TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS IN BELIZE - OAS

Social services also had to work in a case of a pregnant woman that arrived to
Belize in exchange of house and food. But when she gave birth, those who had
brought her demanded the baby as well. Authorities have now taken child away
from the woman that had manipulated the mother, but they haven’t found her
because she escaped to her country of origin, El Salvador.
According to social service’s members, Asiatic communities that arrive to the
country keep to themselves and marry within their group in order to maintain
their culture and traditions living up to very strict rules. Their language also
keeps them at a distance. Sources underlined that there are stores, restaurants
and plantations managed by groups that came from Taiwan and China. They
don’t have any kind of contact with the locals, they hold on to their language
and use to it communicates between them. And that there are many situations
that could be catalogued as exploitation. As an example, there are small
businessmen that bring people from their country and, in exchange for paying
for their tickets, house and food, these people work for free. The social and
cultural isolation of this population makes it very difficult for them to reach the
authorities and report the situation. And if they did, they’d probably wouldn’t do
it because they are better off now than in their country of origin.
At the Director of Public Prosecutions offices, they maintain that migratory traffic
in Belize is very high and that locals at Central America still resist and fear the
new comers. Legislation on human trafficking is still new, in accordance to the
head of this desk, and, to the moment, has been applied on five cases. He
stated that it isn’t easy to enter illegally to Belize and head towards the United
States, without the help of well organized groups. Everything leads to think that
there is a route along Belize heading north. He pointed out that, although
prostitution is a crime, it’s unthinkable to put every women who practice it in jail.
In addition to this it is very difficult to prove it.
A key element of human trafficking is that, according to the Director of Public
Prosecutions, illegal immigrants are quickly restored to their countries of origin
because there are no facilities to house them while each case is investigated. It
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