Foreign Affairs Minister Dennis Moses has cleared Immigration officials of any wrongdoing in the recent deportation of 12 Jamaican nationals after reviewing a report sent to him on the cases.
Speaking with the T&T Guardian yesterday, Moses said he also found the Immigration officials took the appropriate action as the visiting Jamaicans had failed to show their ability to sustain themselves in T&T.
“I have no reason to doubt that they would have been provided with meals, water and other provisions to make them comfortable and also allowed to leave the following morning,” Moses said.
Asked if diplomatic relations between T&T and Jamaica were nevertheless hurt by the incident, Moses replied: “The close bond relationship continues. We have been having ongoing conversations and it will continue favourably.”
Moses was expected to meet with Jamaican officials late yesterday afternoon.
The report, sent to Moses on Tuesday by the Immigration Division, had cleared all Immigration officers who were on duty at the Piarco International Airport on March 21, the day the Jamaicans arrived via two separate flights.
On their return to their country, however, the Jamaicans turned to social media claiming they were ill-treated and made to lie on the cold ground to sleep and also were refused food and water.
They called on their compatriots to boycott visiting T&T and using any of its products as a result of their treatment.
However, a senior official at the Immigration Division had told the T&T Guardian that after an internal probe no officer was found to have acted irresponsibly or in a discriminatory manner towards the Jamaicans.
Rather it was found that the Jamaicans were not admissible based on their declarations and on interviews conducted by Immigration officers.
Speaking with the T&T Guardian yesterday, communications specialist for Caribbean Airlines, Dionne Ligoure, also assured that once the people were refused entry to the country and placed in the care of the airline, “Caribbean Airlines does all possible to ensure they are treated just as they treat all our valued customers.”