AGRICULTURE/CENTRAL AMERICA/IMMIGRATION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “In a bid to strengthen an asylum deal forged between Guatemala’s outgoing president and the United States, a U.S. official offered on Monday [8-19-19] to triple the number of temporary farmworker visas available to Guatemalans. Last month, under threat of painful sanctions issued by U.S. President Donald Trump, Guatemala’s Jimmy Morales agreed to require U.S.-bound Hondurans and Salvadorans to seek refuge in Guatemala instead of proceeding north. The deal, known as a ‘safe third country’ agreement, is meant to reduce U.S. asylum claims. While hailed by Trump, it has also provoked widespread criticism from rights groups citing the risks of sending vulnerable people to a country with endemic poverty and violence. Guatemala’s incoming president, Alejandro Giammattei, won a runoff election earlier this month and said afterwards that the deeply unpopular deal still needs to be approved by Guatemala’s legislature as well as the U.S. Congress, further complicating its future.”
–Sophia Menchu, “U.S. envoy offers farm visas to boost asylum deal with Guatemala,” Reuters, August 20, 2019 4:47 am