Debra Baptist-Estrada is the Director of the Immigration Department in

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

. In 2016 she received the

International Women of Courage Award The International Women of Courage Award, also referred to as the U.S. Secretary of State's International Women of Courage Award, is an American award presented annually by the United States Department of State to women around the world who have ...

. In 2019 she became the Director of the Immigration Department.

Work

Estrada has an associate degree and she became Port Commander of

Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport is an airport that serves the nation of Belize's largest city, Belize City along the eastern coast of Central America. It was named after politician Philip S. W. Goldson, who died in 2001. The airp ...

which is international airport for

Belize City Belize City is the largest city in Belize and was once the capital of the former British Honduras. According to the 2010 census, Belize City has a population of 57,169 people in 16,162 households. It is at the mouth of the Haulover Creek, wh ...

. She started work in the airport's immigration department in the mid 1990s. In 2015 she discovered a

smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...

organization that was of interest to US authorities as they were smuggling

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...

and

people A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...

to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. She then worked on security at the Belize's northern border. Estrada was an immigration officer at the Santa Elena Border in Corozal. She continued to refuse

bribes Bribery is the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official, or other person, in charge of a public or legal duty. With regard to governmental operations, essentially, bribery is "Corru ...

and enforce the

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

laws. She has "consistently refused bribes and other incentives to look the other way." In 2016 she was invited to Washington, where she received the

from the

US Secretary of State The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party (Unite ...

. The award has been given since 2007 and it recognises women leaders. The award is presented every year on 8 March (

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wom ...

). After receiving the award, the 14 awardees gave talks and then met again on 1 April. In 2019 she was approved by the Cabinet in Belize as the new Director of the Immigration Department. The appointment was made despite there being better academically qualified candidates. It was noted that some of her colleagues had in the past had US visas refused whereas Estrada was recognised by the United States Embassy for her integrity. She would move from the nationality section to take over from Diana Locke. The following year immigration became a major issue when in March Belizeans returned to their country due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Baptist-Estrada assured all of those abroad that they would be welcome to return, but their health would be checked and they would be asked to self-isolate.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baptist-Estrada, Debra Living people Belizean women Recipients of the International Women of Courage Award Immigration to South America Year of birth missing (living people)