标签： Trinidad and Tobago

In a virtual Zoom press conference held this week, Dr. Linda Sobeh Ali, Palestinian Ambassador to the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and Trinidad and Tobago, has opened up about her dual perspective on shifting diplomatic dynamics in the Caribbean: growing alarm over Israel’s deepening engagement with Trinidad and Tobago, paired with unshakable confidence that the local government will uphold its longstanding support for Palestinian statehood.

Sobeh Ali’s comments came in direct response to press questions about recent high-level interactions between Israeli officials and Trinidad and Tobago’s government, including a formal courtesy call on Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Sean Sobers by Israeli representatives last month. When pressed on whether Palestine views the warming of ties between the two countries as a threat, the ambassador did not mince words, describing the situation in stark terms: “We are concerned, and I have the faith that the Trinidad and Tobago government knows and understands that it’s not a conflict, it’s an ongoing occupation, it’s ongoing genocide, it’s ongoing humiliation, it’s ongoing land grab, it’s ongoing annexation, it’s ongoing illegal settlement, it’s ongoing burning people alive.”

The ambassador emphasized that Palestine fully respects Trinidad and Tobago’s sovereign right to shape its own independent foreign policy, regardless of regional diplomatic shifts. That commitment to respect, however, has not stopped Palestinian authorities from closely tracking Israel’s deliberate push to expand its diplomatic footprint across the Caribbean region.

Sobeh Ali noted that Palestine has already built strong working relations with Trinidad and Tobago’s current administration. She made history as the first fully accredited Palestinian ambassador to present her credentials under the current government, after the previous Trinidad and Tobago administration formally recognized the State of Palestine in 2024. To date, she has held official meetings with President Christine Kangaloo, Minister Sobers, and multiple other cabinet ministers, and has continued active outreach to regional leaders during recent Caricom summits held in St. Lucia.

Even with these established diplomatic channels, Sobeh Ali confirmed that growing Israeli influence in the Caribbean remains a major source of concern. “Are we alarmed to see Israel in the Caribbean? Yes, we are,” she stated. She shared a personal anecdote to illustrate the discomfort the trend brings: a recent encounter with Hebrew-language signs marking “private property” immediately brought back traumatic memories of similar signs being posted on seized Palestinian land and homes back in her homeland.

In response to these latest diplomatic developments, the ambassador announced plans to travel to Trinidad and Tobago in the near future to hold in-person, face-to-face talks with top government officials. She reiterated that Palestine trusts the Trinidad and Tobago government will continue to uphold its commitments to international law, and does not expect the administration to take controversial steps such as opening an Israeli embassy in Jerusalem — a city Palestine universally recognizes as occupied territory.

Sobeh Ali used the platform of the press conference to renew global calls for expanded support for the Palestinian people, urging Caribbean governments across the region to keep pushing for unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza, enhanced protections for civilian populations, and a lasting negotiated two-state solution to the decades-long conflict. In a direct, emotional appeal, she called on Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to continue championing the Palestinian cause, framing the request as a shared appeal across identities: “Madam Prime Minister, with all due respect, I come to you and I ask you as a mother, as a woman to woman, as a diplomat to diplomat, as a human to human, to continue to advocate for the liberation of Palestine, for the creation of two-state solution and for a just cause of international law for all the Palestinians.”

Former top Trinidad and Tobago law enforcement official Gary Griffith has publicly thrown his support behind a controversial new government policy that would mandate all individuals aged 16 and older to carry official state-issued identification when in public spaces. In an interview with local outlet the Express, Griffith argued that the regulatory change would strengthen police capabilities without creating unreasonable disruptions to everyday civilian life, even as he acknowledged the intense public backlash the plan has already drawn.

Griffith recognized that many critics have framed the proposed mandate as an overreach of state power, with opponents warning it could lay the groundwork for authoritarian policing practices and the expansion of a police state. But he pushed back against these claims, noting that comparable mandatory ID laws are already in place across a wide range of sovereign nations, where they have become a standard, accepted tool for practical, effective policing.

Contrary to widespread fears that the policy would lead to a surge in unnecessary arrests of ordinary citizens, Griffith emphasized that the core purpose of the rule is not to target innocent members of the public, but to provide law enforcement officers with a consistent, reliable mechanism to confirm people’s identities during routine and critical operations. This includes during criminal investigations, fixed roadblocks, and other emergency or law enforcement scenarios.

