After scores of Brazilians arrived on a deportation flight in handcuffs, the Brazilian government has denounced the treatment of its citizens expelled from the United States and called for a Donald Trump administration explanation. Brazil’s Foreign Ministry termed the problems on the flight a “flagrant disregard” for human rights.
The event has added fuel to the backlash of President Trump’s aggressive migration policy which has increased deportations throughout Latin America. Since he once again took office, Trump has stepped up efforts directed at unauthorized immigrants, including several flights repatriating people to nations like Brazil and Guatemala.
In one such case, 88 Brazilians landed in Manaus, Brazil, on a deportation flight. Brazilian officials upon arrival acted to have the handcuffs taken off right away, a statement from the ministry of justice said. Calling the handling a “obvious disrespect of the basic rights of Brazilian citizens,” Justice Minister Ricardo Lewandowski advised President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on the matter.
🇺🇸TRUMP'S IMMIGRATION RAIDS HIT LA WITH MILITARY PRECISION
Pre-dawn raids in Los Angeles mark the latest escalation in Trump’s mass-deportation push, targeting “criminal migrants” across sanctuary cities.
The crackdown uses military planes and relaxed rules to raid courthouses,… https://t.co/xaH1mrIlTG pic.twitter.com/iiDIxVMWAu
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) January 26, 2025
Descriptions of Cruel Handling
The flight had rough circumstances for passengers. A U.S.-apprehended 31-year-old computer tech Edgar Da Silva Moura He also remarked on the stifling heat inside the airplane that caused some passengers to pass out: “On the flight, they didn wouldn’t even let us use the restroom; our hands and feet were tied.” For seven months, he said this.
21-year old Luis Antonio Rodrigues Santos says the flight became a “nightmare” as four hours without air conditioning owing to a mechanical issue left passengers with respiratory problems gasping.
Originally bound for Belo Horizonte, the aircraft was redirected to Manaus because of mechanical issues. Footage from Brazilian television shows passengers getting off with bound hands and feet.
Government Actions
The foreign ministry of Brazil stated it will seek “explanations from the U.S. in part. Justice Minister Macae Evaristo also noted that among those on the flight were kids with autism who had suffered violent episodes. She appealed to the government on passenger degrading treatment.
In reaction, President Lula called upon a Brazilian Air Force plane to respectably and safely deliver the deportees to their final stops. Deportees came back with legal papers, according to Brazilian official channels, showing they agreed to be repatriated.
Immigration Policy of Trump Exposed
Though the deportation flight coincided with President Trump’s fresh push against unauthorized immigrants, it was related to a bilateral agreement from 2017 rather than a recent order. A departure from previous policies, his regime called a “national emergency” at the southern border, ramped up troops deployment, and started using military airplanes for deportation flights.
Even under previous U.S., deportation flights were carried out. Trump’s methods have been given closer attention by administrations. At least 265 migrants were deported on one day in Guatemala, further underlining the general effect of his immigration rules. The United States is thought to have 11 million unauthorized immigrants by the Department of Homeland Security.
