US announces measures to deter Caribbean migrants from illegal entry

New sweeping measures aimed at deterring Caribbean and other migrants from illegally entering the United States will be implemented soon.

The United States Department of State and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) made that announcement today

The announcement came a day before Thursday’s end of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the lifting of the pandemic-era Title 42 public health order.

That order essentially allowed the government to halt the entry of people and imports to prevent the introduction of a communicable disease from outside the borders of the continental US. 

According to the State Department, “when the Title 42 order is lifted by midnight Thursday, the United States would be strengthening its enforcement of long-standing Title 8 immigration authorities to expeditiously process and remove individuals who arrive at the US border unlawfully and do not have a legal basis to remain.”. 

The State Department also claimed that people who cross into the US at the southwest border without permission or in the absence of having used a lawful pathway, “and without having scheduled a time to arrive at a port of entry, will be presumed ineligible for asylum, absent an applicable exception,” the State Department warned. 

Adding “If removed, they will be barred from re-entry for at least five years and subject to potential criminal prosecution for repeated attempts to enter unlawfully.” 

Haitians, Venezuelans, and Cubans have been identified by the US as those flooding the southern border in their attempt to flee their impoverished countries.

Opening the first regional processing centers to direct individuals to lawful pathways; deploying the first group of additional troops to support border patrol; surging additional resources to manage increased encounters; issuing new rules to encourage migrants to use lawful pathways; and ramping up efforts to counter misinformation are among measures the US government have put in place so far.

There’s an intention by the US to open up 100 regional processing centres at key locations in the Western Hemisphere. An online platform for individuals to make appointments to arrive at a center near them will also be in place in a matter of days.