Brevstorm El Salvador har indført kontroversiel anti-NGO-lov

Vi har brug for din hjælp til at lægge pres på regeringen i El Salvador for retten til at organisere sig og kæmpe for menneskerettigheder, miljø og natur. 

Parlamentet i det mellemamerikanske land vedtog den 20. maj en kontroversiel ”Lov om Udenlandske Agenter”. Loven gør det muligt for staten at styre hvilke organisationer og uafhængige medier, der kan arbejde i landet, og alle organisationer der modtager midler fra udlandet, bliver pålagt at betale 30 procent af beløbet i skat. Loven vil få store konsekvenser for NOAH’s søsterorganisation i landet, CESTA. 

Loven er et alvorligt angreb på den folkelige organisering i El Salvador, og en forværring af den allerede pressede demokratiske situation i det mellemamerikanske land. Indførelsen af loven er sket efter en eskalering af den statslige repression af folkelige protester i landet, blandt andet en stigning i vilkårlige anholdelser af menneskerettighedsforkæmpere. 

Ved at sende et brev til El Salvadors ambassadør for Skandinavien kan du være med til at presse landets regering til at stoppe implementeringen af loven og til at løslade de fængslede menneskerettighedsforkæmpere. 

Sådan sender du brevet

• Klik på knappen "Klik her - brevtekst" nedenfor, kopiér teksten fra ind i en mail og send til ambassadør Patricia Nathaly Godinez Aguillón på email:  embajadasuecia@rree.gob.sv 

• Bcc Marie Hagensen fra NOAH: marie.h@noah.dk 

Brevet er på engelsk.

Klik her - brevtekst

Emnefelt: Profound preoccupation about Foreign Agent Law and human rights violations in El Salvador

Dear Ambassador of the Republic of El Salvador to the Kingdom of Sweden Patricia Nathaly Godinez Aguillón

I write to you as a supporter of NOAH - Friends of the Earth Denmark - part of the largest grassroots environmental justice network in the world who work alongside organizations and movements for the realization of environmental, social, economic and gender justice. I am writing to you to express my deep concern about the human rights situation in El Salvador, and the newly approved “Foreign Agent Law”.  

I am deeply concerned about the content of the Foreign Agent Law, as well as the process of drafting and approval of the law. It is alarming that a bill has been pushed through without consulting or promoting the participation of the organizations that will be the main ones affected by the law. The law grants President Nayib Bukele's government broad powers to monitor, sanction, and shut down organizations, and creates a 30% tax on all foreign funding, including donations, payments, and other items.

The bill is cause for great preoccupation because it appears to seek to limit and restrict fundamental democratic rights in El Salvador. The law will affect the right to freedom of expression, participation and the right to association, fundamental democratic rights that are guaranteed in Articles 6 and 7 of the National Constitution of El Salvador. Moreover, the Foreign Agent Law violates El Salvador's obligations under international human rights law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR), which protect freedom of expression and association.

I am deeply concerned about the effects that this law may have on the freedom of nongovernmental organizations and their members. The State of El Salvador has various mechanisms to conduct control and ensure transparency in the work of NGOs, among them the fiscal control by the Finance Ministry and the Law of Associations and Non Profit Organizations. The bill constitutes a threat to the very principles of democracy that we all value.

I am also deeply concerned about the human rights situation in El Salvador and the arbitrary detention of various members of civil society organizations. The prominent lawyer and human rights defender Ruth López, was arrested on May 18 and charged with illicit enrichment. She remains in prison after a court ordered that the case proceed to the preliminary investigation stage, which will last at least six months. A few days after this incident, constitutional lawyer Enrique Anaya, a key figure in the defense of democratic institutions in the country, was arrested. Anaya has questioned laws adopted by the current Legislative Assembly and resolutions that violate fundamental rights and democratic principles, in addition to filing lawsuits before national and international bodies. Other prominent human rights defenders that have been arrested the last year are Alejandro Henríquez, lawyer for the cooperative El Bosque, José Ángel Pérez, a community resident from El Bosque who participated in a peaceful protest against threats to evict the community, and José Iván Arévalo Gómez, a community leader for the indigenous organization Nahuat, and member of MOVIAC who has been imprisoned since August 2024. 

I respectfully urge you to use your diplomatic influence to: 

1. Make sure El Salvador complies with its duties in international law and press for the immediate release of Ruth López, Enrique Anaya, Alejandro Henríquez, José Ángel Pérez and José Iván Arévalo Gómez  based on the principles of justice established by the Constitution of El Salvador and international treaties El Salvador has ratified such as International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), the American Convention on Human Rights, and the Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture, among others as the ILO convention 87.
2. Use your diplomatic influence to urge the Government of El Salvador to ensure the participation of civil society and non-profit organizations in the process of the Foreign Agent Law, so that their opinion, as affected parties, is respected and considered.

I firmly believe that your intervention can make a significant difference in this case, and I trust that you will consider this matter with the urgency it requires. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. I look forward to your response and to any actions you may take in support of civil society and human rights defenders in El Salvador. 

Yours sincerely,

Baggrund for loven

Loven er den seneste hændelse i en lang udvikling, hvor El Salvador er blevet stadig mere autoritært, under ledelse af TikTok-præsident Nayib Bukele. Samtidig med at regeringen knipler kritiske stemmer, gennemfører den storskala infrastrukturprojekter som har alvorlige konsekvenser for lokalsamfund og miljøet. Bagsiden er fordrivelse af lokale fiskersamfund og fængsling af dem, der står imod udviklingen. Loven om Udenlandske Agenter blev indført efter at præsidenten blev kritiseret for at have beordret oprørspolitiet til at slå ned på en fredelig demonstration foran præsidentens residens. 

I marts 2022 erklærede El Salvadors regering undtagelsestilstand for at sætte en stopper for den banderelaterede kriminalitet i landet. Undtagelsestilstanden har ført til ophævelse af grundlæggende forfatningsmæssige rettigheder, herunder retten til en retfærdig rettergang. Mere end 79.000 personer er blevet arresteret for at være påståede bandemedlemmer eller tilknyttet en bande.

Menneskerettighedsorganisationer har dokumenteret, at tusinder er blevet uretfærdigt tilbageholdt uden retfærdig rettergang, udsat for tortur, og at i dusinvis er døde i fængslerne.

Læs NOAH’s udtalelse om loven her.

NOAH og Friends of the Earth International

Miljøbevægelsen NOAH er medlem af Friends of the Earth, verdens største globale netværk af græsrodsmiljøorganisationer. Friends of the Earth repræsenterer en mangfoldighed af forskellige grupper, hvoraf mange befinder sig i nogle af de hårdest ramte områder på jorden. Med de omkring 75 nationale organisationer, 5000 aktivistgrupper og to millioner medlemmer står vi sammen på alle kontinenter i kampen for miljøretfærdighed. Vi støtter løsninger, der peger mod miljømæssigt bæredygtige samfund med social retfærdighed.

Friends of the Earth kæmper for at skabe et globalt netværk, hvor de forskellige grupper har mulighed for at hjælpe med og støtte hinandens arbejde. Vi arbejder for mere international solidaritet med miljøforkæmpere og befolkningsgrupper, der er udsatte. Vi kan ikke klare kampene for miljøretfærdighed alene. Gennem fællesskab kan vi nå længere med vores arbejde.

Læs mere om miljøretfærdighed her.