‘Every country conducts deportation’ – Sidia Jatta

Veteran politician and National Assembly Member for Wuli West Sidia Jatta has described deportation as a universal phenomenon carried out by every country in the world. In a lengthy Facebook post, the MP said the act of returning illegal migrants is not limited to Western countries, saying that even The Gambia deports foreigners.

“It is important to note that every country has a right to deport people who do not meet the requirements of being resident there,” he added.

The comments by the People’s Democratic Organisation for Impendence and Socialism (PDOIS) MP came on the heels of the heated debate about deportation that has followed the deportation of more than a dozen Gambians from the United States.

Jatta also addressed the widely-held misconception that the government of The Gambia has signed deportation agreements with the US and other European countries. He stated that The Gambia does not have to sign an agreement with any government to accept deportees, and that when The Gambian government deports foreigners, they similarly do not need to seek permission, or need to sign an agreement with the countries concerned. The same is true for any other country in that respect, Jatta added.

Yankuba Sonko, a youth activist in Brikama, called on young people to take their cue from Gambians who returned home in hopelessness after being deported.

Sonko, who recently returned from Germany in order to partake in youth mentorship programmes, said that life in Europe could be unendurable for irregular migrants, according to the post on Jatta’s Facebook page.

Sonoko, as cited in Jatta’s Facebook post, provides the example of new, stiffer laws against irregular migrants being introduced by the German Interior Minister. The Minister has said he has plans to put in place a master plan to speed up asylum procedures and ensure consistent deportations, which means those who will not receive asylum may find it difficult to secure a job or face deportation.

TMP – 10/05/2018

Photo: Outspoken and widely respected parliamentarian Sidia Jatta