Tonga is unprepared for the increasing number of deportees arriving from the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, says Reverend Semisi Kava, Chaplain for the Tonga Prison Service, warning that the lack of government commitment is fueling social and criminal issues.
“We are expecting 151 deportees from America anytime now, but the reality is, we are not prepared,” Rev. Kava said in an interview with Talanoa ‘o Tonga.
“We are struggling with the deportees we already have, and there is no proper system in place to handle them when they arrive.”
Tonga’s latest deportation wave is being driven in part by U.S. immigration policies. Under President Donald Trump’s enforcement measures, U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has intensified removals. As of last November, ICE reported that over 1.4 million noncitizens have final orders of removal, including individuals from Tonga and other Pacific nations.
Despite the growing numbers, Tonga has no legislation to manage deportees or support their reintegration. There is a lack of official programmes to help them find employment, housing, or reconnect with society. Many arrive with little connection to Tonga, struggling with language barriers and cultural differences.
“They struggle to find work, reconnect with their families, or even speak the language fluently,” Reverend Kava said.
American deportee Sione Ngaue, who was sent back to Tonga after serving time in the U.S, described the stigma deportees face. “We’re judged before they even get to know us. We have a red ‘X’ against us,” Ngaue told VICE Media.
Since 2018, deportations to Tonga have steadily increased. Reports show that the U.S deported 20 Tongans in 2018 and ten more in 2019 and 2020. Between 2013 and 2018, New Zealand deported approximately 120 individuals with criminal convictions. From 2022 to early 2023, another 25 were deported from Australia, New Zealand, the U.S, and the Cook Islands.
With no legal framework to address deportee reintegration, Tonga is also seeing a rise in crime and drug-related issues. Methamphetamine use has surged, and some deportees, already struggling to survive, are at risk of reoffending.
Last May, the Legislative Assembly hosted its first national debate on capital punishment focused on whether reinstating the death penalty could help address the Kingdom’s growing drug crisis.
During a drug bust last year, Tonga Police disrupted the formation of a branch of Comancheros outlaw motorcycle gang in Tonga said to be started by a deportee from Australia.
But not all hope is gone. Reverend Kava says spiritual programmes in Hu’atolitoli prison are helping deportees transform their lives, offering them purpose and a fresh start despite the challenges they face upon return.
“All stakeholders in the society need to act,” Reverend Kava urged. “If we don’t create proper laws and support systems to help these men and women reintegrate, we are just making things worse for our country,” he said.