Introduction
Belize, a country located in Central America, bordering Mexico and Guatemala along the Caribbean Sea. The nation has a population of roughly 400000 people as per the 2020 estimations. It boasts of third-ranking in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Central American countries (Verutes et al., 2017). Although Belize enjoys peace with many tourists and foreign immigrants residing in the country, there have been emerging threats to its stability in recent years. Climate change, organized crime, and economic instability are significant concerns to the country’s citizens, bordering states, and diplomatic partners.
In the backdrop of these insidious threats to Belize stability, the Regional Threat Assessment Committee was formed to find possible solutions that could last for a decade (Bolland, 2019). The U.S being Belize’s most trading partner, both countries enjoy close, cordial ties. As such, regional stability for sustainable development in both Northern and Central America remains U.S foreign affairs’ fundamental interest. Therefore, the U.S states would prefer to get deeply involved in finding solutions to the instability threats in Belize. This paper aims to examine the threats that affect the country’s stability and identify the two United States policies that can help maintain its stability.
Climate Change
Climate change concerns, such as global warming, natural calamities, and a low waste management system significantly affect Belize’s natural resources. The steadily rising sea level and continuous flooding affect arable land, thus reducing agricultural practices leading to food shortages. Natural calamities, such as hurricanes of recent years hit the country, leaving behind the destruction of properties and loss of lives (Verutes et al., 2017). The destruction of critical archeological sites by hurricanes has reduced the number of tourist sites in Belize. The low waste management policy in Belize leading to dumping of raw sewerage, toxic agricultural chemicals, industrial effluents, and disposing of the solid waste directly into the sea leads to the death of aquatic life’s (Voight et al., 2019). The primary source of Belize’s revenue remains to be coral reefs along its coastal boundaries, and the destruction of coral reefs could have devastating effects on the country’s economy. Belize exports most of the crude oil to the U.S and reduces mining fields out of flooding and hurricanes affecting both U.S and Belize.
The eastern part of the U.S experiences the same climate and natural disasters as Belize. The hurricanes that hit the Southeastern part of the U.S are direct from Belize. The rising water bodies due to global warming, and water pollution contaminates the primary source of South-eastern American state’s domestic and irrigation water (Haines, 2019). Climate change in entire Central America has a direct impact on the U.S due to proximity. The U.S, therefore, needs a robust regional climate change policy to mitigate the climate crisis that rages across America as a continent.
However, if not mitigated in due time, climate change would lead to devastating effects in Belize and the U.S. The Belize foreign revenue on tourism, crude oil exportation would sharply decline, and agricultural products reduce, leading to economic and food instability (Haines, 2019). The increasing global warming and poor disposal of waste in Belize are most likely to persist soon. The U.S, therefore, as a world-leading economic power and enjoy close ties with Belize, should enforce a stringent and achievable environmental policy to be enacted by all American countries. Shifting to green energy and improvised farm techniques would reduce global warming and ensure Belize’s food security in the next ten years.
Organized Crimes
Organized crime in Belize is also a threat to regional stability since it has been the hotbed of drug trafficking, human trafficking, and smuggling. The country’s weak law enforcement capacity and sharing a border with Mexico are the contributing factors. The heroin epidemic and use of narco submarines to transit drugs undetected have continued to affect Belize’s youthful population in recent years. The Mexican drug cartels consider the rising population of foreign immigrants and youthful Belize as a ready market to infest illicit drugs (Ahmed, 2017). The low surveillance system in Belize entry points by air and water has catalyzed illegal drug and human trafficking in the country.
The criminal activities have been proved to link some of powerful Belize’s ruling and business class. These ruling and influencing elites connect with Mexican drug cartels to profit from criminal activities (Ahmed, 2017). Most Belize tourists and foreign immigrants are Americans, and therefore the two countries share the ban of the illicit drug trade. Despite being a member of anti-narcotic international organizations and rolling out military action on illegal drugs and human trafficking, Belize still experiences such criminal activities’ severe effects.
The U.S has been aggressively fighting human traffickings, such as slaves and the illicit drug trade since the 17th century and 1970s, respectively hence it has made progressive achievements in curbing this menace. In the same breath, the U.S should be concerned with the growing illicit drug and human trafficking. The youthful and growing number of foreign immigrants in Belize is likely to escalate, and with the weak anti-criminal laws and complicit leadership, the situation would be worse in a decade (Ahmed, 2017). Both Belize and the U.S should apply a concerted effort as close partner nations to stop criminal activities in the entire Region.
Economic Instability
Economic instability is a challenge to regional stability as the growing deficit in trade, unattainable foreign debt, increasing elderly population, reducing fertility rate, and income disparity have significantly influenced the Belize economy. The country was ranked third in per capita income in Central America but has not reflected in Belize citizens’ ordinary lives (Longmore et al., 2019). The government still focuses on poverty governance policy instead of enjoying vast natural resources that could raise enough revenue to sustain and develop its low population from low to middle income. U.S states being one of the highest donors and lenders of Belize, would suffer financial loss in case of default. The increasing low earners in Belize means the U.S could continue to offer financial aid to Belize, thus diverting resources that would be used for other development projects to support Belize’s economy.
The colossal debt distress, increasing income disparity, and increasing side effects of the large elderly population would derail the Belize economy if not solved within five years. The need for adequately managed welfare services such as a pension, healthcare insurance, and social benefits for the aging population would mean getting more foreign debts to maintain these services (Bolland, 2019). Sustaining already unattainable debt would lead to the Belize debt trap; thus, no tangible development projects would be carried out by the county. Hence, retardant economic growth within the next decade.
