The long-awaited process of releasing detainees held under Preventive Detention Orders (PDOs) amid Trinidad’s ongoing state of emergency got underway on Tuesday, with the rollout stretching from early morning through overnight as family members waiting to reunite with their loved ones described the experience as slow and disorganized. Prison authorities set an ambitious target of releasing the vast majority of the detainees by 7 p.m. on Tuesday, but the process hit significant logistical delays, leading to continued releases scheduled for Wednesday.
Local outlet Trinidad Express reporters arrived at the entrance of the Eastern Correctional Rehabilitation Centre (ECRC), located off the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway in Santa Rosa, Arima, at approximately 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday. By that time, around 30 personal vehicles, including passenger cars and SUVs, were already lined up and parked along the side of the adjacent road, filled with friends and family waiting to pick up released detainees, many of whom had been held in custody for months. The current national state of emergency is scheduled to expire next week, prompting the large-scale release effort.
Acting Prisons Commissioner Elvin Scanterbury told the Express Tuesday that he did not have a final confirmed count of how many detainees were scheduled for release that day. He did, however, highlight the coordinated work across national security agencies to pull off the operation: “But it was a nice collaboration between all arms of National Security and I am really hoping that it would all be done by 7 [last night].” Scanterbury added that parallel release processes were also ongoing at two other facilities: the country’s Women’s Prison and the men’s correctional facility at Golden Grove. He emphasized that the operation required extensive advance preparation, including multiple late-night planning meetings, and expressed confidence in the work his team had completed. “It has been a smooth process and it took a lot of planning and I am very proud of all the work we have done and all of the meetings held late into the night to plan this out,” he said.
At the ECRC entrance, waiting relatives were instructed to remain in their vehicles at all times, waiting for a text message or radio signal to alert them when they could enter the facility grounds to collect their loved one. A large white security tent set up near the facility entrance was staffed by heavily armed police officers and masked prison personnel, who managed the flow of incoming vehicles. One woman waiting to pick up her brother explained that vehicles were only allowed to move forward one at a time through the checkpoint process. After officials call a vehicle forward, police conduct a full search of the car and take a photograph of the person designated to pick up the detainee before clearing the vehicle to pass through a security barrier and proceed to the facility entrance. Once the detainee is brought out to the vehicle, the car is immediately asked to exit the compound, with visitors discouraged from lingering at the entrance to avoid overcrowding.
Many waiting family members reported hours of uncommunicated delays that left them frustrated. One woman, who had been on site since 7 a.m., was sitting on a case of bottled water under the tent smoking a cigarette when the Express spoke to her around 2 p.m. She and several other waiting relatives said they had received almost no updated information about the timeline of the release process. “They have us here waiting but they are not telling us anything but to hold on,” she said. She also complained that people who had arrived at the site hours later than the early morning group were often processed through the checkpoint before those who had waited the longest. “But that’s how the thing does go,” another waiting woman shrugged in response.
One man waiting to pick up a relative said he and a small group of other visitors had traveled all the way from South Trinidad to reach the ECRC, while other visitors told reporters they had come from as far east as Toco. “This is very frustrating,” he told reporters.
As the afternoon wore on, however, prison officials adjusted their process and began moving from vehicle to vehicle to collect visitor names and check identification in advance, updating waiting groups on the timeline. As more information became available, the overall mood among waiting relatives began to improve. By mid-afternoon, the Express observed a steady stream of vehicles being called forward, searched, and cleared to enter the facility to pick up their released family members. After all releases on Tuesday were wrapped up, officials confirmed that the remaining detainees would be released on Wednesday as the process concludes.