Extortion in Guatemala

Surely you need two presidents so unconcerned with rules or common sense, such as Jimmy Morales of Guatemala and Donald Trump of the United States, to sign an agreement on immigration last Friday designating the Central American nation as a “safe third country.” This means that anyone wanting to seek refuge or asylum in the United States who has traveled via Guatemala on his way to the U.S. border must first seek asylum in Guatemala. All socioeconomic indicators in Guatemala, as well as their insufficient public services, let us predict the result of this: a humanitarian disaster.

To achieve this, Trump has used his favorite weapon: the threat of trade tariffs that could destroy the precarious Guatemalan economy. This time he has done so with a weaker partner than Mexico, whom he also tried to extort for months with the same goal in mind. Morales, who has less scruples than the Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador but who is also less capable in diplomatic and institutional resistance than his neighbor to the north, has given in.

Surely aware of the consequences, Morales has begun the process with maximum secrecy, to the point where the exact terms of the agreement are still unknown. This includes what compensatory aid will be given, which according to international regulations the United States should provide, and the rest of the details of such an impactful and important agreement. Critics were quick to act. The bulk of criticisms focus on the fact that the pact, which was signed behind Parliament’s back, shatters what little was left of institutionalism in the country and compromises its future.

Incapable of guaranteeing the minimum welfare for its inhabitants, Guatemala will now have to provide refuge, services and logistics to tens of thousands of migrants, primarily from Honduras and El Salvador, who seek asylum in the United States each year. Not to mention the man power and civil servants necessary to facilitate the legal processes.

The legal battle against the agreement has already begun, however. Previously, a Federal judge in the United States made clear that Guatemala does not meet the necessary conditions to be considered a safe country. A Human Rights lawyer in Guatemala, Jordán Rodas, asked the Constitutional Court on Monday to halt proceedings. According to Rodas, “agreements signed under threat will have no legal effect.” It is expected that for the good of the whole region, the latest abuse of the United States will be called to a stop.