Haitian student ordered deported

The student, Luxon Saint-Herve was on October 25 ordered to secure an airline ticket to return to Haiti by November 5 after being told by local immigration officials that he does not satisfy the requirements to study in Trinidad and Tobago according to ESC Chairman Kafra Kambon.

In an open letter to Chief Immigration Officer Charmaine Ghandi-Andrews and copied to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and National Security Minister Edmund Dillon, Kambon called on Ghandi-Andrews to prevent the deportation which, “will pain all those who possess a sense of humanity and bring shame and disgrace upon our nation.” Saint-Herve came to TT on August 16 to pursue an associate degree at Cipriani College of Labour and Cooperative Studies (CCLCS).

Kambon said, he met all the academic requirements to pursue studies in project management, but being a French speaker he was required to pursue two developmental courses.

Coming from difficult circumstances, Kambon said that it took tremendous sacrifice from family members, friends and organisations to get him to Trinidad.

A TT national also undertook to sponsor his expenses in the country while he studied.

Saint-Herve began studies at CCLCS on August 22 while undergoing the formalities to obtain a student visa. The college provided the information about his course of study and responded to all queries in writing, and he provided original transcripts in French of his qualifications which were translated to English and notarised as requested.

His sponsor presented his banking information and all seemed well, Kambon said.

On October 25, to his dismay, Saint-Herve was told that his application had been refused. No reasons were given at the time. To subsequent queries by those who were looking into Saint-Herve’s welfare, immigration officials raised issues about the number of courses he was studying, the quality of his English and his financial status. The CCLCS responded in full to the academic issues raised.

On his financial status, Kambon told Newsday Saint-Herve’s sponsor was told he had not had sufficient money in the bank to be a sponsor. He said that when the sponsor told the immigration officials that he had other savings in other accounts, he was told that the matter was already decided on.

If money was the issue, Kambon said, there were other nationals who were willing to meet the student’s financial needs.

Despite all this being known, he said, Saint-Herve was made to return to the immigration office on October 28 with the airline ticket.

All efforts to overturn the deportation have failed. Without higher intervention, Kambon said, Saint-Herve will have to return to Haiti.

“This is incomprehensible, reprehensible and particularly cruel in view of Haiti’s current plight,” Kambon said.

He noted that Haiti suffered a devastating earthquake in 2010, mass unjust deportations of tens of thousands of people of Haitian origin from the Dominican Republic starting in 2015, and Hurricane Matthew last month which claimed some 1000 lives, destroyed homes, buildings, crops and livelihoods and precipitated a rise in cases of cholera.