The Refugee Programme in Belize and Migrant Minors
Many nationals from Central American countries over the years have migrated to Belize for better opportunities, some running from different issues. A snapshot of Belize’s current population would show that thousands of persons, be it economic migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants have taken habitation in the Jewel. Thousands have gone on to play important roles in the agriculture and fisheries industries in the west and south, contributing to the development of Belize. But there are thousands whose status are undetermined and remain in limbo. In this story, News Five’s Duane Moody looks at the refugee programme in Belize and what happens to migrant minors caught in the system.
Duane Moody, Reporting
Mid-morning in Salvapan looks like what you’d expect from any rural village – a local farmer tending to his chickens and children riding bicycles with their friends.
It’s a peaceful day in a quiet village that was created for this very purpose several decades ago. That’s because back in the 1980’s and later in 1999, the Government of Belize granted nationality to Central American migrants fleeing their war torn countries. Salvapan is one of several communities that was created for refugees to settle. Since that amnesty programme, thousands more have sought refuge in Belize. For many of them, their statuses still remain in limbo.
Diana Shaw
Diana Shaw, Executive Director, Child Development Foundation/Migration Centre
“We have had people who have been in Belize for several years and have not been documented and now have children that have been born in Belize so they are fearful of going to authorities. Either the delay is on the part of the Refugee Eligibility Committee in that meeting and not being able to go through the applications or after their process is finished and the minister not giving the approval. And so there is a definite gap in the system.”
There are over six thousand migrants from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. These migrants are a concern for human rights agencies in Belize. The Refugee Eligibility Committee, which was re-established back in 2015, has recommended that more than four hundred asylum seekers be recognized as refugees but, those persons are still awaiting the minister’s approval.
In early 2018, twenty-eight persons were officially recognised with refugee status. Yet, it is estimated that there are over three thousand asylum seekers registered with the Refugees Department. So how many of these persons fit the criteria under the Refugee Act?
Godwin Hulse
Godwin Hulse, Minister of Immigration [File: February 8th, 2019]
“The refugee’s situation in Belize is a touchy one. The U.N.D.P. has been pushing us. The U.S. government has been pushing us. But I will say candidly, look at U.S. refugee and immigration situation. We have to shelter ourselves because we do not know what is going to happen in the north. Some of these people have been here for seven, eight, ten, fifteen years. So they are using the refugee situation as a means to legalize themselves. They are not refugees in the true sense. They may be economic migrants.”
The law stipulates that a person seeking refugee status must do so within fourteen days of entry. But, whether they do or not, their status remains undetermined which means these persons cannot legally work or access healthcare. This, according to Executive Director of the Child Development Foundation and the Migration Centre, Diana Shaw, creates a major vulnerability.
Diana Shaw
“Not all persons who are coming that are asking for refugee status will be given refugee status. But the issue is it is taking so long for them to get that determination and then during the meantime, our laws do not allow them to work. So if you have submitted a refugee application, you have a paper that they staple in your passport, but you do not have a work permit. So it means that a lot of those persons would eventually have to resort to some kind of irregular work process which is not ideal. It creates other vulnerabilities for people to exploit you. You won’t be able to argue for proper wages, proper working conditions and it opens the room to a whole myriad of problems.”
So what happens to the thousands of persons left in limbo? Well, the UN Refugee Agency, through its implementation arm, Help for Progress, would assist these partially documented migrants with basic needs during their transition. As the law stipulates, alleged refugees cannot be repatriated if their status is pending.
Enrique August
Enrique August, Executive Director, Help for Progress
“They are referred to Help for Progress for basic assistance. Basic assistance entails lodging, food assistance, [if] they have school aged children, to assist them children with enrolling in school particularly at the elementary level which is as you know mandatory by the state that these school-aged children should be enrolled in school.”
A person seeking refugee status is not to be confused with migrants who illegally enter into a country or who are undocumented – those actions have consequences. We’ve seen reports in the news of numerous immigration busts. One thing you may not have considered is that the adults who are arrested may have children – who then become the responsibility of the state.
Lliani Arthurs
Lliani Arthurs, Director, Department of Human Services
“We have what we call unaccompanied minors, so these are children under the age of eighteen who enter our country without any legal guardian and they have no legal status to enter into the country. We also have what we call accompanied minors; and these are minors that may enter the country with a parent, but they are separated by the parent—either they are detained by immigration or detained by police and then they are handed over to us for protection.”
The number of migrant children in the system and their countries of origin fluctuate annually. Over the past five years, there has been a steady increase in migrant minors entering the country and being placed in the system. In 2017, there were about one hundred migrant children in care and for this year there are already twenty-six.
Lliani Arthurs
“We believe children are better served within a family environment much less a family they are familiar with. If that is not an option, we would explore our foster care system and if we cannot identify a foster home, we then look to group homes or residential care facilities. When we did analysis, we found that some of these children, especially the males, came from certain gang influence in their countries of origin and so those behaviours became unmanageable for those homes. And so the ministry took a policy decision that based on the gap within the continuum of care, the only facility that we have right now in Belize that can handle high risk behaviour is the Youth Hostel.”
While globally, migration issues are a hot topic, it seems like decades after the establishment of these communities like Salvapan, Belize still has many more kinks to work out. Duane Moody for News Five.
