3-7-2024 (WASHINGTON) The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the deportation of 116 Chinese nationals over the past weekend, marking the first large-scale repatriation of illegal Chinese immigrants since 2018.
The DHS stated in a press release on Tuesday, July 2nd, that the deportation operation was conducted in close coordination with China’s National Immigration Administration. “The Department of Homeland Security will continue to work with the Ministry of Public Security and the National Immigration Administration of China to arrange additional removal flights,” the statement read.
The statement further highlighted the joint efforts between the US and China to “expand enforcement actions, reduce and deter irregular migration, and combat human smuggling.”
A DHS official confirmed to Voice of America that the charter flight repatriated 116 individuals, but did not provide additional details, such as how long these illegal immigrants had been residing in the US, the specific destination in China, or who covered the costs of the flight.
In the statement, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said, “We will continue to enforce our immigration laws and remove those who have no legal basis to remain in the United States. People should not believe the lies of smugglers.”
Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in the US, stated that China’s National Immigration Administration had conducted international law enforcement cooperation with relevant agencies to repatriate individuals involved in smuggling activities. “It has repatriated the organizers, planners, and illegal immigrants to their places of origin and held them legally accountable.”
According to the report, based on Liu’s statement, the 116 deportees may have included not only illegal immigrants but also the organizers and planners of the human smuggling activities.
Liu further stated that the Chinese government is firmly committed to its open-door policy, promoting normal cross-border travel and protecting the legal rights of entry and exit personnel, while resolutely cracking down on human smuggling crimes and actively participating in the global governance of illegal immigration.
Data released by the US government shows that the number of Chinese immigrants attempting to enter the US through the Mexico-US border and the US-Canada northern border surged to nearly 56,000 in the 2024 fiscal year, which runs from October 1st to May of this year. They have tried to cross the borders through official ports of entry as well as unauthorized routes.
According to a report by Agence France-Presse, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump had made the issue of illegal immigration a core focus of his re-election campaign, repeatedly criticizing the Biden administration for failing to prevent the influx of illegal immigrants into the United States.
