(UTV|COLOMBO) – Half of a group of 120 Sri Lankan migrants who arrived on the French Indian Ocean Island of Reunion 2-weeks ago were deported early on Monday (29), the Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
The group of 60, including 3 women and 3 children, were flown back to Sri Lanka in a special flight, the Island’s Prefecture said in a statement.
The group of 120 migrants arrived at Reunion on 13 April, having made the 4,000 kilometre trip in a fishing boat. They each paid Euros 2,000 – 5,000 (USD 2,230 – USD 5,580) for the crossing.
The fishing boat’s 3 Indonesian crew members have been charged with assisting illegal immigration. Remanded in custody, they are scheduled to appear in court on 15 May.
Since March 2018, 273 Sri Lankans have arrived on Reunion Island, of whom 130 are still there.
They are waiting for OFPRA (the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons) to rule on their asylum applications.
All the others have been sent back to Sri Lanka. “There are clearly illegal immigration networks in operation,” said Frederic Joram, Secretary General of Reunion Island’s Prefecture.
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