The United States is urged to reconsider the cases of around 200 third-country nationals, including children, who were expelled to Costa Rica in February, according to Human Rights Watch. The organization suggests that these individuals should be allowed to return and have their asylum claims heard. It also calls on Costa Rica to refuse future transfers of such individuals from the US.
A report titled “‘The Strategy Is to Break Us’: The US Expulsion of Third-Country Nationals to Costa Rica” outlines the circumstances surrounding these expulsions. It describes how migrants and asylum seekers were detained under poor conditions in the US without due process or the opportunity to seek asylum. Furthermore, it highlights Costa Rica’s prolonged detention of these individuals and inconsistent communication regarding their status.
Michael Garcia Bochenek, senior children’s rights counsel at Human Rights Watch, criticized the practice: “It’s reprehensible to dump families in a country they never chose, with no process and no regard for their safety.” He emphasized that both countries should allow these individuals to seek asylum where they feel secure.
Costa Rica has taken in 200 expelled individuals from countries like Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, China, Iran, Russia, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and Yemen. Among them are 81 children aged between 1 and 17. While some have returned home under questionable circumstances regarding voluntariness and others have escaped detention centers in Costa Rica, a few have applied for asylum there.
Details about the expulsion agreement remain undisclosed. However, Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves mentioned that accepting the flights was a gesture towards maintaining economic relations with the US: “We are helping the economically powerful brother to the north [the United States], who if they impose a tax in our free zones, it’ll screw us.” He added that costs incurred by hosting these individuals are covered by the US.
Omer Badilla from Costa Rica’s migration authority noted that most expelled people reportedly wished to return home based on information from US authorities. Yet interviews conducted by Human Rights Watch revealed concerns about returning due to potential risks.
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) faced criticism for separating families during expulsions. In one instance involving an Afghan family, members were sent separately across different countries without consideration for their unity or safety.
Costa Rican officials initially limited options for those expelled but later informed them of their right to seek asylum within Costa Rica. Detainees previously held at a migrant center in Puntarenas province have since been released with temporary status allowing free movement within Costa Rica.
Human Rights Watch recommends that as redress for arbitrary detention experienced by these individuals in Costa Rica, they should receive work authorization and assistance with housing and employment opportunities if they choose to seek asylum there.
Bochenek concluded: “Costa Rica’s complicity in the US’s abusive expulsions has tarnished its proud history of welcoming refugees… But it’s not too late to right this wrong – the government can provide meaningful redress.”
