Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley has weighed in on the controversy surrounding government’s decision to repatriate a group of Venezuelan migrants including 16 children, denouncing critics who describe the move as inhumane.

Dr. Rowley, in a statement this morning, said it was Trinidad and Tobago who registered 16,000 Venezuelan migrants last year, and added that as a “little island nation” of 1.3 million people, T&T could not be expected to maintain open borders to Venezuela which has a population of 34 million.

“The OAS under its misguided President Almagro has been almost singlehandedly responsible for triggering and fueling the current Venezuelan situation and these public officials have virtually declared war on Trinidad and Tobago for having the temerity to have not joined Elliot Abrams and President Trump in forcing violent regime change in Venezuela,” Dr. Rowley said. 

Dr. Rowley doubled down on government’s position that the decision to return the nationals was not a humanitarian issue. 

“Currently we have closed our borders even to our own citizens in this pandemic and would resist all efforts by others who are hell bent on forcing open our borders through illegal immigration,” Dr. Rowley said.

He added: “We staunchly support the work of the United Nations but this threat and the persistent disregard for the outstanding humanitarian efforts extended by the people of Trinidad and Tobago, do not conform with the spirit and purpose of the UNHCR”

Just two days after the group was repatriated to Venezuela, they returned to Trinidad on Tuesday.

The 27 nationals were detained by police yesterday afternoon, and told law enforcement they returned in accordance with a court order from High Court Judge Avason Quinlan-Williams.

On Tuesday, National Security Minister said contrary to media reports, the group of migrants at the centre of the current controversy, which includes 16 children, was not deported.

Admitting he didn’t have all the facts surrounding the case, Minister Young said his understanding of what happened is there is that they were re-escorted across the borders on Sunday.