AU Alarmed by U.S. Deportee Deals with Rwanda, Uganda

2025-09-03 09:38:05

(MENAFN) The African Union's (AU) human rights body raised alarm on Monday regarding recent agreements between Rwanda, Uganda, and the United States that would facilitate the transfer of deportees to these African nations.

In a statement, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) urged both Rwanda and Uganda, along with other African states, to prioritize transparency in such deportation agreements, safeguard the rights of deportees, and avoid policies that could transform the continent into a “drop-off zone” for arbitrary expulsions.

The ACHPR cautioned that these agreements were part of a wider trend of shifting migration responsibilities abroad, placing deportees at greater risk of human rights abuses. The AU body also highlighted that such deportations could violate key principles, including the prohibition of non-refoulement, the ban on collective expulsions, and the rights to dignity and asylum, as enshrined in the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and other international legal instruments.

Earlier this month, Uganda became the latest African nation to sign a “temporary” deal with the US to accept third-country nationals rejected for asylum. Uganda joins Rwanda, Eswatini, and South Sudan in an agreement to host deportees, following a shift in US policy under the Trump administration, which sought African countries as destinations for individuals deported from the US.

Rwanda confirmed last week that seven migrants from the US had arrived in the country, marking the first batch of deportees following an agreement to take in 250 individuals.

In July, President Trump leveraged his White House meetings with African leaders from Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal to ask for their cooperation in accepting third-country migrants who were denied asylum in the US.

African nations' reactions to the US' deportation requests have varied. While some countries have agreed to take in deportees, others, including Nigeria, have resisted pressure to accept migrants, such as Venezuelans, expelled by the US.

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