Supporting LGBT+ Communities in Belize

The LGBT+ community in Belize continues to suffer discrimination and today being celebrated universally as a day to support the plight of this minority group, Minister of Human Development Dolores Balderamos-Garcia discussed a recent study that was conducted in the country.  Minister Balderamos-Garcia spoke in the context of the National Gender Policy.

 

Dolores Balderamos-Garcia, Minister of Human Development

“Today is international day in support of LGBT+ communities.  Now yesterday, there was an organization that presented a study done here in Belize to provide more data, because, you see, when you are responding to a problem, you have to have data.  And so the study was done and the data is showing that our LGBT+ communities do suffer significant levels of discrimination.  So that study was presented by the international organization working with UNIBAM.  I was there and lent the support and I was also able to mention that the Government of Belize, through our National Gender Policy, is committed to reducing discrimination and to having full equality and inclusion across the board.  So I was happy to participate in that as well.”

 

Reporter

“So what would you say was the outcome of that…”

 

Dolores Balderamos-Garcia

“Well the outcome was the presentation of the study which is giving us the data that we need to work with.  So again, we could say discrimination against disabled people exists in Belize.  Anybody can make that statement, but unless you have the actual data, you don’t know the actual level.”