Analysis | Why deporting Nicaraguan asylum seekers undermines U.S. interests
After surviving torture and imprisonment at the hands of the Ortega regime, Nicaraguan activist Valeska Alemán fled to the United States, arriving at the southern border in July 2020. Yet rather than finding asylum, Alemán and over 100 other Nicaraguan dissidents were sent back to Managua by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in accordance with the Trump administration’s COVID-19 policy blocking migrants and asylum seekers from entering the country. This policy violates core U.S. national interests in promoting democracy and human rights worldwide and weakens U.S. soft power and legitimacy in the region. This provides an opening for great power competitors China and Russia to expand their regional influence and support for despots such as Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua and Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela.
Nicaragua has been embroiled in a human rights crisis since April 2018, when citizens led mass demonstrations against the government of President Ortega, following the announcement of unpopular social security reforms. In response, Ortega’s security forces killed over 300 protesters and continues to torture, harass, and arbitrarily detain anti-government members in a campaign of brutal repression designed to eliminate political opposition. While the U.S. government has sanctioned pro-Ortega elites and redirected foreign assistance away from the regime, its calls for the Ortega government to protect universal human rights and democracy appear hypocritical in light of CBP’s rejection of Nicaraguan asylum seekers this summer.
Policymakers must recognize the crucial role of soft power in the U.S. statecraft toolbox, and the ways in which U.S. asylum policy affects perceptions. The attractiveness of American values such as rule of law and freedom of speech hinges upon the credibility of U.S. global leadership, which a bungled response to the pandemic and mass protests against racism and police brutality have weakened.
How the world perceives the U.S. matters, and in the case of Nicaraguan asylum seekers, both allies and adversaries are observing the extent of U.S. commitment to international human rights law. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has highlighted concern about the U.S. policy, as it violates the International Refugee Convention’s principle of non-refoulement, which prevents signatories from returning migrants to countries where they are liable to be persecuted or tortured. Domestic stakeholders have also expressed discontent.
Members of Congress penned a letter to President Trump asserting that “deportations of politically persecuted Nicaraguans run counter to U.S. values and directly undermine the stated goals of U.S. policy towards Nicaragua.” The Trump administration should recognize that by reversing this policy and allowing Nicaraguan asylum seekers to lodge their claims, the United States regains lost credibility and coherence in its pro-human rights messaging.
Additionally, the U.S. should use public diplomacy to counter anti-American propaganda promulgated by Ortega’s supporters on social media following the forced return of activists such as Alemán. Secretary of State Pompeo should issue a press statement in support of Nicaraguan political dissidents, welcoming them to seek asylum in the United States in order to gain control over the public narrative and bolster international support for opposition parties in advance of the 2021 Nicaraguan presidential elections.
The U.S. government could also weigh another option, extending conditional aid in the form of humanitarian assistance to combat COVID-19 in Nicaragua. The Ortega government has failed to adequately respond to the public health crisis, instead obscuring infection data and encouraging citizens to congregate at large gatherings. U.S. aid would demonstrate a commitment to regional cooperation, however this aid package should only be offered after securing the Ortega regime’s agreement to release the remaining 86 political prisoners unlawfully held in detention.
While supporters of the Trump administration’s policy may underscore the public health threat of allowing asylum seekers into the United States, CBP should maintain social distancing requirements, use personal protective equipment, and enforce mandatory COVID-19 testing and 14-day quarantine for asylum seekers.
Ultimately, the public health risks do not outweigh the damage to U.S. legitimacy in the long run if our actions do not align with professed support of human rights defenders battling oppressive regimes in our own hemisphere. The United States continues to have an interest in advancing democracy and human rights in Nicaragua, and deporting asylum seekers at our border will only undermine our interests and strengthen Ortega’s grip on the country in the critical months leading up to 2021 elections.
Amanda Suárez is a second-year Master of Science in Foreign Service student in the School of Foreign Service and a Certificate in Diplomatic Studies candidate. She focuses on transnational security and democracy and governance in Latin America.
