Trump Administration Deports Jamaican Man and others to African Prison for half a billion dollars to holding them.
Written by b87fm on 09/01/2025
A controversial deal between the Trump administration and the small African nation of Eswatini has raised serious human rights concerns.
According to reports, Eswatini — Africa’s last absolute monarchy — is currently detaining five immigrants deported from the United States. Documents show the country even asked Washington for half a billion dollars in exchange for holding them. At one point, Eswatini also offered to detain 150 other foreign nationals for $10 million.
FILE – Matsapha Correctional Complex is seen in Matsapha, near Mbabane, Eswatini, Thursday July 17, 2025. AP Photo, File
Eswatini officials say the detainees will eventually be sent back to their countries of origin, with help from the United Nations International Organization for Migration. But nearly two months later, they remain locked up inside the Matsapha Correctional Complex.
Among them is Orville Etoria, a Jamaican immigrant who came to the U.S. at 12 years old. He served time for a 1996 murder conviction in New York, earned a college degree while incarcerated, and was pursuing a master’s degree after his release. Despite no new charges in Eswatini, he remains behind bars.
Homeland Security officials labeled Etoria and the others “depraved monsters,” claiming their home countries refused to accept them. Jamaican officials pushed back, saying they never denied the return of any nationals and continue working to bring Etoria home.
Critics argue the Trump administration’s third-country deportation policy puts immigrants at risk by sending them to nations where they have no ties — and where human rights violations are well-documented.
Eswatini itself has faced scrutiny from Amnesty International for extrajudicial killings, torture, and arbitrary arrests. Even the U.S. State Department warns travelers to “exercise increased caution” due to civil unrest.
For now, the detainees remain caught in limbo, imprisoned far from both the United States and their homelands.
