Fifteen Latin American nationals deported from the United States to the Democratic Republic of Congo under the Trump administration's controversial immigration policy are facing an uncertain future, with limited freedom and an impossible choice between returning to their home countries or remaining in a nation they barely know.
Living the 'Congolese Dream'?
While Congo's President Félix Tshisekedi has described their situation as 'living the Congolese dream,' the deportees themselves paint a far grimmer picture. One 29-year-old Colombian woman, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, told The Associated Press that she and others are treated 'like children.' They are confined to a hotel in Kinshasa, allowed supervised outings only once a week, and face an uncertain future as their three-month visas near expiration.
'What would one do in a completely unknown place, without a place to live and without knowing what to do?' she asked.
Role of the International Organization for Migration
The woman revealed new details about the central role played by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a United Nations-affiliated body. Deportees are only allowed to leave the hotel accompanied by IOM staff, who control where they go and what they buy. While IOM has organized activities like painting, music, and volleyball, many deportees have stopped participating due to boredom. The woman spends most of her time in her room, making late-night calls to her 10-year-old daughter in Colombia.
Most strikingly, IOM staff have presented deportees with two impossible options: return to Colombia, where a U.S. judge has ruled she cannot be safely sent back, or remain in Congo with no support. 'They are given impossible choices,' said Alma David, the woman's U.S.-based attorney. 'By deporting them to a third country with no opportunity to contest being sent there, the U.S. not only violated their due process rights but our own immigration laws and our obligations under international treaties.'
Doubtful Legalities and Human Rights Concerns
Congo is one of at least eight African countries that have made deals with the Trump administration to facilitate deportations of third-country nationals, a practice legal experts describe as a loophole. Most deportees had received legal orders of protection from U.S. judges shielding them from being returned to their home countries. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not respond to questions about the Colombian woman's case but has previously asserted that third-country deportation agreements 'ensure due process under the U.S. Constitution.' The Trump administration says the agreements are needed to 'remove criminal illegal aliens' whose countries of origin will not take them back.
The details of Congo's deal with the U.S. remain unclear. Tshisekedi called it an 'act of goodwill between partners' with no financial compensation, though other countries have received millions of dollars. Congolese human rights groups have condemned the arrangement as a violation of international refugee law, with the Congo-based Institute for Human Rights Research describing it as 'arbitrary detention by proxy for the United States.'
A Personal Story of Persecution and Detention
The Colombian woman fled her home country in 2024 after threats from armed groups and abuse by a former partner who worked for the government. She went to Mexico and booked a border appointment with the U.S. government. When she presented herself at an Arizona port of entry in September 2024, immigration officials determined she had a credible fear of persecution, clearing her to apply for asylum, but she was kept in ICE detention. 'You spend a year and a half locked up, living the same day over and over again. You see fights, punishments where people are locked in cells for many hours. You lose your privacy even to use the bathroom,' she said. She also reported racist remarks and being denied basic necessities like showers as punishment.
In May 2025, a federal judge granted her protection under the U.N. Convention Against Torture, ruling she could not be safely returned to Colombia. After winning her release in February, she moved to Texas and was required to wear a GPS monitoring device. However, at her first check-in appointment with ICE, she was detained again. 'All they told me was that I was under detention, as they had found a third country for me,' she said. Less than three weeks later, she was put on a plane to Congo, arriving on April 17 after a nearly 24-hour charter flight during which her hands and feet were restrained.
Uncertain Future and Ongoing Anxiety
Now, the deportees stay at a hotel near Kinshasa's airport in tidy white bungalows. Congo's government covers the cost, according to the IOM, but it is unclear if that will continue after their visas expire. The hotel gates are locked, and security personnel do not allow them to leave unaccompanied. They were told they could apply for asylum, but no one has chosen that option. 'I don't feel safe in Congo,' the woman said.
The IOM spokesperson said the organization has provided humanitarian assistance based on an assessment of her vulnerability, including 'protection interventions, referrals, rights safeguarding and promotion of migrants' overall well-being.' The IOM also may offer 'assisted voluntary return,' covering documents, flights, transit, and temporary housing on arrival, with migrants' consent. However, the IOM said it plays no role in determining who is deported and reserves the right to withdraw assistance if 'minimum protection standards' aren't met.
The Colombian woman remains in limbo, anxious about her future. She said the food has made her and others sick, causing stomach ailments. Local languages like French and Lingala are as foreign as her surroundings. 'The worst part is having to go through all of that without having committed any crime, simply for going to another country to ask for safety and protection,' she said.
