Eight more migrants who were expelled from the United States arrived in Equatorial Guinea last week, one of their lawyers told AFP on Monday.
Equatorial Guinea is one of a number of African countries that have agreed to take part in the contested US immigration scheme to deport undocumented migrants to third countries.
They include Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Ghana, Rwanda, South Sudan, Eswatini and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Lucas Olo Fernandes, a lawyer and member of the Equatorial Guinea Jurists Commission, said that eight people, from Jamaica, Uganda, Eritrea, Senegal and the DRC, arrived in Malabo on Thursday last week.
The expelled migrants are the fourth group to arrive from the United States to Equatorial Guinea, and have been staying in a hotel near the airport since their arrival.
In all, 40 people have been transferred to Equatorial Guinea since the end of last year in exchange for a payment of $7.5 million, according to a US Senate report published in February.
The agreement allows the United States to expel individuals who had been legally prevented from being deported to their home country because of fears for their own safety, giving them legal status but fewer rights than asylum.
The expulsions have become a central part of President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration policy but their legality has been questioned both at home and abroad.
Earlier this month, a complaint was lodged before the African Commission of Human and Peoples’ Rights to suspend the expulsions to Equatorial Guinea.
It also seeks to prevent Equatorial Guinea from sending expelled migrants to their countries of origin.
Equatorial Guinea’s Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue condemned the move, arguing that Malabo “has always acted with respect for human dignity, guaranteeing each person the freedom to choose their destination and providing the necessary support”.
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