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In April, immigration judges set two alarming records by closing over 11,000 asylum cases and denying 80% of them in a single month. An avalanche of asylum denials is just beginning.

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The arrest of López, a prominent lawyer in El Salvador who helped uncover alleged government corruption, has become emblematic of the increasing authoritarianism of President Nayib Bukele.

The arrests are part of an escalating crackdown by Bukele on the last bastion of dissent in a country where he already controls all state institutions, analysts and activists say. López’s arrest and a new law targeting nongovernmental organizations have accelerated an exodus of civil society: In recent weeks, dozens of academics, lawyers, researchers, human rights defenders and journalists have fled the country.

Their departures resemble the flights of critics from autocratic regimes in Nicaragua and Venezuela, but with a key difference. This time, the United States isn’t condemning the repression — it’s deepening ties with its author.

The Trump administration, which is paying Bukele’s government to imprison migrants deported from the U.S., is praising his leadership and holding him up as a model for the region. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau traveled to El Salvador last week as part of his first foreign trip, the purpose of which was to “further strengthen diplomatic ties and cooperation.”

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Members of the LGBTIQ+ community are among the most vulnerable of all populations in the Americas. Often they must migrate due to persecution, further increasing their vulnerability because of the marginalization migrants frequently endure, especially if they are Black, Indigenous, or otherwise non-White.

States’ responses to LGBTIQ+ migrants are vastly deficient throughout the hemisphere, including in the United States. They constitute a growing human rights crisis and a major lost opportunity for progress and prosperity.

News Article
Ruth Eleonora López, an anticorruption lawyer from the well-known human rights organization Cristosal got arrested on May 18. Her first court hearing was more than two weeks after the arrest.
 
El Salvador’s constitution gives authorities 72 hours to bring someone before a judge after an arrest. But after Bukele asked Congress in March of 2022 to approve changes under the state of emergency, people can be held in custody for 15 days before having their court hearing. This is now a common practice for the majority of the people who get arrested because the courts are saturated.
 

“Ruth has dedicated her life to the defense of human rights and the fight against corruption,” Cristosal said in a statement last week. “Hers is not an isolated case: it is part of a pattern of criminalization against critical voices.”

As she entered the court for her initial hearing on June 4, Ruth said "'¡No me van a callar, un juicio público quiero!", ("they won't silence me; I want a public trial). She was remanded into pretrial custody for an additional six months. Read this update here: https://www.laprensagrafica.com/elsalvador/Ruth-Eleonora-Lopez-enfrenta-audiencia-inicial-por-enriquecimiento-ilicito-20250604-0022.html

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