• Press Release

President Trump’s Bullying Makes a Mockery of Asylum

November 18, 2019

Responding to a new interim final rule that seeks to implement asylum cooperative agreements between the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, Charanya Krishnaswami, the advocacy director for the Americas at Amnesty International USA said:

“The administration has bullied the governments of Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras into signing agreements that will be deadly for people seeking asylum and is now carrying out their fatal application. This rule is potentially the most dangerous and dramatic step yet that the Trump administration has taken to eviscerate the right to seek asylum here, foreclosing all forms of protection for people who fall under the scope of these unlawful agreements. People should not be forced to seek safety in places that are anything but safe. U.S. policies cannot continue to punish asylum-seekers who have been forced to flee their homes.

“Amnesty International challenged the U.S.-Canada ‘safe third country’ agreement in court this month, and we will fight against these unlawful agreements and any attempts to implement them as well. We call on the U.S. government to immediately abandon attempts to force asylum-seekers back to danger and instead channel its ample resources towards fairly processing asylum claims in the United States.”

To schedule an interview, contact Mariya Parodi, [email protected].