Photo: Carlos Barria / Reuters
The United States Supreme Court has issued a high-profile ruling that allows Donald Trump’s administration to resume deportations of illegal migrants to third countries. The decision was a victory for the current president and the White House’s new immigration policy, AFP reports, citing judicial sources.
Deportation without warning
The court ruling allows for the immediate resumption of deportations that were previously suspended by a lower court decision. Federal Judge Brian Murphy halted these measures in April, stressing that they violated the basic rights of migrants. According to him, each person should be given at least 15 days to appeal against deportation, especially if there is a risk of torture or death in the destination country.
This week, however, the Supreme Court – predominantly composed of conservative justices – granted the Ministry of Justice’s urgent request to lift the ban. Although the full reasoning behind the decision has not yet been published, three liberal justices dissented in strong terms.
A court case with a touch of Africa
The initial lawsuit concerns eight individuals convicted of violent crimes in the United States. They are citizens of Cuba, Vietnam, Mexico, Laos, Burma and South Sudan. At the time of the ruling, they were in transit through Djibouti, heading for Sudan.
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor criticised the Trump administration for “flagrantly violating the law”, which, in her words, “puts thousands of people at risk of torture or death”. She stressed that the US government is acting on a “leave immediately and without a vote” basis.
“A win for Americans,” says Trump administration
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) considers the decision a “victory for US security and sovereignty”. For years, the Trump administration has been pushing a tough policy on illegal migration, calling it a “threat” and a “foreign crime”.
However, human rights activists and lawyers remind that even illegal migrants are entitled to basic protection under the US Constitution and international conventions. The programme of mass deportations has been repeatedly blocked by the courts, including by the Supreme Court itself in the past.
