The Bahamas operates one dedicated immigration detention centre, the Carmichael Road Detention Centre, which has been repeatedly criticised for having appalling conditions. In early June, a protest broke out in the centre following a hunger strike, with some detainees attempting to escape. Tensions at the facility have reportedly been increasing as Covid-19 slowed deportation and repatriation procedures. From 4 to 19 August, the country was in total lockdown due to a surge in Covid-19 cases following the reopening of borders. The organisation RIGHTS Bahamas called for a better treatment of the migrants at the centre. In late July, there were reports that a military base on Ragged Island was being used to detain Haitians migrants intercepted at sea, leading to protests among detainees.
- Global Detention Project, “Bahamas Immigration Detention,” Updated August 2011, https://www.globaldetentionproject.org/countries/americas/bahamas
- Eyewitness News, “Detainees Escape Dorms, Destroy Fences at Carmichael Road Detention Center,” 3 June 2020, https://ewnews.com/detainees-escape-dorms-destroy-fences-at-carmichael-road-detention-center
- D. S. Hamilton, “Protest at Office of Bahamas PM; rejecting Plan to Detain Illegal Haitians On Ragged Island,” Magnetic Media, 24 July 2020, https://magneticmediatv.com/2020/07/protest-at-office-of-bahams-pm-rejecting-plan-to-detain-illegal-haitians-on-ragged-island/
- OCHA, “Latin America & the Caribbean Weekly Situation Update (3-9 August 2020),” Relief Web, 10 August 2020, https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Latin%20America%20and%20The%20Caribbean%20-%20Weekly%20Situation%20Update%20%283-9%20August%202020%29%20as%20of%2010%20August%202020.pdf
- R. Rolle, “Activists Call For Better Treatment Of Migrants At Detention Centre,” The Tribune, 4 June 2020, http://www.tribune242.com/news/2020/jun/04/activists-call-better-treatment-migrants-detention/
- Islanders Staged a Protest at the Office of the Prime Minister in Nassau, Confirming their Outrage with the Decision to Detain Intercepted Haitian Migrants at the Royal Bahamas Defence Force Base on the Island, (D. S. Hamilton, “Protest at Office of Bahamas PM; Rejecting Plan to Detain Illegal Haitians on Ragged Island,” Magnetic Media, 24 July 2020, https://magneticmediatv.com/2020/07/protest-at-office-of-bahams-pm-rejecting-plan-to-detain-illegal-haitians-on-ragged-island/)
