San Francisco, (EFE) – A federal judge in California (United States) ordered this Tuesday that the last restriction on asylum imposed in December by former President Donald Trump, a few weeks before his term ended, and whose continuity is being studied by the current Democratic Administration.
Judge Jon Tigar, of the Oakland Courts, thus temporarily annulled the “Modifications of Procedure and Eligibility for Asylum” issued by the White House on December 17 and which entered into force on January 19 , just one day before Trump stepped down as president.
These modifications sought to solidify a restriction that Trump already imposed in the summer of 2019, known as the “safe third country”, which restricted the possibility of requesting asylum in the United States to migrants who had previously passed through other countries, where they should direct their applications before continuing on his way to the North American country.
As the majority of asylum seekers today are citizens of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, on their way to the United States they pass precisely through Guatemala and Mexico, thus virtually putting an end to the possibility of requesting asylum in the United States. .
Since it was proclaimed for the first time in July 2019, this measure had been constantly fought in the courts by organizations that defend the rights of migrants, and the same judge who now paralyzed it, Jon Tigar, had already done the same. same on several previous occasions.
Tigar’s decision annuls the presidential order until the case is resolved, although in parallel the team of the current White House tenant, Joe Biden, is studying his future, so it could be that the restriction is taken down even before that there is a final judicial resolution.
“The court rightly rejected the latest and cruel effort by the Trump Administration to destroy our asylum system. We hope that the Biden Administration will take swift and effective actions to repair the great damage that Trump imposed on vulnerable immigrants and this country’s commitment to human rights, ”the legal director of the Center for Constitutional Rights said in a statement. Baher Azmy.
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