He outlined several key practical benefits that the mandate would deliver. With mandatory ID checks, officers can efficiently confirm the identities of potential witnesses to crimes, follow up on leads by locating persons of interest, and cross-reference individual details against active law enforcement databases to check for outstanding warrants or wanted status. The policy would also create a formal process to verify whether individuals are residing in Trinidad and Tobago with legal immigration status.

“Right now, police can check centralized databases to confirm definitively if a person is wanted by the law or has active warrants pending against them. That’s why this direction carries so much value for public safety,” Griffith explained.

Illegal immigration, a longstanding policy challenge for the Caribbean nation, is another key reason Griffith cites to support the proposal. Drawing on his own experience serving as the country’s national security minister, he shared that official data from his tenure showed more than 110,000 individuals who entered the country through legal ports of entry never officially departed, putting them in undocumented immigration status. Griffith added that this figure does not include the unknown number of people who entered the country through unregulated, illegal border crossings, meaning the full scope of the undocumented population remains unclear today.

“If that large undocumented population remains unaddressed, this mandatory ID policy gives law enforcement a clear way to distinguish between people who are in the country legally and those who are not, ensuring officers have a verifiable, factual way to confirm who they are interacting with, rather than relying on self-reported information,” he said.

Griffith also moved to directly address one of the most common public concerns surrounding the policy: the fear that ordinary civilians will be detained or arrested simply for forgetting to carry their identification on their person. He noted that based on current public details of the proposal, the policy does not include an automatic arrest or overnight detention for individuals without ID on hand.

Recognizing that forgetting ID at home is a common, innocent mistake, Griffith said individuals in that situation should be permitted to leave the scene and return at a later date to produce the required identification for verification. He also urged the public to avoid premature criticism of the plan, noting that the national Cabinet almost certainly conducted rigorous research and impact assessments before advancing the proposal.

“Before people rush to jump to conclusions about this policy, it’s important to recognize that the Cabinet has almost certainly completed detailed research to assess whether this measure will deliver real value to help law enforcement agencies carry out their public safety duties more effectively,” Griffith said.

Trinidad and Tobago’s government is moving forward with a plan to bring back court-ordered hard labour for convicted offenders, deploying incarcerated people to public space maintenance and clean-up initiatives across the country, Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander announced last week.

Alexander shared the details during a press interaction at a meeting for the National Programme for the Upkeep of Public Spaces, held at the St John’s Community Centre in Tunapuna. Standing alongside active participants in the national public upkeep programme, he confirmed that the policy would eventually place sentenced inmates into similar community-focused projects as a core component of their court-mandated sentences.

“We are going to reintroduce (a programme) where persons who have been charged, convicted by a court, and sentenced to hard labour, we are going to reintroduce those persons to come back out into the streets and help with the clean-up process,” Alexander told reporters. He argued that the current implementation of hard labour sentences within the national prison system fails to live up to the core intent of the sentencing.

He pointed out that today, offenders sentenced to hard labour often spend most of their time confined to cells, with access to personal devices and internet connectivity – conditions that do not align with the purpose of a tough, rehabilitative work sentence. “If you are convicted, 12 months or two years’ hard labour, whatever…what does hard labour in the jail do? A man just sitting in a cell. A man is smoking, on his phone, on the Internet and all these things. That is not hard labour. That is not hard work,” he said.

Beyond correcting how sentences are carried out, Alexander framed the new policy as a tool for early inmate rehabilitation and reintegration. Offenders who demonstrate strong work ethic can start rebuilding public trust before their release, he explained, allowing community members to see their commitment to change. “If someone is smart on the inside, he can use this process to start to reintegrate himself into the public. Let the public see (him and say), ‘listen, that fella is hard-working,’” he added.

The minister also noted that the policy model has already been tested and proven successful in other jurisdictions, and that the national prison system represents one of the country’s largest underutilized labor pools that the government is prepared to tap for public benefit. “We have one of the biggest labour forces at the nation’s prisons, and we are ready to utilise them,” he said.

While the Prison Officers’ Association of Trinidad and Tobago (POATT) has called the proposal a positive step in principle, association head Gerard Gordon emphasized that a number of critical safety and operational concerns must be addressed before the programme can be expanded to public projects outside prison walls.

