Debra Baptist Estrada

Inspired by the police uniforms worn by my uncles, the encouragement of my grandmother Hazel Chriselda Baptist nee Jones to get a Government job and the promise to bring her to live with me in Belize City after I had established myself, was realized on November 27, 1989. From along the banks of the Belize Old River, the land of the Flowers Bank fourteen (14) I stood with similar courage and conviction throughout my thirty-five (35) years to protect Belize's Border and in so doing, ensure citizen's security.

Indeed this was a journey filled with highs and lows, accomplishments and achievements, disappointments and successes but throughout the years, I held firm to my beliefs, objectives and in achieving my life's goals. My intention was to give the Government ten years of service but that transmuted into a lifetime. Recalling that at the tender age of nineteen and pregnant, I climbed three flights of stairs to the third floor of the Habet Building on Barrack Road, which was where the office of Immigration and Nationality was located at the time. From thenceforth, I knew the journey would not be an easy one.

My first appointment was an Immigration Officer lll and I was posted in Belize City to work under the supervision of Senior Immigration Officer Edwin Gillett. At the time the Department was headed by Director Mrs. Lydia Rowland, a woman I held in very high esteem and as a young officer I said one day I want to be in that position. Ms. Rowland was a woman of great integrity, she was strict but approachable. As a matter of fact, she was on the interviewing panel and one of her questions to me was quote: Are you aware that you will need to board those cargo ships in the harbour and climb the Jacob ladder? My response was if a man can do it, then so can I! She then replied that is the spirit and instinctively I knew that one of those nine positions was mine. At the time training was on the job and for the first five years, I served between Belize City, which is also a seaport and the old Belize International Airport. I was also privy to have been one of the first to have been at the opening and serve in the now Philip Goldson International Airport.

In 1994, I was transferred to the Belize Northern Border Station at Santa Elena in the Corozal District, which was located just off Subteniente Lopez Bridge. In 1996, I was approved for transfer to the Income Tax Department where I served as a Second-Class Clerk for several years.

In 2000, upon request from the then Director Paulino Castellanos, I returned to the Immigration and Nationality Department on promotion to Immigration Officer ll and again rotated between the Belize City Office and the now Philip Goldson International Airport. In 2001, I ranked in the top three in the Clerical Promotional Examinations and from January 1, 2003 to July 7, 2004, I served as the Officer-in-Charge of the Philip Goldson International Airport following the removal of the Senior Immigration Officer. I was later recognized and given a Meritorious Award by the then Director Colonel Peter Parchue. I also received an award of recognition as the FRONTLINE OFFICER OF THE YEAR from the Belize Tourism Board in 2003.

In 2005 following my return from a Leadership Training which was sponsored by the United States Government, I was slated to have been transferred to head the Punta Gorda Town Office. However, incidentally there was a theft of some two hundred of the new Machine Readable Passports that had recently come into effect, in February of 2005 which aimed at strengthening issuance and at preventing incidences of fraud. Following that theft, the then Director Carmen Zetina instructed me to take over the Passport Office in Belmopan, where I served from 2005 to 2009. During this time:
I wrote the first Passport Acceptance Guide, obtained a Vault and implemented systems to safeguard the issuance and integrity of the passport issuance process.
My staff of seven were producing passports for the entire country, including applications from Belize's Embassies and Consular Offices internationally.
On September 1, 2006 I was promoted to Immigration Officer 1.
As the Head of the Passport Office at the time, I assisted with the organization of the first passport mobile outreach to the Belizean diaspora in Bolivia.
One other major highlight of my time as Officer-in Charge of the Passport Office was the interdiction of a Vietnamese Refugee/USA Fugitive, who had embezzled millions from the company where he was employed. He was later arrested, charged and escorted by US Marshalls back to the United States following his attempt at obtaining a Belize Passport, with the intention of changing his identity with the help of personnel from the Vital Statistics Office. This led to the dismissal of three employees, including a senior public officer from said office.

In July of 2009, I was transferred to Belize Western Border Station which is the border with Guatemala, a place I never desired to serve for obvious reasons. Nonetheless, owing to my pledge to service I reported to the Belize Western Border without having made proper arrangements for a place of abode, leaving behind my three girls and husband. It was Ambassador Annie Lou Burns' mother (God Bless her soul) who provided a room for me for the first couple weeks until I located a rental. Later that year I was selected to do a Course in Border Management at the Specialist Academy for Law Enforcement Officers in Trinidad and of the two officers selected, I was the only Belizean to have completed the course at that time.

