The world’s largest pencil maker, Faber-Castell, has accused the Costa Rican government of violating the terms of a humanitarian donation by allegedly using a former factory site to detain asylum seekers deported from the United States.

The German company donated its closed Costa Rican facility in 2018 under the condition it be used as a humanitarian migrant shelter. The contract explicitly stated the property could not be repurposed.

However, in 2025, Costa Rica accepted 200 migrants deported from the U.S. following President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. Many of those deported — including families and more than 70 children — were transferred to the facility, now called Centro de Atención Temporal para Migrantes (Catem).

Human Rights Watch later reported that migrants were held there for months without clear legal justification. Costa Rica’s constitutional court ruled the deportees had been unlawfully deprived of their liberty. The government denies this, stating the measures were humanitarian and necessary for their protection.

Faber-Castell says it was unaware of the detentions until contacted by media. “Under no circumstances was it agreed to be used as a prison,” the company said.

The controversy raises serious questions about migration policy, human rights — and the unintended consequences of international deportation agreements.