APRIL 30 REPATRIATION OF 366 HAITIAN MIGRANTS

UNCLAS PORT AU PRINCE 000809 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA/EX AND WHA/CAR S/CRS SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD STATE PASS AID FOR LAC/CAR INR/IAA (BEN-YEHUDA) WHA/EX PLEASE PASS USOAS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM HA SUBJECT: APRIL 30 REPATRIATION OF 366 HAITIAN MIGRANTS ¶1. (U) On April 30, the US Coast Guard (USCG) transferred 366 Haitian migrants into the custody of the GoH in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. On April 27 around 9:00 AM, the USCG intercepted a 50-foot sail freighter carrying 198 Haitian migrants 12 nautical miles off the west coast of Great Inagua, Bahamas. On April 28 around 8:00 PM, the USCG intercepted a 40-foot sail freighter carrying 168 Haitian migrants 22 nautical miles southwest of Matthewtown Lighthouse, Great Inagua, Bahamas. The migrants from the first vessel informed the USCG that they were bound for the Bahamas; the migrants on the second, to the U.S. The migrants on both vessels were leaving Haiti for economic reasons. If the migrant paid for the voyage, the price was between 3,000 and 4,000 Haitian Gourdes, or 83 and 100 USD. In an interview with Poloff, one migrant bound for the U.S. admitted that migrants who did not pay the full price were to work off the "debt" upon reaching the U.S. When asked, this migrant did not consider the arrangement to be bonded servitude or slavery. ¶2. (U) There is a confirmed spike in USCG interdictions of Haitian migrants. In April, 704 migrants were interdicted, of which 700 were repatriated: 78 on April 11, 22 on April 24, 234 on April 27, and 366 on April 30. The USCG reported 43 interdictions of Haitian migrants in April 2006 and 769 in all of last year. Furthermore, 139 migrants were interdicted on May 1 and 56 on May 2. The USCG will repatriate the migrants interdicted on May 1 to Cap Haitien on May 4. ¶3. (U) Comment. We believe that the landing of Haitian migrants on Hallandale Beach, Florida may be influencing Haitians to attempt the voyage. Eventhough the migrants denied to the USCG any knowledge of the Hallandale Beach landing, the USCG crewmember who understood Creole heard the migrants discuss the event. Poloff believes that the migrants on the second vessel were familiar with the Hallandale Beach incident because one migrant admitted that contacting relatives or friends in the U.S. is a normal part of the planning process for these voyages, especially if the trip was funded by contacts in the U.S., as his trip was. Poloff interviewed two migrants on the Bahamas bound vessel who admitted knowing about the Hallandale Beach landing, but claimed that it had no bearing on their decision to return to the Bahamas. SANDERSON