The Supreme Court of Eswatini ruled Thursday that four men deported from the United States last July under a third-country deportation program must be allowed to meet in person with a local lawyer after nearly nine months during which access to legal counsel had been denied. The men, originally from Cuba, Yemen, Laos, and Vietnam, had been held at the Matsapha Correctional Complex, a maximum-security prison, without being charged with crimes in Eswatini.

A lower court had previously granted access to local attorney Sibusiso Nhlabatsi, who represents the detainees’ U.S.-based legal team, but the government immediately appealed. In reaffirming the right to legal counsel, the Supreme Court dismissed government claims that the men did not want to meet Nhlabatsi and that as deportees who had not been formally arrested or charged within Eswatini, they had no entitlement to legal representation.

Eswatini, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, has faced criticism for its heavy-handed approach to dissent, including allegations of violent suppression of pro-democracy activists. U.S.-based lawyer Alma David of Novo Legal Group, representing two of the men, said the drawn-out legal battle underlines the government’s resistance to granting basic rights to the deportees.

The four men were convicted of serious offenses in the U.S. and served their sentences before deportation, according to U.S. authorities. However, their lawyers contend the men’s continued detention in Eswatini is unlawful without formal charges or trials. The U.S. government reportedly paid Eswatini $5.1 million to receive deportees as part of a broader Trump-era initiative to expedite deportations by transferring migrants to countries other than their own. Since July, Eswatini has accepted at least 19 individuals through this program, detaining some for up to a year; two have been repatriated to their countries of origin.

Eswatini is one of eight African nations known to have agreements with the U.S. under this third-country deportation framework. Other countries include Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, Ghana, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Congo. Some of these agreements have involved substantial U.S. payments, such as Rwanda’s $7.5 million deal. Internal government documents reveal the Trump administration spent at least $40 million to deport roughly 300 migrants via these arrangements, which have been criticized for their secrecy and potential human rights implications.

Senate Democrats have questioned payments to countries like Equatorial Guinea, where leadership has faced accusations of systemic corruption and repression. Additionally, records related to South Sudan’s deal suggest the government sought the lifting of U.S. sanctions and assistance prosecuting political opponents in exchange for accepting deportees, though it appears such conditions were not accepted by Washington.

Eswatini’s government spokesperson, Thabile Mdluli, said the administration has yet to decide on any further actions following the Supreme Court’s ruling. Meanwhile, U.S. officials maintain that the deportations followed due process, leaving the fate and treatment of the deportees to the jurisdiction of recipient countries.