7 News Belize

Border Jumpers Pose The Major Threat
posted (June 15, 2020)
And, as Manzanero sees it, the greatest threat to Belize's management of the coronaries are those borders jumpers. They come by land in the south and the west, by river and sea in the north.

And tonight, there is also a report of six Belizeans coming by sea last week Wednesday from Honduras.

As we have reported, COVID cases 19, 20, and 21 are Belizeans returning home: one by cruise ship, one by border jumping, and, now. one by air. Manzanero says Belize will need a community effort to make sure that all border jumpers are reported to the authorities:

Dr. Marvin Manzanero - Director of Health Services
"It's going to require more than just the police and the BDF. I think this requires a community effort. Last week we also got reports, because people come directly to health to say experts who were in Guatemala and they don't want to go and report it to police, they want to report it to health. So we had sent a team on Friday to find out what's going on and we did find 3 people in Jalacte who had been in Guatemala, that were working and living there and had come here. Those people were swabbed along with 3 other family members. That is the potential second wave. That is more of a concern for several reasons that people who are coming on a flight that you are able to control and place into mandatory quarantine upon arrival. The situation in the west and in the south I think are cause for concern. Same thing up north, especially when you see the numbers going up both in Guatemala and Mexico. The numbers are escalating rather quickly. When you review the data on curves, those are just going straight up in the air."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Allow me to ask you about - we have heard that 6 Belizeans came in to Dangriga on Wednesday. They arrive in Dangriga from Honduras. They were swabbed and according to reports they were not sent into quarantine at Carl Ramos, they were sent home."

Dr. Marvin Manzanero - Director of Health Services
"I am not aware that people were picked up and allowed to go home."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"I am told by persons in immigration that supposedly Ministry of Health had no interest in them, but I don't know, there is a lot of confusion."

Dr. Marvin Manzanero - Director of Health Services
"The expectation is that once somebody is reported to having cross illegally is that the Ministry of Health has to be the one to go and pick them up. That's what we are trying to solve, because I don't have the authority as a ministry that could go and pick up anybody home. I can accompany the process, but it's not my legal to go and find out. When was the last time you cross the country - immigration would have that. That's a legal situation as a police department, not the ministry, because as soon as the 14 days are over I will hand you over to the police. If the police chooses to let you go..."

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