Cabinet approves $2.4M funding for new immigration detention centre

Cabinet has voted to approve $2.4 million in new funding for a “detention facility” capable of housing more than 300 “irregular migrants” – government’s term for the mostly Cuban refugees arriving in Cayman by boat.

The supplementary funds were approved last week for the construction project, which was not in the government budget for 2024 and 2025. 

The surprise decision comes amid increasing unrest among the Cuban community about the conditions in which they are being housed and their treatment in Cayman. Meanwhile, government has cited damage to its properties by the migrants as the reason a new secure building is needed.

A group of Cubans protested outside the government building last week about a number of issues including ‘untenable’ living conditions. One protester held a banner stating, “I am a refugee, not your prisoner”.

Government characterised the project as both a humanitarian and national security imperative.

District community centres, filled with rows of temporary beds, have been used as overspill housing for an increasing number of people arriving in Cayman in makeshift boats from Cuba. 

A press release from Customs and Border Control on Thursday stated the funding would be for a new, purpose-built immigration detention facility to securely house and monitor 180 people in “permanent structures” with surge capacity to accommodate an additional 144 people in short-term housing.

Response to ‘inadequacies’

The planned facility, to be built on the existing site on Fairbanks Road, was described as a “response to current inadequacies” and a measure that would help meet the growing challenge of increasing “irregular” immigration.

“The increase in migrant flows around the region, and the number of migrants that arrived on our shores in the recent past have heightened the urgency for adequate, secure housing facilities,” the release states.

It goes on to highlight “extensive destruction inflicted by migrants” at Bodden Town Civic Centre, which has been used for housing, from “makeshift modifications” on the inside of the building.

The statement also references a fire at the Fairbanks Detention Centre in September, “which was started by migrants in detention and has rendered the facility uninhabitable.”

According to the release, the decision “follows an extensive process that includes business case assessment, design and engineering, and consultation with detention experts”. 

This is the first time plans for a newly built facility have been made public. None of the referenced reports were made available to the media. Asked about this discrepancy, a spokesperson for CBC said “comprehensive groundwork” was done internally in collaboration with the prison service for an earlier iteration of the project that was not followed through.

People fleeing Cuba and arriving in Cayman in makeshift boats has been a challenge for decades, with Cayman authorities required to provide accommodation and sustenance while processing asylum applications.

The number of boats arriving on the island, as well as the number of Cubans arriving irregularly in the US, has increased dramatically in recent years, amid economic and political turmoil in the communist island.

CBC’s release states, “The funding’s allocation reflects the government’s proactive approach to the escalating risk associated with the potential mass arrivals of irregular migrants, emphasizing the need for a robust infrastructure to manage such situations effectively and humanely.”

It adds, “The new detention centre will be equipped with modern security systems and constructed using resilient materials capable of withstanding extreme conditions, ensuring long-term serviceability.”

Protesters highlighted living conditions

The decision by Cabinet to approve new funding for the centre also coincides with protests from Cubans currently in immigration detention.

In an interview with the Compass, several people who reside at the civic centre in Bodden Town said their living conditions have become untenable.

“There is no privacy, we live in cramped conditions with little to no cleaning or medical supplies,” Thomas Martin, who lives at Bodden Town Civic Centre told the Compass.

“But why this is worse is because they won’t let us work so we can provide for ourselves, and all they give us is food voucher for $160 per month to Foster’s.”