El Salvador: Bukele critic arrested for money laundering – DW – 06/08/2025
The detained constitutional lawyer Enrique Anaya has recently described El Salvador President Nayib Bukele as a "dictator."
A constitutional lawyer and fierce critic of El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has been arrested on charges of "money laundering," the prosecutor's office said.
The lawyer, Enrique Anaya, has described Bukele as a "dictator." He was arrested at his home in the city of Santa Tecla on Saturday.
Human rights organizations have said the move aims to silence those who question the government.
Bukele's hardline approach to El Salvador's powerful gangs has made him immensely popular among voters. But it has also led activists to raise alarm over arbitrary arrests and diminishing civil liberties.
What is Anaya accused of?
Images of Anaya handcuffed alongside police officers were shared on social media by the office of El Salvador's attorney general. The authorities said Anaya will be referred to the courts for "money and asset laundering."
The arrest comes after the detention this year of fellow lawyer Ruth Lopez, head of an anti-corruption unit of human rights NGO Cristosal. Lopez stands accused of embezzling state funds when she worked for an electoral court a decade ago.
El Salvador's constitution officially does not allow successive presidential terms, but a Bukele-stacked Supreme Court unanimously allowed him to run, and he was reelected in February 2024 with 85% of the votes going his way.
Bukele accuses his critics of leftist political activism and last week warned that "corrupt opposition members" are not untouchable.
'Whoever does not kneel before the idol, gets imprisoned'
"I don't care if they call me a dictator. I'd rather be called a dictator than see Salvadorans killed in the streets," he said on Sunday.
Anaya responded on a television program Tuesday that Bukele had removed "the mask," adding "he is what he is."
"Here, whoever speaks, whoever criticizes, whoever does not kneel before the idol, gets imprisoned. Of course, I am afraid," Anaya said.
He said in his last X post on Friday that "the Bukelean dictatorship is increasingly questioned and confronted internationally," referencing criticism from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (CIDH) regarding the arrest of Lopez's and other activists.
Edited by: Darko Janjevic
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
DW
8 hours ago
- DW
El Salvador: Bukele critic arrested for money laundering – DW – 06/08/2025
The detained constitutional lawyer Enrique Anaya has recently described El Salvador President Nayib Bukele as a "dictator." A constitutional lawyer and fierce critic of El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has been arrested on charges of "money laundering," the prosecutor's office said. The lawyer, Enrique Anaya, has described Bukele as a "dictator." He was arrested at his home in the city of Santa Tecla on Saturday. Human rights organizations have said the move aims to silence those who question the government. Bukele's hardline approach to El Salvador's powerful gangs has made him immensely popular among voters. But it has also led activists to raise alarm over arbitrary arrests and diminishing civil liberties. What is Anaya accused of? Images of Anaya handcuffed alongside police officers were shared on social media by the office of El Salvador's attorney general. The authorities said Anaya will be referred to the courts for "money and asset laundering." The arrest comes after the detention this year of fellow lawyer Ruth Lopez, head of an anti-corruption unit of human rights NGO Cristosal. Lopez stands accused of embezzling state funds when she worked for an electoral court a decade ago. El Salvador's constitution officially does not allow successive presidential terms, but a Bukele-stacked Supreme Court unanimously allowed him to run, and he was reelected in February 2024 with 85% of the votes going his way. Bukele accuses his critics of leftist political activism and last week warned that "corrupt opposition members" are not untouchable. 'Whoever does not kneel before the idol, gets imprisoned' "I don't care if they call me a dictator. I'd rather be called a dictator than see Salvadorans killed in the streets," he said on Sunday. Anaya responded on a television program Tuesday that Bukele had removed "the mask," adding "he is what he is." "Here, whoever speaks, whoever criticizes, whoever does not kneel before the idol, gets imprisoned. Of course, I am afraid," Anaya said. He said in his last X post on Friday that "the Bukelean dictatorship is increasingly questioned and confronted internationally," referencing criticism from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (CIDH) regarding the arrest of Lopez's and other activists. Edited by: Darko Janjevic
DW
3 days ago
- DW
What does US President Donald Trump's new travel ban mean? – DW – 06/05/2025
