New Delhi: US President Donald Trump’s mandate to deport undocumented migrants on military planes – with handcuffs, chains and other restrictions on movement – has sparked diplomatic concerns and drawn criticism from rights groups for undermining the fundamental rights of the migrants.
While Colombia, Brazil and Mexico have taken exception to US actions, India has defended the use of restraints against its own citizens.
Hours after US border patrol chief shared a video showing handcuffed Indian deportees boarding a US military plane, Union external affairs minister S. Jaishankar defended the use of restraints on deportees citing US law in his parliament speech on Thursday (February 6).
Indians onboard the US military plane that landed in Amritsar on Wednesday have described their hellish experience on the flight – with their hands and legs being cuffed on the 40-hour journey. The undocumented migrants were reportedly not un-cuffed even to drink water or use the washroom.
The US has previously used chartered planes for deportation flights to India – a standard method of deportation, as it is seen as a civilian process.
So far, the US has sent military planes to Honduras, Peru and Guatemala. Colombia and Mexico both denied the US permission to land military planes on their soil but allowed the arrival of other chartered flights carrying undocumented migrants.
Here’s a roundup of how other countries have responded to the use of military planes and shackling of its citizens.
Colombia
Colombian President Gustavo Petro argued that military flights violated protocol and that handcuffing migrants amounted to treating them as criminals, undermining their dignity.
“The US cannot treat Colombian migrants as criminals,” Petro wrote on X on January 26. “I disallow the entry of US planes carrying Colombian migrants into our territory.”
Colombian deportees returning from the US. Photo: X/@petrogustavo
Petro’s statement came as two US flights were on their way to Colombia and were forced to return after being denied entry.
After an initial standoff over tariffs between the US and Colombia, Petro allowed deportation flights, but on one condition – his citizens would not be sent on US military planes.
On January 28, Colombia sent its own air force to escort its citizens back with dignity.
Photos from the flight, showing government officials speaking to the undocumented migrants onboard the plane, were released on Petro’s X page. The migrants can be seen de-boarding the plane without handcuffs or any other restrictive equipment.
Brazil
A US plane carrying 88 undocumented migrants landed in Brazil last week. However, the authorities took strong exception to the use of handcuffs and said that it undermined the dignity of its citizens.
According to Reuters, a prominent minister in President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s government called the move “blatant disrespect” for Brazilian citizens.
The handcuffs were removed from the passengers after the intervention of the Brazilian police, the government said.
Following this, Brazil announced the creation of a working group to facilitate information exchange and improve the coordination of return flights for undocumented Brazilians in the US, with the goal of ensuring “safety and the dignified and respectful treatment of passengers.”
Also read: US Border Chief Posts Video of Shackled Indians Boarding Plane, Opp Calls it ‘Black Day’ for India
Mexico
On Friday (January 24), Mexico denied a US military plane, carrying 80 migrants, access to land, heightening the growing tensions between the two neighbouring countries. However, it allowed four government-chartered flights carrying deportees to land later the same day, EL PAÍS reported.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s government said that it opposes Trump taking “unilateral” action to implement restrictive immigration standards.
A statement released by the Mexican foreign ministry last week said that it will embrace deportees “with open arms”.
“Mexico has a very good relationship with the United States government and we cooperate with respect for our sovereignty on a wide range of issues, including migration,” a statement by the Mexican foreign ministry read. “When it comes to repatriations, we will always welcome the arrival of Mexicans to our territory with open arms. Mexico embraces you.”
Honduras
While a US military plane carrying 72 deportees landed in Honduras on February 1 (Saturday), the Honduran government claimed that they were neither “shackled nor wearing handcuffs” when they got off the plane.
The deportees were welcomed by the Honduran government and served hot meals and coffee.
Honduras had, earlier this year, threatened to expel US troops from a significant American military base in its territory in response to Trump’s mass deportation plans.
Honduras’ President Xiomara Castro said that US military facilities in Honduras, particularly the Soto Cano Air Base, would “lose all reason to exist” if these deportations occurred, Al Jazeera had reported.
“In the face of a hostile attitude of mass expulsion of our brothers, we would have to consider a change in our cooperation policies with the United States, especially in the military field, where for decades, without paying a cent, they maintain military bases on our territory, which in this case would lose all reason to exist in Honduras,” she said.
While the country has renewed its military agreement with the US, it has added conditions related to the mass deportations. “If the conditions are not the best, we can re-evaluate,” Honduran foreign minister Enrique Reinasaid, said, adding, “We are looking for dignified treatment.”
Guatemala
Guatemala was the first country to receive migrants on military planes since the deportation flights began two weeks ago. On January 27, it received its third flight carrying migrants, with 64 people on board, according to Reuters.
A total of 265 Guatemalans arrived on three flights – two operated by the military, and one a charter, the Central American country’s migration institute said.
Peru
More than 100 Peruvians would be deported from the US in the coming weeks while 34 have already been “expelled”, director general of Peruvian communities abroad and consular Affairs, Pedro Bravo, said in a statement to RPP Noticias.
“We estimate that if everything proceeds as in previous years, more than 100 Peruvians should be arriving in the coming weeks. That is the number of Peruvians set to be deported soon,” he said.
He said that two repatriation flights will be carried out each month, adding that the last such flight to Peru used a US military plane as “an exception”, as as regular returns are carried out through the two scheduled flights per month.