On March 8, 2011 I was promoted to Senior Immigration Officer and transferred back to the Philip Goldson International Airport where I served as the Port Commander from 2011 to 2015. Again I saw the need for a Standard Operating Procedure which operationalized and guided proper processes, procedures and standards for the airport. During this period, there were many additional highlights:
The initiating of consultations to implement the Advance Passenger System (APIS) to which the Legislation was passed in 2017.
I represented the Director on the Belize National Civil Aviation Security Committee.
Worked along with the International Organization on Migration (IOM) in the implementation and launch of PIRS on July 12, 2013 now MIDAS, which is the first Belize first electronic Border Management System.
Reinstatement of the Departure Controls at PGIA.
Training of Immigration and Customs Staff on Fraudulent Documents which was sponsored and delivered by representatives of both Governments of Canada and the United States.
Worked alongside the Belize Airport Concession Company (BACC) to design Immigration booths and signage.
Sought assistance from the Belize Airport Concession Company (BACC) with donations of office equipment.
Continuous collaboration with BTB, Airlines, Special Branch, Customs and other key stakeholders.
I received an OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE AWARD on May 14, 2015 from the Belize Airport Concession Company (BACC).
Responsible for maintaining and updating TIMATIC on border controls, travel restrictions and new waivers for travelers coming to Belize.
Maintain strict border controls to interdict which deter undesirables, such as transnational criminals involved in human smuggling, drug and human trafficking.
One highlight was the entry of a passenger who arrived in Belize with an altered Ghanaian passport and USA Visa, which led to the disruption of an ORGANIZED SMUGGLING RING across the continents of Africa, Europe and North America. This was done in collaboration with the Regional Security Officer from the United States Embassy in Belize. This was one element that led to me obtaining the "PRESTIGIOUS WOMEN OF COURAGE AWARD on March 29, 2016 awarded to me by the Secretary of State John Kerry of the United States Department of State.
On July 1, 2015 I was transferred to the Belize Northern Border Station, where I spent one month observing and documenting major breaches in the border security apparatus in that jurisdiction. People were traversing that border undocumented, with little or no controls. Therefore, I embarked on a mission to restore some law and order there given the fact that the northern border was an international crossing with access to Mexico, United States and Canada. Seeing that Belize is seen as a transit point for human smugglers and traffickers and the like, this situation required urgent attention. It was with the collaboration and the unwavering support from the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economic Development (and CABEI), the Ministry of Works and the Border Management Agency, that we were able to transform that border to what it is today. That is to say that you can now drive right up the booth without having to alight the vehicle and have your documents checked. In addition:
There was the enforcement of the Immigration Action Chapter 156 of the Laws of Belize, Sections 24 and 33 refers. The sections mentioned speak to the duties and responsibilities of persons entering and leaving Belize. These sections of the law were challenged in the Supreme Court by a Belizean national who claimed that his constitutional right was being infringed upon. He was of the opinion that he need not comply if he was going to the Casino and/or the Free Zone. The duly Constitutional Court ruled in favour of the Government of Belize (Immigration) owing to the fact that this is where the border control point is located.
I represented the Director on the GANSEF.
Participated in a passport outreach for the Belizean diaspora in Dubai in 2016.
Drafted and implemented the Standard Operating Procedure for ALL border agencies at the northern border.
Training of Immigration and Customs Staff on Fraudulent Documents sponsored by both Governments of Canada and the United States.
Worked alongside the Border Management Agency to furnish and rehabilitate external booths and canopy formerly used by Customs and construction of external restroom facilities for staff at the drive thru canopies.
Establishment of a passenger control system at the Cargo Compound at the Belize Northern Border.
Continuous collaboration with BTB, Special Branch, Customs, Corozal Free Zone Management Agency and other key stakeholders.
Revising of Legislation for the implementation of a colour coded Digital Border Crossing Card for Temporary Employment Permit Holders who work within the CFZ and EPZ, Guatemalan Students, Belizean and Mexican nationals. This model was to be implemented at the BWBS for documentation of persons who traverse that border control.
Maintain strict border controls to interdict and deter undesirables, transnationals criminal activity such as human smuggling, drug and human trafficking.
On October 13, 2016 there was a soft launch of the new border control which was designed to facilitate travel and implement full border control at the northern border.
On June 1, 2017, I was appointed to act in the Post of Assistant Director and later received a letter dated July 16, 2018 where I received a promotion to the post of Assistant Director with said effective date being June 1, 2017. I was later transferred to Belmopan effective August 1, 2017 to take up that post. Immediately thereafter, I started to work on Standard Operating Procedures for the entire Department of Immigration and Nationality and Training Modules for the entry level officers, Clerical, Clerical Promotional classes as well as Supervisory Staff ,which were approved by the Ministry of the Public Service.

