United States, Argentina, and Peru urge the OAS to label the Tren de Aragua as a terrorist organization.

The United States, Peru, and Argentina have requested their partners in the Organization of American States (OAS) to categorize the Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization, a decision that the Trump Administration made in its territory in February. The proposal, presented by Lima, suggests sharing biometric data and financial intelligence to combat the organization that originated in Venezuela, reports Efe. The OAS is holding its annual assembly in Antigua and Barbuda, marking the debut of the new Secretary-General, Surinamese Albert Ramdin. Cuban dissident Rosa María Payá Acevedo, daughter of the late Oswaldo Payá, a pro-democracy activist, has been chosen to fill one of the three vacancies on the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) at the proposal of Washington.

The Trump administration accuses Nicolás Maduro’s government of collaborating with the Tren de Aragua. Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama, and Paraguay have also supported the Peruvian proposal.

The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, Christopher Landau, who leads the U.S. delegation, was very clear in his speech on Thursday. He harshly criticized the regional organization for being ineffective, specifically mentioning electoral fraud in Venezuela and the crisis in Haiti, and reminded that Washington is in the process of evaluating which international organizations to leave. He also emphasized the strong U.S. interest in seeing Payá on the IACHR.

Landau complained that the OAS “is either unable or unwilling” to fulfill its mandate. In his speech, referring to the Venezuelan presidential elections last August, he stated: “What has this organization done in response to that blatant electoral fraud? As far as we know, nothing substantial.”

The issue of Venezuela has generated significant regional disagreements. The profile of the new OAS leader, Ramdin, a career diplomat, contrasts with that of his predecessor, Luis Almagro, who infused a strong political character into the role. The head of Brazil’s delegation, Maria Laura da Rocha, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, has advocated for dialogue so that the organization “regains its mediating capacity and becomes a relevant interlocutor again.” She has also urged partners to “work to ensure that the OAS regains the participation of all countries in the Americas,” without mentioning Venezuela, which is currently excluded.

The three vacancies on the IACHR, which has seven commissioners, were filled in a secret vote. Payá was elected in the first round. Her father, Oswaldo Payá, died in 2012 in a traffic accident in Cuba, about which the IACHR noted that it identified “serious and sufficient indications to conclude that state agents [Cuban] participated in the deaths of Payá and [Harold] Cepero,” according to a 2023 report. The new commissioner, trained in Physics in Havana and holding a master’s degree in global leadership from Columbia University, leads the Foundation for Latin American Democracy and Cuba Decide.

The independent expert panel that evaluated the candidates for commissioners ruled on Payá that “her experience with civil society organizations will provide a victim-centered approach that could contribute to the work of the IACHR.”

The executive director of the Due Process Foundation, Katya Salazar, explains the relevance of the IACHR. “It is a body that, in real-time, points out to states that are violating human rights. Hence, it is seen by some states as a thorn in their side and its hyper-relevance,” she details over the phone from Washington. She adds that, in addition to receiving reports of human rights violations and deciding which cases to send to the Court, “it prepares reports, organizes public hearings, and issues press releases that are timely, while the Court often takes many years to issue a ruling.”

Salazar maintains that, in the election of the new members of the IACHR, “the great dispute is between states that do not want international oversight and those that accept external scrutiny. Although those who do not like it will not admit it. It is easier to sell that narrative of a left-right struggle.”

Alongside Payá, Bahamas lawyer Marion Bethel, who has developed part of her career in OAS bodies, will join the IACHR. The third position has not been defined because the two candidates who advanced to the second round, from Brazil and Mexico, did not obtain enough votes. The election has been postponed to a future meeting.