Meaning of “refugee”

(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, a person shall be a refugee for the purposes of this Act if– (a) owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, he is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; (b) not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence, he is unable or, owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is unwilling to return to it; or 6 (c) owing to external aggression, occupation, foreign domination or events seriously disturbing public order in either part or the whole of his country of origin or nationality, he is compelled to leave his place of habitual residence in order to seek refuge in another place outside his country of origin or nationality. (2) A person shall not be a refugee for the purposes of this Act if– (a) he has committed a crime against peace, a war crime or a crime against humanity, as defined in any international instrument to which Belize is a party and which has been drawn up to make provision in respect of such crimes; (b) he has committed a serious non-political crime outside Belize prior to his admission to Belize as a refugee; (c) he has been guilty of acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations Organization or the Organization of American States; or (d) having more than one nationality, he has not availed himself of the protection of one of the countries of which he is a national and has no valid reason, based on well-founded fear of persecution or on a reason referred to in sub- section (1)(c), for not having availed himself of its protection. (3) A person shall cease to be a refugee for the purposes of this Act if7 (a) he voluntarily re-avails himself of the protection of the country of his nationality; (b) having lost his nationality, he voluntarily reacquires it; (c) he becomes a citizen of Belize, or acquires the nationality of some other country and enjoys the protection of the country of his new nationality; (d) he voluntarily re-establishes himself in the country which he left, or outside which remained owing to a reason referred in sub- section (1)(c), as the case may be; or (e) he can no longer, because the circumstances in connection with which he was recognized as a refugee have ceased to exist– (i) continue to refuse to avail himself of the protection of his country of nationality; or (ii) if he has lost his nationality, continue to refuse to return to the country of his former habitual residence.