Judge fails to appear at hearing in Eswatini for case involving Cuban and other migrants deported by the U.S.

A judge in Eswatini did not show up this Thursday for a scheduled court hearing to review the prolonged detention of four migrants — including a Cuban citizen — deported by the United States to the small country in southern Africa.

The case, driven by several nonprofit organizations, questions the legality of the detention without charges of men from Cuba, Laos, Vietnam, and Yemen, who were sent to Eswatini in July as part of the deportation program to third countries implemented by the administration of Donald Trump, reported AP.

American lawyers for the detainees report that their clients have been in prison for over two months without access to legal representation, held in the most secure maximum-security prison in the African country.

Judge Titus Mlangeni, who is overseeing the case, did not attend the hearing, and the authorities did not provide any explanation for his absence.

Activists who protest in front of the United States embassy in that nation have accused the judicial system of Eswatini of employing delaying tactics to evade international scrutiny.

“This is part of an institutional evasion pattern to prevent legal review of the case,” denounced Zakhithi Sibandze, national coordinator of the organization Swaziland Rural Women’s Assembly.

In total, five men were initially deported to Eswatini. One of them, a Jamaican national, was repatriated to his home country last weekend.

Since July, the United States has deported over 30 individuals to various African countries under this new program. U.S. authorities described those deported as "dangerous criminals" who have already served sentences for serious offenses, including homicides.

However, international human rights organizations have strongly criticized this policy for relocating migrants to countries with authoritarian regimes, where they could be deprived of their basic rights, such as access to lawyers or a fair trial.

Eswatini —formerly known as Swaziland— is one of the last absolute monarchies in the world, where the king rules by decree. The country has been criticized for human rights violations and lack of judicial guarantees.

Among the migrants that the United States plans to deport to Eswatini is the Cuban Kilmar Abrego García, according to official sources.

When asked about the judicial process, the spokesperson for the government of Eswatini, Thabile Mdluli, declined to comment, stating that it is an ongoing case.