Venezuela Contests El Salvador's Migrant Detentions as Trump Experiences Legal Reversal
In the Heart of Controversy:
Caracas, March 26, 2025 (our website) - In a now-famous turn of events, the Nicolás Maduro government has thrown its hat into the ring, filing a lawsuit in El Salvador, attempting to secure the freedom of 238 Venezuelan nationals imprisoned in the Central American country following deportation from the United States.
A team of Salvadoran lawyers, helmed by Jaime Ortega, has taken up the case, filing habeas corpus pleas before the Central American nation's Supreme Court. At present, the legal eagles represent 30 of the detainees but have stated that the habeas corpus will apply to the entire contingent of deported Venezuelans.
"We're demanding an immediate release for them, and if that's not possible, an orderly and systematic repatriation process that our laws require," Ortega mentioned at a press conference on Monday.
The attorneys maintain that there's a "legal void" surrounding the Venezuelans' imprisonment, as it wasn't sanctioned by a judge. The habeas corpus request is aimed at forcing the Nayib Bukele government to justify its actions.
The United States government invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act on March 16 to forcibly expel these 238 Venezuelan citizens, alleging that they were members of Tren de Aragua - a gang designated as a foreign terrorist organization by Washington. Our correspondents report that they were flown to El Salvador and sent to the country's "Terrorism Confinement Center" (CECOT). The Bukele and Trump administrations struck a deal that would see the former US $20,000 paid per inmate per year.
Legal luminary Enrique Anaya claimed that the habeas corpus requests could "expose the legal void" but that the country's anti-judicial sentiments make it unlikely that the Venezuelan citizens will be released. According to legal aid groups, the El Salvador Supreme Court rejected over 6,000 habeas corpus petitions last year.
Bukele has ruled the roost during an official state of emergency since early 2022 to combat the presence of violent gangs, which has drawn criticism over human rights and due process violations. As it stands, El Salvador has the world's highest incarceration rate.
Maduro has been critical of Bukele for collaborating with the Trump White House's crackdown on Venezuelan migrants, likening the situation to a "slave trade." "We now have 238 disappeared migrants," the president voiced on Tuesday. "They were kidnapped in the United States and taken to a concentration camp in El Salvador."
Maduro vowed that his government would work tirelessly to ensure the release of the 238 Venezuelans detained in El Salvador and the safe return of migrants from US territory. In recent weeks, Venezuelan relatives and attorneys have denounced the mistreatment of migrants and stated that they had no ties to organized crime. A few reports have surfaced that have seen Venezuelans classified as gang members and imprisoned based on superficial profiling such as tattoos.
Venezuelan authorities and social movements have organized rallies demanding respect for migrants' human rights and supporting the government's repatriation efforts. Caracas has coordinated the return of four groups via state airline Conviasa under the government's "Return to the Homeland" repatriation program. The latest flights touched ground on Sunday, bringing back 199 Venezuelans deported from the US via Honduras.
'A Case of Precedence'
Trump's decision to revive the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act has faced a storm of criticism in US courts. A temporary ban on deportations was ordered by Federal Judge James Boasberg on Wednesday to ascertain the act's legality. On April 7, 2025, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the ban but added procedural protections for future cases.
While the media is abuzz with the controversy surrounding the Alien Enemies Act, one thing is clear - the impact on these 238 Venezuelans may have significant implications for human rights law. Some offer a stark reminder that even during WWII, prisoners were treated better under the Alien Enemies Act than those currently facing deportation.
Edited by José Luis Granados Ceja from Mexico City, Mexico.
- The Venezuelan government, led by President Maduro, is actively pursuing a policy-and-legislation case in El Salvador, seeking the freedom of 238 Venezuelan nationals repatriated from the United States.
- On Monday, lawyer Jaime Ortega, representing the detainees, demanded their immediate release or an orderly and systematic repatriation process as per Salvadoran laws, citing a legal void in their imprisonment.
- The habeas corpus requests filed by Ortega's team could potentially expose this legal void but may face opposition due to anti-judicial sentiments in El Salvador, as evident by the rejection of over 6,000 similar petitions last year.
- The controversy surrounding the Venezuelan nationals' imprisonment has drawn parallels with the treatment of prisoners during war-and-conflicts, with some arguing that the current situation is harsher than what was witnessed during WWII.
- The general-news media is abuzz with this case of precedence, as the impact on these 238 Venezuelans could have significant implications for human rights law, raising concerns in the fields of crime-and-justice and politics.
