Deported Refugees from US Government Returned to Their Countries

According to a decision by the US government, refugees are being expelled from the United States and returned to their countries of origin.

299 migrants without legal documentation from America have been transferred to Panama in three flights over the past week following Donald Trump’s administration policies, and Panama’s President “José Raúl Mulino” has agreed that his country will serve as a bridge for migrants deported from the US.

The luxury hotel “Decapolis” in Panama City has two exclusive restaurants, a swimming pool, a spa, and a private shuttle service that offers rooms with ocean-facing windows to its guests, but as of Tuesday, February 18, this hotel has been converted into a temporary detention center housing 299 migrants deported from America.

Tourists on any given day can easily access the hotel, but now armed personnel from Panama’s National Air and Sea Force have implemented strict security measures inside and outside the hotel building.

The deported refugees are from China, Uzbekistan, Iran, Turkey, India, Vietnam, Nepal, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, with only 171 of them agreeing to return to their countries of origin, while the remaining individuals face an uncertain future.

According to statements from the Panamanian government, this group will be transferred to a camp in the “Darién” province, which currently hosts migrants who have traveled through the jungle toward the United States and are now housed there.

Behind the windows of the hotel, adults and children are asking for help from people outside in various ways. They raise their hands and place their thumbs on the palms of their hands (this gesture is the international sign for requesting help), and some write on the glass in large red letters: “Help us.” Afghan children with covered faces have also written on papers: “Please save Afghan girls” and held them against the windows.

According to statements from an Iranian woman who has lived in Panama for years and has been in contact with one of the refugees inside the hotel, she stated that they are terrified of being returned to Iran. The Iranian woman said in her statement: “I had gone to the hotel as a Farsi translator to help, but they said they already have a translator, but based on information I received from sources inside the hotel, I realized this claim was not accurate.”

She also added: “Since contact between migrants inside the hotel and the outside is prohibited, the migrant said that several small children are trapped in the hotel and migrants are deprived of access to a lawyer and are not allowed to even leave their rooms to eat.”

The Iranian woman also stated that since Tuesday when the deported migrants arrived at the hotel and news of this reached the media, security measures have been intensified and migrants’ internet access has been cut off. However, “Frank Abreg,” Panama’s Minister of Public Security, responding to reports that migrants are not allowed to leave the hotel, said: “The government must protect the security and peace of Panamanians.”

In videos released on this matter, one Iranian migrant describes how after crossing the American border they were detained and told they would be transferred to Texas, but instead ended up in Panama. Another woman has emphasized that if she returns to Iran, she will face retaliatory measures by the Iranian government and her life is in danger, and she intends to apply for political asylum. However, experts have stated that without access to a lawyer, the possibility of obtaining political asylum is very slim, and the Panamanian government has also stated that these facilities will not be made available to the deportees.

Some Iranian Christians have also refused to sign documents related to their return to Iran and have stated that if they return to Iran, their lives will be in danger and their return would mean facing serious dangers and violations of their basic rights.