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Table 5-1 U.S. Coast Guard Migrant Interdictions at Sea, Calendar Years 1991-2001 as of June 5, 2002

Table 5-1
U.S. Coast Guard Migrant Interdictions at Sea, Calendar Years 1991-2001 as of June 5, 2002

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  1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001
Haiti 10,087 31,438 2,404 25,069 2,336 733 774 1,437 480 1,394 1,956
Dominican Republic 1,455 436 600 810 4,047 5,430 1,143 831 531 781 279
Cuba 1,936 2,336 3,687 37,191 617 391 394 1,118 1,463 928 777
People's Republic of China 138 181 2,511 353 447 189 112 212 1,351 2 64
Mexico 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 57 166 37 7
Ecuador 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 513 1,029 1,020
Other 174 48 58 3 51 37 28 42 19 46 33
Total 13,790 34,439 9,260 63,426 7,500 6,780 2,451 3,697 4,523 4,217 3,974

NOTE: Interdiction data is based on individual interdictions reported by Coast Guard units.These interdictions mainly take place at sea, but also include rare instances where migrants are found ashore on remote islands/keys or pursued ashore from the sea.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Law Enforcement, December 2001, available at: http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-o/g-opl/mle/amiostats1.htm#cy.

  • As the primary maritime law enforcement agency, the USCG enforces immigration law at sea. The USCG conducts patrols and coordinates with other federal agencies and foreign countries to interdict undocumented migrants at sea, denying them entry via maritime routes to the United States, its territories, and possessions.Undocumented migrants interdicted at sea often can be returned to their countries of origin more quickly and at less cost than if they successfully enter the United States.
  • The USCG maintains its humanitarian responsibility to prevent the loss of life at sea, since many migrant vessels are dangerously overloaded, unseaworthy, or otherwise unsafe.