Feature photo via Canva Pro. Just after 6:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 9, 18 men, seven women and 11 children, including four babies, landed on the beach at Long Bay in Portland, to the north-east of Jamaica. They had travelled from Haiti in a small, battered sailing boat and were soon met by immigration and police officers and public health officials, while local people brought them food and water. Minister Robert Morgan, who is responsible for information dissemination in the Office of the Prime Minister, announced their arrival on X (formerly Twitter): 38 more Haitians have arrived in Portland. pic.twitter.com/whV0dlzjy3 — Robert Nesta Morgan (@NestaJA) September 9, 2023 A similar-sized group had arrived on the island just two months earlier, on July 10. After urgent interventions from human rights group Freedom Imaginaries and others, this first group of Haitians obtained legal support and were allowed to apply for asylum. Their cases are still being reviewed by the Jamaican authorities; however, according to their lawyers, the process is going very slowly due to a lack of communication. The attorneys have not yet been able to meet with government representatives to discuss the Haitians’ cases. In contrast, this second group of Haitians was back in their homeland just two days later, having been transported by a Jamaica Defence Force ship on the night of September 10 “under cover of darkness,” as critics noted. Just before 9:00 a.m. the following morning, the Jamaican Ministry of National Security posted: 𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐬 Government of Jamaica Provides Safe Return for second Group of Haitian Nationals who landed in Portland Jamaican on Saturday 9 September 2023 The… pic.twitter.com/5iVCEEW4bs — Robert Nesta Morgan (@NestaJA) September 11, 2023 The social media response from Jamaicans to the Haitians’ arrival was very mixed. Some were sympathetic (although perhaps fewer than when the first group arrived): Just imagine if everyone who has ever tried to seek refuge and better for their families was sent back by a lot of these other countries. We know PLENTY of Jamaicans who have done this. I say we help however we can — Olivia (@rn_livi) September 10, 2023 Commentator Yaneek Page asked Jamaicans to put themselves in their neighbours’ shoes: Glad they didn’t perish We are duty-bound humanitarians. Never forget! Ask yourself – what level of environmental, social & economic turmoil would FORCE you to leave home on a treacherous sea journey, in an unsafe, overloaded vessel – knowing you won’t be welcome on arrival? https://t.co/Gks9zHZ1ip — CourageToChangein2023🔥 (@yaneekpage) September 9, 2023 In a similar vein, educator Dennis Minott wondered what Jamaica's “callous” treatment of the Haitian refugees said about its moral compass. However, others supported the action and saw it as a wise move: Message sent and received. You land in Jamaica, you will be taken back to Haiti. No lay-lay; no long talking. Try sail you boat clear of our shores. Tough message yes but we must make our position clear. Be ambiguous and more will freely come streaming into our safe harbour. — Jack Mandora⚖️ (@Zemi66) September 11, 2023 Minister Morgan told journalists in several radio interviews that none of the Haitians in the second group (as was also the case with the first) had requested asylum. The government, which “has an obligation to protect its citizens,” had acted swiftly this time, he explained, due to security fears. Morgan further pointed out that local intelligence had found that some members of the group had entered Jamaica before, while other individuals had “traces of criminality,” hinting that there might be human trafficking involved. The minister also asserted that “Jamaica was not [the Haitians’] destination of choice,” that they “were very comfortable with being repatriated,” and “did not express a desire to stay.” However, online news site wiredja.com pointed out: This move by the Jamaican Government is in contravention of the policy of non-refoulement signed by Jamaica and should be adhered to under the country’s treaty obligations of the 1967 UN Refugees convention. In response, Minister Morgan argued that the situation in Haiti was largely restricted to the capital, and that “not everywhere is a problem.” He went on to describe some areas of the country as “extremely peaceful,” and noted that the refugees came from Haiti’s historic second city, Cap-Haïtien. “Haiti is not a failed state,” Morgan added, citing an upcoming soccer match with Jamaica on September 12. In a further effort to prove his point, he suggested that Haiti’s murder rate was lower than Jamaica’s. According to international media reports, Haiti’s crime rate has more than doubled in 2023.