Burundi to receive US deportees under new deal - TimesLIVE

Burundi has agreed to join a clutch of other African nations in receiving migrants from other countries deported from the US under President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policy.

However, Bujumbura will only accept those not accused of crime or terrorism links, said Nancy Ninette Mutoni, spokesperson for President Evariste Ndayishimiye.

Tuesday’s announcement gave no details of numbers, timing, or financial terms.

Washington has sent so-called third-country deportees to some half a dozen African nations under opaque deals that Senate Democrats say have cost tens of millions ​of dollars.

In many cases, deportees had secured legal protections from immigration courts in the US against repatriation, but rights groups say the third-country deals allow the US to circumvent those protections.

Mutoni said preparations were under way to arrange accommodation, living conditions and integration into communities. “Receiving them requires serious planning — where they will stay, what they will eat and how they will live alongside the local population,” she said.

“If they choose to join Burundian citizens and make a valuable contribution to national development, the law will be respected,” she said, regarding potential citizenship.

Burundi aimed to both strengthen diplomatic relations and provide hospitality to people in need, the spokesperson added.

The US state department told Reuters in an email late on Wednesday that it does “not comment on the details of our private diplomatic communications with other governments,” while a spokesperson for the Burundi foreign ministry said on Wednesday that the details of the agreement were not yet available.