Gordon noted that meaningful work has long been accepted as a core element of effective offender rehabilitation, helping incarcerated people build job skills, develop personal discipline, and prepare for a successful return to society after release. “The Minister of Homeland Security’s proposal to expand inmate participation in public maintenance is, in principle, a laudable one,” Gordon said. “Meaningful work has long been recognised as an important component of rehabilitation, helping incarcerated individuals develop skills, instil discipline, and prepare for successful reintegration into society.”

Currently, the Prison Service already runs a range of work programmes for eligible inmates, who must meet strict screening and qualification requirements before being assigned to duties. Before any inmate can be approved for work placement, they must undergo a full medical evaluation to confirm fitness, complete an initial portion of their sentence, and pass a comprehensive risk assessment that evaluates escape risk, gang affiliations, criminal connections, past behavioural records, and overall public threat level.

Approved inmates currently work in on-site prison roles including food service, facility construction and maintenance, vehicle repair at the prison garage, garment production at the in-house tailor shop, agricultural crop production, and care for the prison service’s livestock. “These programmes already provide valuable vocational training while supporting the daily operations of our correctional facilities,” Gordon explained.

Gordon stressed that supervising inmate work crews outside of secured correctional facilities requires a specialized force of trained correctional officers, with the specific skills, experience and resources needed to maintain security, manage inmate behaviour, and respond rapidly to any potential emergency. Public safety, he added, must be the non-negotiable top priority, and cannot be compromised for program expansion.

Reaffirming the Prison Service’s long-standing commitment to rehabilitation and constructive engagement for incarcerated people, Gordon noted that any expansion of inmate work programmes must be rooted in rigorous risk assessment and evidence-based correctional practices. “Every decision regarding inmate employment, whether inside or outside correctional facilities, must be guided first and foremost by comprehensive risk assessment, sound correctional practice, and the overriding responsibility to protect the public,” he said.

A bold social media appeal from Diego Martin’s top local official has ignited a fiery public exchange over long-deferred road repairs, pushing long-simmering infrastructure grievances into the national spotlight. On Wednesday, Akeliah Glasgow-Warner, mayor of the Diego Martin Borough, took to Facebook to share a viral video pleading for urgent intervention from Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Works Jearlean John, opening her clip with a playful nod to the leopard-print skirt she wore specifically to cut through social media noise and draw attention to the crisis plaguing local motorists.

Walking alongside cracked, pothole-ridden streets and pointing out dangerous damage to road surfaces, Glasgow-Warner pushed back against widespread public blame that had fallen on the Diego Martin Borough Corporation (DMBC) for the unresolved issues. She clarified that major highway and arterial road infrastructure, including stretches of the Diego Martin Highway at the center of complaints, falls under the jurisdiction of the national Ministry of Works, not the local borough government. Compounding the challenge, she explained, drastic cuts to local government funding have left the DMBC without the resources to step in even if leaders wanted to address the gaps: each of the borough’s councillors receives just TT$50,000 annually for all district maintenance projects, an amount Glasgow-Warner called insufficient to cover even minor repairs, let alone the years of systemic neglect she says the national ministry has allowed.

“This is not about political points for me. This is about the drivers, the residents who navigate these roads every single day,” Glasgow-Warner emphasized in her video, closing with a direct appeal to John to end the neglect of the Diego Martin area and deploy ministry crews to complete the required repairs.

The minister’s office fired back quickly, rejecting Glasgow-Warner’s accusations as unfounded and shifting blame to the previous national administration, which was led by former Prime Minister Keith Rowley, who also served as the Member of Parliament for Diego Martin for nearly a decade. In a formal statement released through the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure’s (MOWI) communications team, John called the mayor’s claims baseless, noting that the crumbling road surfaces and persistent underground leaks damaging the Diego Martin and St Lucien Roads stem from decades of neglected aging infrastructure that predates her leadership of the ministry.

John countered that unlike the previous administration, which she claims left the area’s basic infrastructure to rot, her current government has prioritized resolving long-backlogged repair projects. She said MOWI has been working in continuous coordination with the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) to map and address leak-related road damage across the country, and confirmed that targeted repair work on Diego Martin’s damaged roads was scheduled to get underway on Thursday, just one day after the mayor’s viral video was posted. “This neglect did not start under my watch, but unlike those who sat back and did nothing for years, this Government is not just talking…we are working!” John’s statement read.

The exchange comes as local governments across Trinidad and Tobago grapple with strained budgets, leaving many unable to address infrastructure projects that technically fall under national jurisdiction, while national agencies often point to limited resources and years of backlog to explain delayed repairs. The viral video has resonated with motorists across the country, many of whom have shared their own stories of dangerous pothole-ridden roads in their own communities.

