Ethiopian men trafficked to Cayman on a British-registered yacht have been left in limbo after their smugglers, a husband-and-wife pair, were each sentenced to up to four years in jail.
Kedir Osama Musa and Tilahum Assafa Bruke – who told a Cayman court they fled their homeland in fear of their lives amid political unrest and conflict – are stranded in the jurisdiction as the government works out what to do with them.
The principle of non-refoulement, an international standard for refugee protection, prohibits jurisdictions from returning people to their home country if there are “substantial grounds” to believe they would be at serious risk if transferred back.
The Governor’s Office and Ministry of Border Control both said data protection legislation meant they could not comment on individual cases.
A spokeswoman for the ministry said the case was “at a critical and sensitive stage, and disclosure can significantly compromise its outcome”.
She added, “The ministry will provide a brief statement as soon as we are able.”
A spokeswoman for Governor Jane Owen said immigration matters are devolved to the ministry, but that her office worked closely with the Caymanian authorities on such matters.
Cruel treatment described
The 52-year-old English skipper of the yacht was earlier this month jailed to four years and his wife, 39, was sentenced to three-and-a-half years.
The two, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were also convicted of illegal entry to Cayman and failure to complete a disembarkation card.
Summary Court heard the Ethiopian men had suffered cruel and degrading treatment while on board the boat.
They were shouted at, forced to sleep on deck, subjected to racist taunts such as “monkey” and kept short of food and water, despite having bought their own supplies.
The court heard Musa had travelled from Ethiopia to Cape Verde off the coast of west Africa and had paid the boat’s captain US$1,500 and €500 to take him to Brazil.
Bruke joined the boat in Sint Maarten. He handed over a total of US$2,500 to be delivered to Honduras.
But the yacht stopped off in the US Virgin Islands before it sailed to Cayman Brac, where Customs officials raided it and found the two Ethiopian men locked in the cabin.
Customs officials arrested the skipper and his wife, who had been questioned after they went ashore.
The Human Rights Commission did not respond to requests for comment on the case.
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What are the legal reasons for non disclosure of the traffickers’ names. Why should they receive this benefit after such a serious crime. Now they are in Northward surely their names will become public knowledge.