Belize People
Press Releases 1999
November 17, 1999: The United States of America Makes Humanitarian Donation to the People of Belize ... [Read More]
Belize
All elections were held by secret ballot, and suffrage was universal for citizens 18 years of age and older. National political parties included the People's United Party and the United Democratic Party (UDP). Another political party, calling itself "We the People," was formed in 2001 and fielded several candidates in the election. The country's ethnic diversity was reflected in each party's membership. ... Among the country's indigenous persons, the Mopan and Ke'kchi were grouped under the general term Maya, although their leaders stated that they should be identified as the Masenal, meaning "common people." The Maya sought official recognition of their communal claims to land, but the Government was reluctant to single out one ethnic group for special consideration. The Government designated 77,000 acres as 9 separate Mayan reserves; however, Mayan leaders claimed that the Maya have an ancestral claim to a total of 500,000 acres. The Maya formed cultural councils and other groups to advance their interests, sometimes with the collaboration of NGOs concerned with environmental and indigenous issues. ... [Read More]
V. Country Narratives -- Countries A through G
The Peoples’ Republic of China is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. A significant number of Chinese women and children are trafficked internally for forced marriage and forced labor. Chinese women are at times lured abroad with false promises of legitimate employment and then trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation to destinations throughout Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and North America, while Chinese men have been trafficked for forced labor to Europe, South America, and the Middle East. A large number of Chinese men and women are smuggled abroad at enormous personal financial cost and, upon arrival in the destination country, are subjected to commercial sexual exploitation or other forms of exploitative labor to repay their debts. They often face exploitative conditions that meet t ... [Read More]
Belize
Among the country's indigenous people, the Mopan and Ke'kchi are grouped under the general term Maya, although their leaders say that they should be identified as the Masenal, meaning "common people." The Maya have sought official recognition of their communal claims to land, but the Government has been reluctant to single out one ethnic group for special consideration. The Government has designated 77,000 acres as 9 separate Mayan reserves; however, Mayan leaders claim that the Maya have an ancestral claim to a total of 500,000 acres. The Maya have formed cultural councils and other groups to advance their interests, sometimes with the collaboration of NGO's concerned with environmental and indigenous issues. Several Mayan organizations have filed suit to force the Government to recognize the Maya's ancestral land rights and to prevent further granting of logging concessions on the disputed land. ... [Read More]
Belize
No laws impeded participation of women in politics, and 82 percent of both men and women were registered to vote. There were three women in the House of Representatives; two were elected Representatives and the other was appointed to serve as Speaker of the House. There were 5 women in the 12-member appointed Senate, and another woman served as president of the Senate. There was one woman in the Cabinet, and five women were chief executive officers of ministries. The Chief Elections Officer was also a woman. There were no laws impeding participation by indigenous persons or minority groups in politics. There were Mestizo, Creole, Maya, and Garifuna representatives in the National Assembly. Voter registration and participation were not tracked by ethnicity; however, there were no complaints or reports of electoral discrimination on the basis of ethnicity. Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and N ... [Read More]
Peace Corps Belize
© 2002 U.S. Embassy Belize Peace Corps Belize Peace Corps has been a part of the development of Belize for 40 years. Peace Corps began to work in Belize when the country was still called British Honduras. At that ... [Read More]
Background Notes
Political parties: People's United Party (PUP), United Democratic Party (UDP), National Alliance for Belizean Rights (NABR), People's Liberation Front (PLF). ... Belize is the most sparsely populated nation in Central America; it is larger than El Salvador and compares in size to the state of Massachusetts. Slightly more than half of the people live in rural areas. About one-fourth live in Belize City, the principal port, commercial center, and former capital. Most Belizeans are of multiracial descent. About 46.4% of the population is of mixed Mayan and European descent (Mestizo); 27.7% are of African and Afro-European (Creole) ancestry; about 10% are Mayan; and about 6.4% are Afro-Amerindian (Garifuna). The remainder, about 9.5%, includes European, East Indian, Chinese, and Middle Eastern and North American groups. English, the official language, is spoken by virtually all except ... [Read More]
Belize (08/04)
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