Attorneys for Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a Friday letter that they intend to send Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the African nation of Eswatini after he expressed a fear of deportation to Uganda.
The letter from ICE to Abrego Garcia’s attorneys was earlier reported by Fox News. It states that his fear of persecution or torture in Uganda is “hard to take seriously, especially given that you have claimed (through your attorneys) that you fear persecution or torture in at least 22 different countries. …Nonetheless, we hereby notify you that your new country of removal is Eswatini.”
Eswatini’s government spokesperson told The Associated Press on Saturday that it had no received no communication regarding Abrego Garcia’s transfer there.
So, Eswatini. Tiny landlocked country between South Africa and Mozambique. Its biggest cities aren’t safe for visitors, even in crowded public spaces. Few police. Lots of crime. Literally like a dozen ambulances for the entire country. A developing country on the poorer side whose population is ruled by an absolute monarchy (king) who takes a significant share of the wealth. Pro-democracy protests get put down violently, but the people don’t seem to be particularly repressed otherwise (the state seems to be too poor to do it even if the king wanted to). Mostly subsistence farming, sugarcane, and some manufacturing for 1/3 of the wages of South Africans. About 30% of the population has HIV, and tuberculosis is fairly widespread. Median age is early 20s.
Wouldn’t be my first choice.