TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS IN BELIZE - OAS

obstacles or sail dangerous seas to cross them. Belize’s geography is
particularly attractive for migration flows and it is no wonder that even
before being a colony, the population movements to the south and to the
north where an historical constant that has influenced the country from a
political, social and cultural point of view.
10) Organizations and Webs. The testimonies for this research all agreed in
the fact that there are webs or organizations dedicated to facilitate the
entrance and transit of illegal people in Belize. These groups have strong
local contacts- from important lawyers to middle management public
authorities- that if something happens, act very quickly to avoid the
consequences for their clients.
11) Illegal residents. Although foreigners have the possibility of obtaining
their legal residence and working permits in Belize, these papers aren’t
given out on every opportunity. That’s why many illegal immigrants enter
Belize trying to avoid controls so as to be able to work in citrus, banana
and sugar cane plantations or in tourism or construction area.
12) Prostitution. It has been a long term tendency for women to come to
Belize, from other Central America countries, in order to be prostitutes.
There are also other women that come from more distant countries. There
are a large number of foreigner prostitutes because the local users of their
“services” consider that this is a way to maintain anonymous. Thereafter,
there is always an opportunity in the “sex industry” for foreign women and
there is always an informal web ready to “contact” more women when the
number of tourists increase or when there is a “vacant” in some of the
places related to this practice.
13) Attractive facts. According to key informants and various sources, most of
the people that enter illegally to Belize to stay, do so because they are
having serious trouble at their country of origin. The lack of social
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