On May 16, 2018, the Department of Immigration and Nationality saw a bifurcation into the Department of Border Management and Immigration Services and Nationality and Passports. I was posted temporarily with the Nationality and Passports Department where I was assigned to deal specifically with Passports and in assisting with the structure of that new department which included:
Creation of a Budget for staff.
Looking at the Job Description for all staff and meetings with the Job Classification Unit of the Ministry of the Public Service.
Cross training of staff, particularly new hires.
Drafting of Standard Operating Procedures
Drafting of workflows for Nationality, Permanent Residence, Renunciation of Belizean Citizenship and the Records Management Unit. This was in an effort to ensure the timely processing of applications and deal with the backlog of all related applications.
Procedures for the reporting of Lost and Stolen Passports to Interpol.
Drafting of Procedures for the Procurement, Transportation and Safeguarding of Blank Belizean Passports, which is very essential for ICAO assessment on Belize's compliance.
Revision of application and oversee the printing of cards for persons under the Qualified Retirement Program (QRP) managed by the BTB, as well as the Digital Border Crossing Cards.
Partake in Swearing in Ceremonies for new Belizeans citizens.
On October 24, 2019 I was appointed to act as Director and was officially approved for the post of Director on February 7, 2020. A post I held for the past five years and seven months. One that is another first, being the first female Immigration Officer to move up the ranks from an entry level Officer to that of the post of Director. Let it go down in history, that I am the last of a nine member squad intake of 1989, despite the challenges faced along this journey. It was a journey indeed, it was never easy but I stood steadfast and resolute in my convictions and faced the many adversities in service to the Belizean people:
Within the first five months of my accepting the post, the world was hit with a Global Pandemic, the dreaded SARS COV2. By March 23, 2020 the borders were slammed shut and a further state of emergency declared that closed the borders even to Belizeans. I have worked through the likes of the H1N1 and Ebola whilst working at PGIA but none was of this magnitude.
Created the Department Strategic Plan for the period 2020-2025.
We faced salary reduction, increment freeze and office closure but the Department of Immigration particularly at the major ports had to remain on duty.
Standard Operating Procedures were drafted almost daily to guide and inform staff at major ports being PGIA, BNBS and BWBS of new or lifted Covid restrictions and measures to be taken.
Staff were transferred to their home station or as close as possible as a cost saving measure for their families.
Travel restrictions were implemented and with the gradual reopening at PGIA, having had many mock exercises representatives from Health, Foreign Affairs, Immigration, the AG's Ministry were tasked to approve or otherwise, every single application for persons who had requested travel permission. Gradual lifting of travel restrictions at land borders were approved for medical travel, trade and agricultural workers because the economy was taking a hit.
Following the General Elections of November 11, 2020 and the change of administration, I became the sole approver which saw me working from 2am daily until about 10pm in the night.
On February 7, 2022 the Minister of Health announced that all travel restrictions were lifted and people began to move across borders. This included migrant caravans, therefore we had to shift focus on the smuggling and trafficking of migrants.
Obtained Cabinet approval to reinstate visa restriction on countries such as Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Venezuela and Haiti whose nationals were using Belize as a transit country to make their way to the US/Mexico border.
Participation in Cuba/Belize Migration Talks.
Participation in many bilateral collaboration and cooperation with the US Embassy in combating transnational criminal activity.
We then started to convene meetings of various committees such ATIPS Council, National Anti Money Laundering, National Security, Visa Vetting, Temporary Employment and other Organizations such as OCAM and the Regional Conference on Migration.
Long Stay Program and implementation of a Migrant Program to relieve migrants who were in arrears as a result of the Pandemic.
Signed a Memorandum of Understanding with INL and deployed approved staff to the Grupo Conjunto de Inteligencia Fronteriza (GCIF) in El Salvador.
Work on an Ethical Recruitment Program for Migrant Workers approved by Cabinet and is yet to be rolled out.
Drafted a Project Proposal to INL of the USA Embassy for the temporary upgrade and/or replacement of MIDAS, this is still ongoing.
Consultation with Ms. Marlen Pineiro, Department of Homeland Security Attache for Central America stationed in Panama and her team to implement the BDSP recently signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The personal attack started from some staff and other players to the extent that I had to call in staff from other stations to fill in at PGIA, after what was seen as an alleged sick out which would have disrupted international flights.
Belize Immigration hosted the Pro Tempore Presidency of the Organization of Migration Directorates (OCAM) simultaneously with the SICA Presidency from January 2023 - July 2023 and the Pro Tempore Presidency of the Regional Conference on Migration (RCM) from January 2024 to December, 2024.
I have participated in the meeting of Heads of Border Security of CARICOM and the Caricom Single Market and Economy. Four countries have now moved to Full Free Movement and finalization of procedures and legislative review are still ongoing for its implementation on October 1, 2025.
I have worked along with the Legal Drafter hired by IOM on the amendment of Immigration Act and have submitted the Draft Legislation on Smuggling for review, this is still ongoing.
Represented Belize at various Migration Forums regionally and internationally.
Other accomplishments in no specific order:
Certificate in Diplomatic Security
Attended the International Law Enforcement Academy in New Mexico, USA (Certificate)
Migration Course (Certificate from Galen University)
Human Resource (Certificate UWI)
International Visitor Leadership Program (Certificate)

As a career public officer, I want to thank both Governments and the people of Belize for the opportunity to have served this country for thirty six long years come November 27, 2025. To my family who sacrificed so much, to my children who at times did not see their mother for an entire week and who never complained of those tasty dishes dad made. To my husband " my rock" whose love, patience and tolerance remains unmatched. My mother and siblings who sacrificed so much and supported me through the years and stomach some of my harshest criticisms. To those Heads of Department, Leaders of Government and Foreign Government representatives who believed in me, saw potential and gave me the opportunity, I am truly grateful and humbled by their generosity. And most importantly to my staff, to those who supported and stood by my side to the end and enforce the laws, policies and procedure in safeguarding Belize's national security; may God Continue to guide your path and give you the endurance to overcome all adversities and indiscriminate treatment.