South Africa Voices Security Concerns Over Convicted Criminals Sent to Eswatini by the U.S.
Viable News Team 
South Africa has formally raised national security and immigration concerns after the arrival of convicted criminals in Eswatini, following a controversial U.S. deportation strategy. The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) and government officials are engaging with Eswatini authorities to address the situation.
The concern stems from reports, confirmed by Eswatini’s acting spokesperson Thabile Mdluli, that a group of individuals convicted of serious crimes in the United States were transported to Eswatini under a program facilitated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. These individuals hail from countries that have declined to repatriate them.
DIRCO states that while respectful of Eswatini’s sovereignty, South Africa is profoundly worried about the implications of housing high-risk individuals in a neighboring country with shared, porous borders. The government emphasized that the stability of South Africa’s immigration systems and national security could be impacted by this development.
U.S. news outlets previously reported that the deportees include men convicted of grave offenses such as murder, child rape, and gang-related violence. The transfer is part of a broader U.S. initiative involving agreements with countries like South Sudan and Rwanda to accept deportees from nations that refuse their return.
Furthermore, local legal oversight is mounting. Human rights advocates and lawyers in Eswatini have raised red flags over the clandestine nature of the arrangement, and human rights watchdogs have described the situation as tantamount to human trafficking.
Upon arrival, the five men are being held in solitary confinement in maximum-security facilities in Eswatini, with planned repatriation timelines unclear. Eswatini’s cooperation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has been noted, although the terms remain opaque.
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