Philippines can't negotiate Trump's deportation drive

The Philippine ambassador to the United States believes there is no negotiating around US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigrants, saying on Monday, July 21, that the best Manila can do is to ensure deported Filipinos are sent home and not dumped in a third country.

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The Philippine embassy in Washington lacks updated figures on Filipinos facing deportation, but Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez estimates the number could be near 100,000, many of them in California.

“The bottom line is there is really not much room for discussion, but to simply work in such a way that all Filipinos that are up for deportation will be deported to the Philippines and not to a third country,” Romualdez told reporters during a press briefing on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s visit to Washington and first meeting with Trump this week.

“I think [it] has already been agreed upon, that any kind of deportation will be, as long as they’re Filipino citizens, we will make sure that they are deported to the Philippines,” Romualdez added.

Since his return to office, Trump’s immigration crackdown has swept beyond undocumented immigrants with criminal records to include those with no criminal history. Mass raids by federal agents have reportedly ensnared even documented immigrants, including green card holders who have lived in the US for decades.