U.S. Diplomacy on Dealing with the Threat
The growing concerns on illicit drugs and human trafficking have been U.S concerns for a long time. Therefore, as a world-leading democratic nation, America invests more approximately half its budget in foreign policy and security. Enacting military action in Belize and the entire Central America water territorial would mitigate human and drug trafficking. Such can be achieved through collaboration with the U.S Navy, the CIA, FBI, and DEA could destroy the drug cartels that have raged America as a continent for a long time (Bolland, 2019). The use of U.S naval ships and submarines could help detect and arrest narco-submarines used by drug cartels to transport narcotics to Belize (Warnecke-Berger, 2019). Setting up satellite anti-narcotic law enforcement stations around the Caribbean Sea would make it easier to trace and identify the complex narcotic web.
Moreover, joint military training and intense Intelligence gathering and sharing between U.S and Belize would increase surveillance on drug and human trafficking in Belize and around the Caribbean Sea. U.S surveillance technology adoption by Belize and placing them in major entry points and crime-infested districts would help monitor and arrest drug peddlers and barons (Carneiro, 2016). The U.S should also embark on an anti-narcotics campaign to educate Belize citizens, especially youths, on the illicit drug effect to discourage drug abuse. Organized crimes, especially on drugs and human trafficking, should be a U.S foreign priority in the Region, and deployment of the military could be the last option in maintaining regional stability.
The deployment of soft power, such as diplomacy and economic tools, could also curb Belize’s criminal activities. Enforcing economic sanctions on the drug cartel network both in Belize and Mexico would discourage drug trafficking (Akers et al., 2016). The seizing of property and freezing of the drug lord’s bank accounts are ways of deploying soft power to mitigate illicit drugs. Deportation and banning of those found to be guilty of criminal narcotic and human traffic from accessing the U.S. All these in collaboration with the Belize government could positively result in the war against drugs and human trafficking. America spends more resources on rehabilitation centers, anti-narcotics law enforcement, and suffers the most significant loss of lives due to drug abuse (Warnecke-Berger, 2019). Therefore, it should reassert itself as an anti-narcotic nation that uses all available resources to stop the vice.
Recommendations
The first recommendation on dealing with the various issues affecting the region is that the U.S should treat narcotics as any other war and direct necessary resources to fight and win. The deployment of U.S naval ships and complex surveillance systems across the Caribbean Sea would positively impact the fight against narcotics. Belize, as an attractive nation, would be a hideout for drug cartels and could turn into a drug lord’s Empire worse than Mexico if not stopped (Bolland, 2019). The use of soft powers could work, but Mexico and Colombia’s lessons are enough to avoid that uncertain path and apply force to dismantle the drug barons if necessary.
Secondly, entrench the anti-criminal policy that could be enacted by Most American states. A punitive but achievable law should be formulated to bind both North and South American countries to solve drug solutions. The legislation should allow law enforcement officers to arrest and deport fugitive illicit drug suspects for judicial questioning. The U.S has the best anti-narcotic agencies in the world, and therefore, it should be deployed with the permission of member nations to solve criminal activities (Bolland, 2019). Lastly, partnership programs between Belize and the U.S would ensure robust policy adapted to mitigate the threats. Central America’s sustainable development hangs on the Region’s stability.
In conclusion, the concerns that influence Belize’s stability should be further investigated to establish appropriate strategies that will help prevent future challenges. Organized crimes, climate change, and economic instability are concerns that have significant impacts on development and should be further researched to control their impacts on the region and the globe. Therefore, both the US and Belize governments should join forces to deal with the vices effectively.
References
Ahmed, N. (2017). Transnational Organized Crimes (TOCS)-Causes, Effects and Challenges: The Perspective of Latin America. Asia Pacific Journal of Advanced Business and Social Studies, 3(1), 357-366.
Akers, P. D., Brook, G. A., Railsback, L. B., Liang, F., Iannone, G., Webster, J. W., Reeder, P. P., Cheng, H., & Edwards, R. L. (2016). An extended and higher-resolution record of climate and land use from stalagmite MC01 from Macal Chasm, Belize, revealing connections between major dry events, overall climate variability, and Maya sociopolitical changes. Paleogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 459, 268–288.
Bolland, O. N. (2019). Belize: A new nation in Central America. Routledge.
Carneiro, F. (2016). Belize, right choices bright future: Systematic country diagnostic. World Bank.
Haines, S. (2019). Managing expectations: Articulating expertise in climate services for agriculture in Belize. Climatic Change, 157(1), 43–59.
Longmore, R., Antonio, M., Oliveira, L. E., & McLeod, R. (2019). Growth volatility in Belize. World Bank.
Peirce, J. (2017). Gap analysis report: Citizen Security in Belize. Interamerican Development Bank.
Verutes, G. M., Arkema, K. K., Clarke-Samuels, C., Wood, S. A., Rosenthal, A., Rosado, S., Canto, M., Bood, N., & Ruckelshaus, M. (2017). Integrated planning that safeguards ecosystems and balances multiple objectives in coastal Belize. International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Services & Management, 13(3), 1–17. Web.
Voight, C., Hernandez-Aguilar, K., Garcia, C., & Gutierrez, S. (2019). Predictive modeling of future forest cover change patterns in southern Belize. Remote Sensing, 11(7), 823.
Warnecke-Berger, H. (2019). Belize: Transnationalization by coincidence and the rise of violence. In Politics and violence in Central America and the Caribbean (pp. 197–232). Springer.