As the country’s existing state of emergency approaches its scheduled September 17 end, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago has announced a major new expansion of the government’s national anti-crime campaign: the rollout of 30 joint army-police posts across high-traffic intersections, major highways and key community hubs over the next four months.

This new security initiative marks the administration’s next step in crime mitigation, coming after two successive states of emergency implemented since the United National Congress (UNC) government assumed office in May 2025. In an official statement shared to her Facebook platform, the Prime Minister framed the joint posts as a core addition to the government’s updated national security strategy, designed to boost the visible presence of law enforcement and reclaim public spaces that have fallen under the control of criminal groups.

Persad-Bissessar emphasized that the new deployment directly answers years of repeated calls from local residents for increased security coverage across their neighborhoods. The initiative, she noted, embodies the current government’s pledge to tackle rising crime through deeper integrated collaboration between the nation’s different protective service branches.

“I am pleased to inform citizens that in the upcoming four months 30 joint army-police posts will be placed in communities across the country. Many communities have for years requested increased security presence and the protective services and Government is moving aggressively to provide such,” the Prime Minister stated. She added that the permanent posts will not only deter criminal activity but also restore a sense of safety for residents, enabling communities to once again make full use of public areas that have been abandoned due to persistent violence and criminal activity.

Twenty-four locations for the first phase of the program have already been finalized, with an additional six sites set to be confirmed in the coming weeks. To ensure the initiative delivers long-term results, Persad-Bissessar has issued a public call for civil society organizations and private sector groups to partner with law enforcement. “I encourage NGOs, business chambers, community groups and councils to adopt and support these posts and work with the security services,” she said.

The Prime Minister also used the announcement to reaffirm the government’s full confidence in the nation’s top security leadership. She extended formal gratitude to Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro, SSA Director Alicia Henry, Chief of Defence Staff Commodore Don Polo, Prison Superintendent Elvin Scanterbury, and all rank-and-file officers for their ongoing work to curb criminal activity across the country. “On behalf of all law-abiding citizens I again express sincere gratitude to … all their colleagues and reaffirm our confidence in them, and their shared vision of ending the grip of crime on our nation,” she said.

Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander expanded on the details of the initiative in an interview with the Express, confirming that the program will be delivered via a coordinated partnership between his ministry, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) and the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force. Alexander described the joint posts as a key component of the government’s holistic, cross-agency approach to dismantling criminal networks in high-risk areas.

Unlike intermittent mobile patrols, Alexander explained that uniformed officers will staff permanent, fixed posts at these strategic locations to enable continuous monitoring of key zones. “This is part of our anti-crime initiatives which is holistic. We have put together this particular action to tackle crime and criminality in particular areas. One of the things we try to do is monitor; and I said this when I was a police officer—we control the streets—we are going to control the state of crime,” he said.

The fixed deployment will allow joint patrol teams to respond faster to emergency calls and prevent fleeing offenders from escaping through major transit routes. “So if someone steals a car and the information comes, he must not be able to get away. Persons committing offences must not get away. When communities call, we listen; and coming from a law enforcement background, there are things I could not have done as a police officer, but now this role gives me the advantage to assist the Commissioner of Police and police officers in implementing their anti-crime strategies effectively,” Alexander added.

Beyond the new joint posts, the government is moving forward with widespread manpower expansion across all public security branches. Alexander confirmed that 233 new police officers will complete training and deploy by early September, with a second cohort of recruits already in training. Active recruitment drives are also underway for the Prison Service, Defence Force and Fire Service to boost overall staffing.

As additional personnel come on board, Alexander announced that the government will finally implement the long-unenforced hard labour provision for convicted prisoners. Under the new policy, inmate labor will be leveraged to carry out community cleanup projects across the country. “We have over 400 or more free labour in the prisons; it’s about time we implement it,” he said.

A public verbal feud between Trinidad and Tobago’s top political leaders over racial dynamics and national unity, ignited by incidents during last Saturday’s African Emancipation Day commemorations, has drawn widespread rebuke from the country’s cross-faith religious leadership, who have united to call for an immediate end to divisive rhetoric and a restoration of the nation’s long-standing culture of tolerance.

