The Tribune

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Chief Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

THE four refugees held without charge at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre for more than two years, have been released by the government.

An Eritrean man and three Cuban men, who petitioned the courts over the lawfulness of their detention, were released on July 13.

The men were represented by Martin Lundy, of Callenders & Co.

Mr Lundy said: "Before we were even able to get the matter heard the government released them, but we were still awarded costs for having to file papers to begin with. They're out, and two have been resettled in Brazil and the other two are with the Red Cross.

In separate cases, the men claimed that they were never questioned by immigration officers during processing, and highlighted their refugee status with the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR).

Diarra Lue Tawaldi, a 25-year-old Eritrean, entered the country on January 1, 2013 and had been in detention since his arrival, according to his affidavit.

Yosvany Gonzalez Plunkett, a 40-year-old Cuban, came to The Bahamas on a work permit in 2010. He overstayed his permit and was arrested in Bimini on June 22, 2015.

Cubans Yoiselandy Alfonso Martinez, 22, and Angel Luis Llorente Carrion, 23, left Cuba by boat on June 6, 2015, and were arrested on June 23, 2015, by the United States Coast Guard. Both men were sent to Grand Bahama and then detained at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre on June 24, 2015.

The applications for habeas corpus writs were filed in the Supreme Court against the attorney general, minister of immigration, director of immigration and officer-in-charge of the holding facility on June 13.