Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
better) health-care options just across the border. But, though expats bring in much-
needed capital, you'll hear Belizeans raise concerns about the domination of business by
foreigners, which is evident throughout the cayes.
Figures are obviously not available for Belize's income from the lucrative drug
trans-shipment business, but this illicit economy is certainly a sizeable fraction of the
country's o
cial income. Drug-related crime has been on the rise in Belize for thirty
years - particularly in Belize City, which since the early 2000s has seen robberies and
murders reach out-of-hand proportions, especially gang-on-gang ghetto violence. The
government response has been to join Belize Defence Force (BDF) personnel with
police on the city streets, and to introduce
checkpoints
on roads across the country.
This increased
militarization
has yet to have an impact on crime levels, though
accusations of abuse of power are commonplace - while not affecting tourists.
A high
murder rate also means that the
death penalty
remains popular, even though no one
has been executed since 1985. The campaign to replace the British-based
Privy Council
with the
Caribbean Court of Justice
(established in 2005)
as the highest court of appeal
owes itself to the perception that more executions will be approved. While on the face
of it removing this bastion of direct colonial authority seems a positive step, the fear in
some quarters is of a lower standard of justice and an inability to uphold democratic
principles.
Though Belize's traditional links with Britain and the Commonwealth countries in
the West Indies remain strong, the
United States
is by far its largest trading partner and
supplies much of the
foreign aid
on which Belize still depends - though multilateral
organizations like the EU have also funded significant infrastructural projects. Belize
has also joined the
Free Trade Area of the Americas
(FTAA), aimed at establishing the
largest free trade area in the world. Concerns over a depression in agricultural prices
and a manufacturing base unable to compete with imports are commonplace, though
the idea that the agreement might signal an end to the
fixed rate of exchange
with the
US$ has yet to be realized. The reality is that Belize continues to be firmly linked to US
designs for the region and will face increasing challenges from global competition.
2012
2013
2013
In March 2012, UDP wins
again, and Barrow kicks
off his second term
Belize's Supreme Court declares
previous offshore oil-drilling
contracts issued by government
to be null and void
Cruising industry continues to
grow; Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL)
buys Harvest Caye to build its own
resort