The conflict began unfolding on Emancipation Day, when Culture Minister Michelle Benjamin was booed by attendees during celebrations at Port of Spain’s Independence Square. Later that same day, crowds at the Lidj Yasu Omowale Village, hosted at Queen’s Park Savannah in the capital, jeered when Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s name was announced. The tension quickly escalated into a public confrontation between the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles, with each leader accusing the other of stoking societal division across the country. Beckles publicly criticized Persad-Bissessar for skipping the official Emancipation Village event at the Savannah and raised alarms over deepening rifts in national society, calling for renewed commitment to unity. In response, Persad-Bissessar dismissed Beckles’ concerns as disingenuous and launched a sharp counterattack against the Opposition Leader.

In interviews following the clash, leaders from across Trinidad and Tobago’s diverse religious landscape uniformly expressed sorrow and regret over the public fight, emphasizing that the nation’s centuries-long tradition of intercultural and interfaith harmony must be protected and preserved above political gain.

Dr. Ellis Burris, president of the Inter Religious Organisation (IRO), slammed what he called “immature behaviour” from both the ruling People’s National Movement and the opposition United National Congress. “This is nothing more than petty politics. There is no excuse for public bickering of this sort on a national holiday that belongs to all of us,” Burris said in a phone interview. “Emancipation Day is a national observance for every Trinidadian, not just one specific group. Why would any side attack others for simply joining in the celebration? That level of confrontation is completely immature.”

Burris added that all citizens have the right to enjoy national holidays regardless of political affiliation, arguing that political rivalry should not spill over into shared national celebrations. “If the government organizes an official event, that is their prerogative. If the opposition wants to host its own gathering, they deserve the same right to do so. There is no reason this should descend into chaos,” he said. Closing his comments, Burris issued a formal appeal for renewed national unity and pride, noting that the nation will soon mark its 64th Independence Day. “We should celebrate this milestone with love and mutual care. Trinidad and Tobago has always been known for our religious and cultural harmony – that is a legacy we cannot afford to lose.”

Manwar Ali, president of the Takaaful Friendly Society, echoed Burris’ criticism, but placed particular blame on Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar for what he called disrespectful conduct. Ali argued that the Prime Minister’s choice to skip the Emancipation Village event, paired with her sarcastic response to criticism, was inappropriate for a national leader. “Emancipation Day deserves the same respect as every other major cultural and religious observance in this country, from Divali to Eid-ul-Fitr,” Ali said. “The Emancipation Support Committee of Trinidad and Tobago earned far more respect than it was given. A leader must be thoughtful and measured in how they respond to public events – this was far from that standard.”

Ali also condemned the open public fight between the two top political leaders, warning that public infighting sets a dangerous example for ordinary citizens. “These two leaders should not be brawling in public. Government and opposition do not have to agree on everything, but they owe it to the public to debate issues constructively in the national interest. When they fight openly, it gives permission for ordinary people to lean into negative, divisive behavior too,” he said. “I reject all talk of racial division. I am a Trinbagonian first, born and raised here alongside people of every background. We have to protect this country and build it together, not fight one another.”

Pandit Mukram Sirjoo, second vice-president of the IRO and chairman of the Trinidad Academy of Hinduism, noted that the division is entirely limited to the political elite, with daily life across multiracial grassroots communities remaining harmonious. “All this fuss is between politicians, not ordinary people. I have no issues with my Muslim or Christian brothers. Walk through any market, visit any local food stall – people of all races eat, work and shop together every day. The problem is at the top, not at the ground level. Grassroots Trinidad is still normal,” Sirjoo said.

Anglican Bishop Claude Berkley echoed calls for collaboration, saying “All of this is deeply regrettable. The nation must come together to work for the common good of all people.”

Canon Knolly Clarke, former dean of Port of Spain’s Holy Trinity Cathedral, called the clash a distressing moment for the nation. “This is a sad occasion. We are supposed to hold ourselves to a standard of dignity and mature conduct as a society. When people in high office behave this badly, it puts our whole country in a bad position,” Clarke said.

Archbishop Barbara Gray-Burke added her voice to the condemnation of racial rhetoric, saying “Emancipation Day is a national event for all of us. There is no place for talk of race that divides us. We should all be able to join this celebration together. I condemn all divisive racial talk and any attempt to ruin the sanctity and beauty of this national observance.”

As of yesterday, attempts to reach Roman Catholic Archbishop Fr Jason Gordon and Monsignor Martin Sirju for comment were unsuccessful.