KOROR, Palau -- Six former Guantánamo Bay detainees brought to Palau for resettlement have received a warm official welcome, but a plan to deport Bangladeshi workers could halve this Pacific Island nation's already-tiny Muslim community, making integration harder.

The ex-detainees, who are Muslim ethnic Uighurs from a region in China's far west, already face tough challenges to adapt to their new lives in Palau after eight years in the U.S. military camp in Cuba, although they will be provided housing, job training and a full-time interpreter.

President Johnson Toribiong himself welcomed the group when they arrived before dawn Sunday on a secret flight, and he will treat them to a personal tour of the Rock Islands, a diving attraction that is country's top tourist destination, later this week as part of their orientation.

But Toribiong has also announced plans to send home between 200 and 300 Bangladeshi Muslim migrants whose work visas have expired, and last month he banned anyone else from the South Asian country from entering Palau. No timetable has been set for deporting the Bangladeshis.

Palau's Muslim community of about 500 is made up almost completely of Bangladeshi migrant workers. Reducing their number by half could make the Uighurs' transition to island life that much more difficult.

``They need a community of Muslims,'' Mujahid Hussain, the only Pakistani in Palau, said of the Uighurs.

``They need to sit together and pray together. So if they send home a lot of the Bangladeshis, that's going to be a problem,'' Hussain, 36, told The Associated Press on Monday.

Announcing the decision to repatriate the Bangladeshis whose visas have expired, Toribiong said last week it has nothing to do with the Uighurs but is a reflection of his administration's commitment to the rule of law.

``We follow the principles of justice and fairness,'' he said, adding that Bangladeshis with valid work permits have nothing to fear.

The Uighurs (pronounced WEE'-gurs) have been kept out of the public eye and away from media since they arrived.

They hail from one of the most landlocked regions on earth and are making the jump from the prison-like conditions of Guantánamo to another alien environment -- the leisurely pace of a palm-fringed tropical island.

Muslims here say they will accept the newcomers.

``All the Muslims, they are our brothers,'' said Mohammed Main Uddin, 26, as he gathered with about 50 others recently for traditional Friday prayers at the small tin-roofed building sitting atop bamboo stilts that serves as one of just two mosques in Palau.

The Uighurs will be welcome as long as they ``follow the Muslim rules'' on tolerance and peace, said Uddin, a sweet potato farmer who moved to Palau from Bangladesh four years ago.

The Uighurs brought here were among 22 Chinese Muslims picked up by American forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan in 2001 on suspicion of terrorism. They were taken eventually to Guantánamo, where they were held without trial as ``enemy combatants.''

The Uighurs were approved for release after a federal court ruled they were not enemy combatants, but they spent months in legal limbo as U.S. officials tried to find somewhere to send them. China calls them terrorists and has demanded they be returned. Uighur activists say they would face persecution and possibly death in China.

Join the discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.repliedToText@

@Nyx.replyAnswerText@

Reply to this Comment @Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@