PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, (CMC) — A High Court judge has set November 18 as the date for hearing an application for leave for judicial review and a constitutional motion filed by the families of a group of women and children who are seeking to return to Trinidad and Tobago from a Kurdish-run al-Hol refugee camp in northern Syria.

Almost 68 people — mainly children and women — have been detained at al-Hol and other refugee camps following the fall of the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group. About 130 nationals, including fighters and families, went to the ISIS conflict zones during the period 2012-2015.

Justice Joan Charles said she wanted to move the matter forward after the State suggested it wanted to have the matter heard in December.

But Senior Counsel Elton Prescott, who is leading two other attorneys in the matter, argued against the State’s position, saying “this adds to the agony of those abroad”.

The families of at least 10 women and children — five of whom were born in Syria — at the al-Hol camp say they form part of a vulnerable group because of their refugee status and were at risk of exploitation and abuse. They are also facing the threat of the novel coronavirus.

Prescott has argued that as citizens they cannot be denied entry into the country, but Senior Counsel Reginald Armour, the lead counsel for the State, has said it has not been established that they were citizens of Trinidad and Tobago.

“It is relevant to determine if they are even citizens. So far, that information is not available to the State. That is a very important point to be verified in any repatriation point,” he said.

Justice Charles said that while she understood the request to hear the matter sooner, she acknowledged that there may be national security concerns. However, there was no reason for delaying the matter, so she ordered the filing of submissions in September and October before adjourning the trial for November 18.

According to the application by the families, several attempts were made to have the issue of repatriation addressed since April last year. It cited conditions at the camp as being unsafe and unhealthy, with hardly any food or water, and there is an infestation of flies. Toilet facilities are holes dug into the ground.

The families complain that they are concerned about the women’s safety at the camp. They also pointed out that at least five countries have repatriated their citizens from the camp, including France, the United States and the United Kingdom.

The applicants note that the International Committee of the Red Cross was willing to assist in the repatriation of the women and children, if a request is made by the Government.

Earlier this month, one of the women at the al-Hol refugee camp wrote to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley appealing for the State to bring her and her five children home.

“I am a holder of both a master of science and bachelor of science degree and I have served the Government successfully on many occasions in the past. I am writing to you cause (sic) I feel I am left with no other choice.

“All I am requesting of you is simply to bring my children and myself home, along with my other colleagues. As a T&T citizen, it makes me liable to all democratic rights, whether I am there or not. I have been in this camp with my children since December 2018 and I must say it was not easy and still is not.

“Why must my children and I suffer because my husband and I decided to migrate to another land, which at the time, seemed like the best thing for us to do?” she wrote.