Biden Administration Eyes Guantanamo Bay in Cuba to Hold Migrants, Says Guards Must Speak Haitian Creole, Spanish

The Biden administration is seeking a private contractor to run a migrant detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, with a requirement that some of its personnel speak Spanish and Haitian Creole.

The move came as the Biden administration struggled to process an influx of Haitian migrants at the southern border.

In a public government contract solicitation issued on Friday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said it seeks to establish the migrant facility at the U.S. Naval Base in Guantanamo Bay, with a capacity of holding up to 400 migrants.

The DHS said the private contractor shall be responsible to maintain on site the necessary equipment to erect temporary housing facilities.

NBC News reported that the winning service provider must provide tents, cots, and a staff of at least 50 who can meet the minimum requirements of an unarmed custody officer.

DHS Says No Haitian Migrants Will be Sent to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba

The documents did not state that the Biden administration plans to transfer Haitian migrants from the southern border to Guantanamo Bay.

But a DHS spokesperson told Insider that the DHS would not send Haitian migrants being encountered at the southwest border to the "Migrant Operations Center (MOC) in Guantanamo Bay."

The DHS official explained that the MOC had been "used for decades to process migrants interdicted at sea for third-country resettlement."

The spokesperson noted that the request for information (RFI) recently posted was "unrelated" to the influx of migrants at the southwest border, adding that it is "a typical, routine first step in a contract renewal."

The DHS official added that the contract was initially awarded in 2002, with the current term ending on May 31, 2022.

According to the new contract solicitation, which was first posted on September 17, the formal bidding is expected to take place later this fall.

"The tentative target solicitation positing date is December 15, 2021," the contract said.

The Biden administration is ramping up its efforts of deporting Haitian migrants back to their country. As of Tuesday, Mayorkas confirmed that the number of Haitian migrants under the Del Rio bridge fell to 10,000 as massive deportation efforts began on Sunday.

It can be recalled that the peak number of Haitian migrants there was nearly 15,000.

Guantanamo Bay in Cuba

The Guantanamo Bay in Cuba is currently known to be the site of a prison for high-value terrorism detainees, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who confessed to masterminding the September 11 attacks.

In the early 1990s, the U.S. has sent up to 12,000 Haitian migrants, who were attempting to seek refuge in Florida, to migrant detention facilities in Guantanamo Bay.

The move was made based on a policy ideated by then-Attorney General William Barr under the George H.W. Bush administration.

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Written by: Joshua Summers

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