Latest news with #US-deported
The Star
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
Philippines to US: Deport our citizens to Manila, not El Salvador
WASHINGTON: The United States has a right to deport any Filipino illegal immigrants, but the Philippine government will 'definitely not' allow them to be brought to El Salvador or any third country. Jose Manuel Romualdez (pic), Philippine ambassador to the US, made this clear Tuesday (May 27) when asked of the matter. This came after Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele agreed to house in its mega prison hundreds of migrants expelled by the US government. While most of them are from Venezuela, Bukele previously offered to detain in their prisons US-deported immigrants from those countries that do not take their citizens back. 'I think it's something that the Philippines, we Filipinos, will never allow something like that to happen to us,' Romualdez said of the El Salvador scenario in an interview with reporters at the Philippine Embassy here, adding that even dual citizens are covered by this. 'It's just not in our DNA to allow that to happen,' he noted, saying illegal Filipinos who committed crimes should answer to the local laws. 'We will accept any Filipino, no matter what their status is.' With the Trump administration saying it's exploring other third countries apart from El Salvador to house expelled migrants rejected by their own country, Romualdez said that Manila quickly informed Washington that it will take care of its own. Romualdez said: 'In fact, when there was talk about third countries, we immediately communicated our desire with the United States government that if there's any Filipino that needs to be deported, we would like to be informed and we would be pleased to work with them in having them deported to the Philippines.' According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, there are around two million Filipinos here, of whom there could be as much as 300,000 staying illegally. Romualdez, however, believes that the number of Filipino illegals is 'probably much less than that.' 'Filipinos will always, most Filipinos, that is, will always, especially those that have been here for many years, will find a way to be able to stay here,' he said. 'And I think, more than ever now, this is a clear sign that, you know, the best way to always have a good night's sleep is to always follow the legal path in anything that you do,' he went on. 'The old Filipino style of palusutan (looking for workarounds) and everything like that … that's the worst thing you can do because you think you can get away with something today, but you can't get away with it forever.' - Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
USA Today
21-04-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
El Salvador proposes swapping US-deported Venezuelans for Venezuelan 'political prisoners'
El Salvador proposes swapping US-deported Venezuelans for Venezuelan 'political prisoners' Show Caption Hide Caption Sen. Van Hollen back El Salvador after meeting with Abrego Garcia Sen. Chris Van Hollen returned from El Salvador after meeting Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported by the Trump administration. SAN SALVADOR - El Salvador President Nayib Bukele on Sunday proposed sending 252 Venezuelans deported from the U.S. and imprisoned in his country to Venezuela, in exchange for taking "political prisoners" held by Venezuela. In a post on X, Bukele asked that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro hand over 252 "of the political prisoners you are holding," under his proposed deal. The Salvadoran leader did not say whether the prisoners would be incarcerated again upon an exchange. Venezuela's Ministry of Communication did not respond to a request for comment. Among those Bukele proposed for release from Venezuela were journalist Roland Carreno, human rights lawyer Rocio San Miguel and Corina Parisca de Machado, mother of Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who he said is subjected to daily threats at her home. Previously: Kilmar Abrego Garcia tells US senator of traumatizing stay in El Salvador prison He also mentioned nearly 50 detainees of other nationalities, including U.S., German and French citizens, as part of the proposed exchange. Bukele said his Foreign Ministry would formally present the proposal to the Venezuelan government through diplomatic channels. Last month, the administration of President Donald Trump deported at least 200 Venezuelans from the United States to El Salvador, accusing them of being members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang. The U.S. is paying El Salvador $6 million to detain the migrants in its high-security Terrorism Confinement Center. The Venezuelan government has said it has no political prisoners and that imprisoned people have been convicted of crimes. However, non-governmental organizations claim that more than 800 people are detained for political reasons. The Venezuelan government has denied that the Venezuelans deported by the U.S. have gang affiliations. Lawyers and family members of the detainees have also asserted that the migrants have no ties to criminal groups. On Saturday, the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deporting another group of Venezuelan migrants accused of gang ties under a rarely used wartime law, issuing a stay after the American Civil Liberties Union asked the court to intervene on an emergency basis. The Trump administration pressed the Supreme Court to reject the ACLU's request on the migrants' behalf, once they review the matter further. White House officials said the president remains committed to his immigration crackdown, but gave no indication the administration would defy the court's decision. (Reporting by Nelson Renteria; Additional reporting by Mayela Armas in Caracas, Writing by Natalia Siniawski; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Leslie Adler)
