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Trump may sign asylum deal with Guatemala that critics call illegal and dangerous
I highly doubt Guatemala has the requisite infrastructure to accommodate tens of thousands of US asylum seekers. I also believe this proposed agreement to be in violation of numerous US laws and treaties.
Related: Guatemalan president postpones White House meeting with Trump
President Trump and Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales are expected to sign an agreement Monday that would require asylum seekers who transit through Guatemala to claim asylum in that country instead of the U.S., according to three sources briefed on negotiations. The "safe third country agreement" is one of the ways in which Trump hopes to stem the flow of migrants from Central America to the U.S., but critics say Guatemala neither is safe enough for asylum seekers to stay there nor has the capability to process asylum claims. The agreement is still not finalized, according to two of the sources, who described things as close but still in flux. Trump himself has repeatedly promised that a deal is close to finished. "Guatemala is going to be signing a safe third agreement," Trump told reporters on July 5. He tweeted the country was "getting ready to sign" an agreement on June 17. But inking one on Monday would be a fundamental shift in how the U.S. processes asylum cases.
Migrants who enter the U.S. can claim asylum if they suffered persecution or fear persecution because of their race, religion, nationality, political beliefs, or membership in a particular social group. A judge determines whether or not a migrant meets those requirements, but there is an enormous backlog in processing cases. The administration has also begun deporting asylum seekers to Mexico while their cases are adjudicated, with at least 13,000 migrants now waiting there. The policy was halted by a federal judge in April, but a higher court lifted the injunction in June while the case proceeds. In particular, critics say Guatemala does not have the legal and physical infrastructure to process asylum cases and is not safe enough for migrants to live there instead of their home countries like neighboring El Salvador and Honduras. A potential safe third country agreement is controversial in Guatemala as well, where there are efforts to put it to a halt. Under investigation for corruption, President Morales is term-limited and will be out of office after elections that are ongoing. He has ordered the expulsion of a United Nations-sponsored, U.S.-funded investigative body tasked with rooting out corruption and already tried to curry favor with Trump by moving Guatemala's embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.
I highly doubt Guatemala has the requisite infrastructure to accommodate tens of thousands of US asylum seekers. I also believe this proposed agreement to be in violation of numerous US laws and treaties.
Related: Guatemalan president postpones White House meeting with Trump