Crime
Trinidad and Tobago Declares State of Emergency Following Laventille Massacre
Trinidad and Tobago's Prime Minister declares state of emergency following a massacre in Laventille, citing heightened criminal activity endangering public safety. Previous states of emergency were declared in 2021 and 2014.
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Originally published by nationnews.com (opens in new tab)
Within hours of a massacre at Prizgar Lands, Laventille, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago on Monday morning authorized the declaration of a state of emergency.
In a statement coming from the Ministry of Communications citizens were told that President Christine Kangaloo on the advice of the Prime Minister had declared the state of emergency being satisfied that the circumstances of Section 8(2)C of the constitution exists.
“The circumstances warranting the declaration of the public emergency are based on the advice of the TTPS to the National Security Council of heightened criminal activity which endangers the public safety.”
In Laventille overnight, at least four men were gunned down in an apartment, the latest in a series of killings connected to gang warfare across the East West Corridor.
In the President’s proclamation it was stated, “I am satisfied that a public emergency has risen as a result of the occurrence of action that has been taken or is immediately threatened by a person, of such a nature and on so extensive a scale, as to be likely to endanger the public safety…”
The last time a state of emergency was declared in Trinidad and Tobago was in 2021 to allowed for restrictions to fight the Covid-19 virus.
In 2014, during the tenure of the People’s Partnership government, a SoE was also triggered in response to a crime wave that never abated to this day.
This country has recorded at least 620 murders, an unprecedented number.
(Daily Express)
