A labor rights group in El Salvador on Thursday asked the country’s Supreme Court to strike down a contentious “foreign agents” law promoted by President Nayib Bukele, which critics have said is intended to silence dissent.
The law, passed in May, imposes a 30% tax on funds or donations received from foreign organizations, often a crucial source of funding for human rights, news, and watchdog organizations that have repeatedly challenged the government. The passing of the law comes amid a wider crackdown by the government on dissent, which has forced more than a hundred people to flee the country in political exile in recent months.
On Thursday, leaders of the Movement for the Defense of the Rights of the Working Class (MCDT) filed a complaint with the country’s Supreme Court, claiming the law violates more than a dozen articles of the Salvadoran constitution. MCDT leader Morena Murillo said the legislation targets organizations that challenge the government by documenting rights violations and criticizing what she described as the erosion of democratic institutions and the separation of powers.
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