Former Costa Rican President Óscar Arias has denounced that the Donald Trump administration revoked his visa to travel to the United States as “punishment” for the criticism leveled against the White House resident in recent weeks.
“How is it that they want to punish those who think differently? That’s not democracy; that could be anything but democracy,” Arias said in a press conference in which he declared that Trump’s United States has “characteristics of an autocracy.”
Arias, 84, defended his right to “disagree” with Washington, emphasizing that “it doesn’t hurt anyone,” and avoided speculating about the exact reasons that may have led to the visa cancellation. He did, however, seek to distance the current government, led by Rodrigo Chaves, from this incident.
He also does not believe the measure will have any real practical effects, as he had no plans to travel to the United States anytime soon and can “sleep peacefully,” reports the newspaper ‘La Nación’.
Arias governed Costa Rica for four years, between 2006 and 2010, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his mediation work in the armed conflicts in Central America during the 1980s.