From June 9, most nationals from 19 countries will not be allowed to enter the United States. What are the reasons and who is exempt? This time it is not a new executive order but a presidential proclamation that is causing a worldwide stir. The policy signed by US President Donald Trump on Wednesday is entitled "Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats" and due to take effect on June 9. Like executive orders, presidential proclamations are one of the instruments with which a US president can implement the administration's will, particularly regarding national security and immigration. Unlike laws, these documents do not require the approval of Congress. However, they must be based on powers granted by law. In terms of content, Trump's new proclamation ties in with previous travel bans imposed during his first term as president, which the Supreme Court upheld in 2018. Which countries are affected? The proclamation bans entry to the US for all nationals from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, regardless of their reasons for travel, unless the State Department deems their entry into the US to be in the national interest. In addition to these 12 countries, there are seven more whose nationals will face partial restrictions: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Stricter visa checks and restrictions will apply, but these will also be case-dependent. A wealthy businessperson might be allowed to enter, while tourists or students could face higher hurdles. Trump cites Boulder, Colorado attack In a video published on social media, Trump cited Sunday's attack in Boulder, Colorado, saying it "underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted." He also said that nationals from certain countries posed "significant risks" of overstaying their visas. An Egyptian man has been charged with injuring several people when he hurled Molotov cocktails at a demonstration calling for the release of Hamas-held hostages in Gaza. According to the US Department of Homeland Security, he had overstayed his tourist visa. Egypt is not listed in Trump's newest proclamation. In the proclamation, the Republican president argues that the countries affected by the new travel ban do not provide enough information on their nationals to assess potential security risks. Some countries listed — Iran and Cuba, for example — the US designates as "State Sponsors of Terrorism." This new ban will tighten up already existing measures. The Trump administration has criticized the fact that some countries do not take back their nationals when the US requires them to leave. However, critics have speculated that the ban has political and economic reasons, pointing out that Saudi Arabia and other countries, with which the Trump family has close business ties, will not be affected. Donald Trump said that other countries could be added to the list in future Image: Leah Millis/REUTERS Who will be exempt from the new restrictions? • Green Card holders • Dual nationals with a US passport • Athletes and coaches participating in "major" competitions in the US • Afghan nationals, who worked for or on behalf of the US government or ISAF, with Special Immigrant Visas (SIV) • Iranian nationals with immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran • Foreign diplomats and representatives of international organizations on official visits to the US • Close relatives of US citizens (parents, children, spouses) • Adopted children of US citizens • Certain foreign national employees of the US government who have served abroad for at least 15 years • Those who were granted asylum or admitted to the US as refugees before the ban came into effect If not exempt, those nationals from the banned countries will no longer be able to enter the US from June 9 for business trips, educational travel or family visits. The decision is also likely to have economic repercussions. The poorer countries on the list in particular, such as Haiti and Yemen, have benefitted from trade ties with the US, as well as remittances sent by people living and working in the US. Human rights groups have slammed the travel ban as being racist and discriminatory, pointing out too that refugees and asylum-seekers from conflict regions will now lose access to protection programs in the US. Harvard students from China and Taiwan in limbo To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Harvard University targeted Trump also announced specific measures to block new foreign students from attending Harvard University, whom he accused of developing "extensive entanglements with foreign countries, including our adversaries" and flouting "the civil rights of its students and faculty." In his proclamation, he stated: "I have determined that it is necessary to restrict the entry of foreign nationals who seek to enter the United States solely or principally to participate in a course of study at Harvard University or in an exchange visitor program hosted by Harvard University. " Initially, entry to almost all foreign nationals seeking to study or participate in educational programs at Harvard will be suspended for six months. The suspension period could be extended. The US State Department will be directed to examine whether to revoke the existing visas of students at the university. In a statement, Harvard said this was " yet another illegal retaliatory step taken by the administration in violation of Harvard's First Amendment rights." Earlier this year, Harvard President Alan Garber wrote that the university, which is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, would not "surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights." This article was translated from German.
