On last night's newscast, we brought you coverage of the latest Senate Hearing on Immigration where Godwin Hulse, the substantive Minister responsible for Immigration, testified.
As we showed you, it was a robust conversation where the Senators on the Special Select Select Committee grilled him on a great many topics related to that Department, and the findings of the Auditor General in her report.
So, we continue tonight with our coverage of that hearing, where PUP Senator Eamon Courtenay was challenging Hulse on Asian visitors. We pick up the conversation where they were discussing on the apparent misrepresentation of Asians who apply for visas to come to be Belize and say they are investors, but just end up opening stores instead. Here's that back and forth:
Eamon Courtenay - Senator for the Opposition
"Isn't it your experience looking back that even though the application stick the box, in terms of what was required, the express intent to come and look for investment is not true."
Godwin Hulse - Minister of Immigration
"Looking back, yes."
Eamon Courtenay
"You would agree with me that in fact there has been no significant investment in tourism by people from Southeast Asia. No significant investment in agriculture. No significant investment in industry."
Godwin Hulse
"No."
Eamon Courtenay
"So what we have been left with is bunch of stores."
Godwin Hulse
"Investment in the distribution of trade, yeah."
Eamon Courtenay
"We can explore that a little bit more - we have ended up with stores by and large employing their own family and relatives and not really making any substantial investment in terms of employing Belizeans."
Godwin Hulse
"Yes."
Eamon Courtenay
"Is the government looking at the effect on the Belizean economy, on the Belizean society of what I regard as fraudulent applications for visitor visas, because people are coming here saying they are coming to look for investment and all they are doing: 1) moving through the country and: 2) at most if they stay, open some store. Is there anything that the government is doing to ensure that if people say they are coming here to look at investment possibilities - that they must show what it is that you are coming to look at. You are not coming to walk around the Cayo District or walk around the cayes and say if there is anything for sale. What is this investment possibility? What are we doing as a policy response?"
Godwin Hulse
"The visa vetting committee now as I understand it take a very serious look at the request and what the person is coming for, the wherewithal etc., but as policy framework from the cabinet, I don't know and I am sure there has been no instructions to say let us focused in on that."
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