Belize Profits from Ambergris Caye Human Trafficking Bonanza

Organization for Responsible Tourism (ORT) has learned the Belize immigration de
partment profits directly from human trafficking by extorting more than $1.3 mil
lion annually from San Pedro, Ambergris Caye bar owners, ORT President Vivian Tr
ill today announced.
The Town of San Pedro, with is unusually high concentration of ficha bars, is a
major contributor to the nearly $10 million (Belize) the country’s immigration o
fficials wrest from bar owners across the country.
Ficha bars, which offer human trafficking victims forced into prostitution, are
common in Belize, but rampant in the Town of San Pedro. This community provides
a bonanza for the immigration department — from the inspector level to the top.
While the country of Belize is targeted by ORT for tourism boycott due to its re
cord as the worst human trafficking violator in Central America, the Town of San
Pedro has been designated a red flag no-go zone for tourists. The Town of San
Pedro counts 90 exploitation bars for a population of 12,000.
As elsewhere in Belize, immigration staff issue work visas to Town of San Pedro
bar owners for illegal residents trapped in ficha bars – specifically, human tra
fficking victims. The bar owners treat this “purchase” as payola, a cost of doi
ng business, with the understanding that they have bought the blind-eye of immig
ration.
“The Town of San Pedro is a hub for human trafficking so is especially lucrative
for immigration extortion,” said Trill. “Instead of identifying trafficking vic
tims to assist them, immigration staff extort money to keep the victims in slave
ry in the Town of San Pedro and across the country.”
Within San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, there are 90 bars, each offering 10 human traf
ficking victims. Immigration charges bar owners $1,500 (Belize) for each human
trafficking victim. By comparison, a legitimate Belize work visa has a price ta
g of $150 (Belize).
Compounding the corruption, the same immigration officials regularly raid ficha
bars and arrest the same human trafficking victims for whom they have issued sha
m work visas. Immigration is able to make the arrests because the victims have
no documentation and are in the country illegally. The victims are in Belize b
ecause they have been trafficked across borders. They have no passports or othe
r identification because bar owners take whatever documents they have.
After arrest, most of these women wind up in Hattieville Central Prison on reman
d, where the Kolbe Foundation gets over $400,000 a year for incarcerating human
trafficking victims. These profits are due mainly to Belize immigration staff co
-operation across the country.
Top Cop Corrupted
Top Cop Corrupted
“Belize immigration officials, to the executive level, are victimizing human tra
fficking victims,” said Trill. “Belize is poised for worst-list human trafficki
ng status. To avert Tier 3 designation, it is incumbent on Belize to ensure the
ir immigration staff are identifying and assisting victims, not profiting from h
uman trafficking.”
ORT promotes traveling for a better world.
Ambergris Caye, Belize Tourism Board, Human Trafficking, Human Trafficking Centr
al America, Human Trafficking crime belize, Judith Alpuche, organization for res
ponsible tourism, San Pedro, vivian trill