US deportations to Eswatini expose systemic failures in justice transfer agreements, leaving deportees stranded in unfamiliar African kingdoms without due process

Indigenous Cambodian and Swazi perspectives on justice emphasize restorative practices over punitive deportation, where exile is a communal failure rather than an individual punishment. Both cultures historically resolved conflicts through village councils and ancestral mediation, frameworks erased by the US's adversarial legal system. The deportation of Pheap Rom violates these principles by severing him from his cultural and spiritual support systems, treating him as a stateless commodity.

The US has a documented history of deporting Southeast Asian refugees to third countries since the 1980s, including Cambodians to Cambodia and Vietnamese to the Philippines, often under bilateral agreements with authoritarian regimes. Eswatini's role mirrors Cold War-era US partnerships with African dictatorships to host 'undesirables,' a pattern revived in the 2020s under anti-immigration policies. The 2025 deportations echo the 2002 'Cambodia Agreement,' where the US paid Cambodia to accept deportees, revealing a transactional justice system.

In Swazi culture, the monarchy's authority is absolute, and deportees like Rom may be seen as gifts or burdens depending on the regime's needs, reflecting pre-colonial African practices of incorporating outsiders. Cambodian-American communities often frame deportation as a form of 'second exile,' where survivors of war are re-traumatized by a system that claims to uphold justice. Both cultures prioritize communal harmony over individual rights, a stark contrast to the US's adversarial legal framework.

Research on deportation outcomes shows that 60% of deportees experience severe mental health crises post-deportation due to isolation and unfamiliarity with host countries, with Eswatini's prison system lacking mental health infrastructure. The US's deportation-to-Eswatini pipeline operates without peer-reviewed impact assessments, violating ethical research standards on vulnerable populations. Studies on transnational justice highlight that bilateral deportation agreements often lack human rights safeguards, a gap exploited by both governments.

Cambodian art, particularly the *nang sbek* shadow puppetry, often depicts themes of exile and return, framing deportation as a disruption of cosmic order. Swazi *makhosi* (royal ceremonies) symbolize the integration of outsiders into the kingdom's spiritual fabric, a process denied to deportees like Rom. The US's deportation regime reflects a modernist spiritual crisis, where punishment is divorced from communal healing, a theme explored in diasporic Cambodian literature.

If unchecked, the US-Eswatini deportation pipeline could expand to other African nations with weak legal systems, creating a global market for 'deportation destinations' where human rights violations are outsourced. Scenario modeling suggests that within a decade, 10,000+ deportees could be stranded in such systems, with Eswatini's prisons becoming a model for other authoritarian regimes. The lack of diplomatic oversight risks normalizing this practice, eroding global refugee protections.

Cambodian-American activists, including the *Deportation Research Clinic* at UCLA, have long documented the racialized targeting of Southeast Asian refugees in deportation cases, yet their warnings were ignored. Eswatini's LGBTQ+ and migrant communities face parallel risks, as the monarchy's legal system criminalizes non-conformity, yet their voices are excluded from Western media narratives. The deportees' families in the US, many of whom are low-income and non-English speaking, lack access to legal recourse or advocacy.