US Asylum Assessments Downplay Latin American Crime Risks as Rejections Reach 94%

By Staff, Agencies

The US State Department has issued internal assessments suggesting that violent crime in parts of Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador is comparable to that in some American cities, despite publicly warning US citizens about security risks in the same countries, CNN reported Wednesday.

The documents, provided to US asylum officers, compare crime rates in the four Latin American nations with those in cities including Baltimore, Houston and Memphis.

According to CNN, the assessments place less emphasis on human rights abuses, kidnappings and extortion than earlier evaluations, potentially influencing decisions on whether people fleeing violence and persecution qualify for protection in the United States.

Under US asylum law, applicants must demonstrate that they face persecution in their home countries. The assessments could therefore affect both their eligibility for asylum and determinations about whether they could safely relocate elsewhere within their countries of origin.

Andrew Selee, president of the Migration Policy Institute, said the reports downplay the threats posed by criminal organizations and weak local institutions, representing a significant shift from previous evaluations despite limited changes in conditions on the ground.

The documents also state that Honduran police are generally willing and able to respond to requests for assistance. However, Selee argued that this assessment overlooks allegations of links between police officers and organized crime groups, as well as the dangers people may encounter if required to relocate within Honduras.

The State Department said regional experts prepared and reviewed the reports to assist US immigration authorities in evaluating asylum claims.

The assessments have emerged amid delays in the publication of the department’s annual human rights report, leaving asylum officers to rely on alternative information when evaluating conditions in applicants’ home countries.

Meanwhile, asylum denials have risen sharply. Data from Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, cited by CNN, showed that the denial rate reached 94% of cases in June, compared with approximately 50% two years earlier.

Officials in the administration of President Donald Trump have defended the distinction between travel advisories and asylum assessments, arguing that travel warnings are designed to inform American citizens about risks abroad and do not necessarily reflect the level of danger experienced by people who live in those countries.

The controversy raises questions about how US authorities evaluate violence, institutional weaknesses and human rights conditions when deciding asylum applications, particularly as stricter immigration enforcement places increasing scrutiny on claims for protection.