Jamaican immigration authorities have deported 12 of 16 Haitian caregivers who arrived in Jamaica to assist with the care of 59 orphans with disabilities, rescued from Haiti in March.
The caregivers, staff members of HaitiChildren, the orphanage where they previously worked in Haiti, were accommodated at Jacob’s Ladder, the Mustard Seed Communities (MSC) home in St. Ann.
The rescue mission, described as “delicate,” was conducted by Mustard Seed, HaitiChildren, and the Jamaican Government, with significant assistance from former United States Ambassador to Jamaica Luis Moreno; Jamaica’s former Chief of Defence Staff Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin; and Sentinel Foundation, a non-profit organization in North Carolina that targets child traffickers, protects children, and provides crisis response.
According to HaitiChildren, the children were “forced to leave the organization’s home in Haiti when growing unrest made it unsafe for them to continue living there.” The arrangement with MSC to house the children is for two years, while their caregivers were granted an initial three-month stay on the island on humanitarian grounds.
Caregivers flee MSC
On Saturday, June 8, ten of the adults left Jacob’s Ladder with their luggage and other personal items for an undisclosed location. The group, not authorized to leave the property, failed to make contact with Jacob’s Ladder about their whereabouts, triggering a search and rescue effort by local authorities. After 13 days missing, only eight Haitian adults returned to the facility last Friday.
Upon arrival in Jamaica in March, the adults had been granted a 90-day stay, which expired last Wednesday, making them illegal on the island. MSC’s Chief Executive Officer, Father Garvin Augustine, said that upon their return, they were questioned by immigration officials. MSC officials were instructed “not to question them on their absence,” to which they complied. None of the caregivers voluntarily explained their absence, and they also refused to assist with caring for the orphans.
Father Garvin said MSC asked authorities to allow two of the 16 adult Haitians to stay. “We asked the authorities to keep two of them. They have been working and cooperating with us and they have actually helped with the children,” he said.
Another two adults are still missing along with a young Haitian boy who had been taken to the hospital for surgery. “So, the situation is, 12 were sent home, we kept two, and two are still missing, along with the hydrocephalic child,” Father Garvin said.
The boy was taken to the Bustamante Hospital for Children, where he had surgery recently and was released to the custody of Christo Romain, one of the now-deported caregivers. The Child Protection and Family Service Agency (CPFSA) is part of the search for the child, for whom MSC has custody.
“The orphan boy was discharged from the hospital into the custody of Christo Romain. He took him to the hospital and he was discharged in his care. We are not getting involved because the Child Protection and Family Service Agency (CPFSA) has told us it is a police matter, and there is nothing more we can do about that, in terms of finding the child,” Father Garvin said.
The Ministry of National Security and immigration authorities are also part of the search and rescue efforts for the child and the two Haitian adults who are still missing.