Int'l Business Times
4 days ago
- Int'l Business Times
Attorney Hillary Walsh's Vision for Helping 1 Million Undocumented Immigrants
In a small courtroom in Phoenix, Arizona, a woman named Carla, bruised emotionally and silenced by fear, sat gripping a manila folder of documents she barely understood. Her U.S. citizen husband had weaponized her immigration status for years, telling her, "You'll be deported before they believe you." He beat her, berated her, and warned her that if she ever left, she'd lose her children. But across from her sat Hillary Walsh, wearing a blazer that didn't quite hide the fire in her voice. "You don't need to keep suffering to stay in this country," Walsh told her. That day, Carla began her application under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)—a rare and powerful form of protection that grants immigration status to abuse survivors. For Walsh, it was another day of dismantling cages built not just by abusers, but by the complex web of U.S. immigration law. For Carla, it was a step toward freedom. From Kansas to the Supreme Court Born in small-town Kansas, Hillary Walsh doesn't look like the typical face of immigration reform—and that's precisely the point. She's a mother of four, a former law professor, a TEDx speaker, and a military spouse. Her journey from flyover state roots to representing clients before the U.S. Supreme Court is not just improbable; it's instructive. It underscores her approach to advocacy: relentless, unapologetically hopeful, and unconcerned with precedent when people's lives are at stake. In 2019, she founded New Frontier Immigration Law , a fully remote firm long before the pandemic normalized Zoom courtrooms. From the start, Walsh had a radical idea: that an immigration law practice could be both high-performing and deeply humane. "We're not just trying to win cases," she says. "We're trying to rewrite how people view the undocumented—especially those who've been dehumanized or abused." The 1 Million Mission At the core of New Frontier's operation is an audacious goal: to help one million people gain immigration documents. So far, the firm has served over 4,000 clients, primarily undocumented individuals trapped in the legal shadows of American life. The strategy to scale isn't just about hiring more attorneys. Walsh's team is building out from Phoenix and Dallas to cities like Los Angeles, Houston, San Diego, and Las Vegas. But the firm's engine runs on more than geography—it runs on empathy, digital strategy, and innovation. Their website, , is more than a digital business card. It's a trauma-informed portal with bilingual content, quizzes to assess eligibility, and a 4.8-star rating from over 1,000 reviews. Potential clients—many of whom don't realize they qualify for relief—are guided gently into clarity. Behind this success lies Walsh's specialty: T visas and VAWA cases. These protections, reserved for victims of human trafficking and domestic violence, are legal lifelines often underutilized due to fear, shame, or ignorance of their existence. "These aren't just applications," Walsh explains. "They're acts of resistance. When someone like Maria, a trafficking survivor, walks out of court with a work permit and a future—she's defying every system that told her she was invisible." Data, Demand, and Disruption The U.S. immigration legal services industry is projected to reach over $3.2 billion by 2033, driven largely by increased demand from the country's 47.8 million immigrants. Yet, even as the market grows, so do its gaps—especially for undocumented people who aren't sure the law was ever meant for them. Roughly 80% of those in need of immigration help begin their search online. With keyword searches like "immigration lawyer near me" spiking in cities like Phoenix, New York, and Los Angeles, the fight for visibility is fierce. But New Frontier's content-forward, client-centered strategy has allowed it to dominate where others merely post and hope. And it's not just about SEO. Walsh has launched a first-of-its-kind legal assistant training program for humanitarian immigration cases. She runs a podcast, Immigration Law Made Easy, and co-hosts Let's Get Rich, a values-driven show with her husband, a recently retired U.S. Air Force fighter pilot. Innovation, for Walsh, isn't a buzzword; it's how she cracked an industry that told her a non-Spanish-speaking immigration lawyer wouldn't survive. Her team now serves a majority Spanish-speaking clientele with a staff that's majority women, many of whom are LGBTQ+ or Hispanic. More Than Just a Firm There is something distinctly narrative about how Walsh runs New Frontier. Clients are not treated as files; they are stories, waiting to be heard and told. "We ask people what freedom would mean to them," she says. "Sometimes, it's not about work permits or green cards. Sometimes it's a mother finally feeling safe enough to call the police if something goes wrong. That's what we fight for." Through the New Frontier Foundation, her nonprofit, Walsh extends support to survivors via therapy and recovery resources. The firm also trains its 100+ staff to operate with what they call the "I. L.I.V.E." framework—Inspiration, Legacy, Innovation, Vested, and Excellence. It's culture-building as advocacy. The System and the Soul U.S. immigration law is not just complex - it's chaotic, by design. And in that chaos, people disappear. But Hillary Walsh is determined to find them. Like Bryan Stevenson in Just Mercy, she aims not only to win legal victories but to shift national consciousness. Her TED Talk, which exposes how immigration law enables domestic violence, is one piece of a broader campaign to humanize the undocumented. "We've built a system that punishes people for surviving," she says. "My mission is to change that story." One million lives changed. One case at a time.
