Foreign Minister Fonseca Meets with U.S. Ambassador Zeya

The discussions underlined the importance of prioritizing issues of human rights and engagement with civil society, with particular focus on protecting marginalized members of society.  The delegation stressed the importance of enhancing citizen and human-centered security, strengthening the justice sector and securing Belize’s borders.

 

Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs

“We had a very good discussion today.  The Under Secretary had the opportunity as well to meet with the Prime Minister earlier this morning.  We just had a very good discussion, we talked about citizen security, human rights, you know, democracy, the amnesty program, the migration issue and issues that affect the most vulnerable in our society.”

 

Reporter

“Is this something that came up between yourself and the Under Secretary, the number of Belizean asylum seekers who have headed to the United States?

 

Francis Fonseca

“We discussed that very openly, you know.  We didn’t talk in great detail about the numbers of people going, but you made a very good point earlier.  The whole asylum process, as you rightly pointed out, was affected.  Many people said why or asked themselves, “Why should I go through this process when in fact I have an opportunity to get into the United States of America?”  We found that many of the people who had applied, when they went looking for them, had actually left the country.  [We don’t have] the full numbers on that but quite a few, even in my own constituency in Belama, I’ve noticed a number of families have gone… a number of families have gone to try their luck, as you said, and I haven’t seen them again.  So I suspect they’ve been successful in reaching their destination.”