Good morning, Trinidad and Tobago. India is in town. So is the conversation about whether the State of Emergency is doing what it is supposed to be doing.
India’s foreign minister visits, brings 2,000 laptops
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar welcomed India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to Port of Spain Friday for a two-day official visit. The deliverables included two thousand laptops handed to students from seven school districts in a Red House Rotunda ceremony, several memoranda of understanding, and the launch of a National Prosthetics Programme in Penal. The Prime Minister, in remarks to Parliament, credited Prime Minister Modi with ensuring that India “honoured and delivered” on its commitments. India’s Caribbean push continues, and Trinidad — given the Indo-Trinidadian population — is the natural anchor.
SoE debate: Prime Minister says crime would have been worse
The Prime Minister this week defended the State of Emergency, saying crime in Trinidad and Tobago “would have been worse” without it. The defence came after questions in Parliament following a triple murder in Belmont that claimed a two-year-old boy. Whether the SoE is the floor or the ceiling on crime data will be argued for the rest of the year. Justice Minister Devesh Maharaj added the unsettling number: more than half of young people who go to prison return to criminal activity. The recidivism number is, the Minister said, “scary.”
Soldier convicted on seven counts
A soldier was found guilty of seven counts in a court martial this week. The Express noted the verdict in its Friday edition; the specifics of the charges have not been published in full. The Defence Force has not commented beyond confirming the conviction.
Three nurses walk off the job at NCRHA
Three of sixty-one registered nurses recently hired by the North Central Regional Health Authority have walked off the job, citing poor working conditions. The Trinidad and Tobago National Nursing Association head Idi Stuart confirmed the resignations. NCRHA has not responded publicly. Three out of sixty-one is small in absolute terms and large as a signal: nurses do not walk on day one for nothing.
Princes Town shooting: 32-year-old gunned down
A 32-year-old man was shot dead outside his home in Princes Town early Saturday morning. Police are investigating. No motive has been publicly identified. The family has not made a statement.
Belmont follow-up
Almost a day after two men and a toddler were killed and the child’s mother injured, gunmen struck Belmont again Saturday, injuring a 16-year-old boy. The neighbourhood is, in the Housing Minister’s words, in crisis. The Minister’s actual words drew their own controversy this week. The Minister has stood by them.
Cricket Board robbed
The Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board condemned a robbery at its Clifford Roach Drive offices in Couva on Friday. The TTCB has not detailed what was taken. Robbing the cricket board feels like a particular kind of insult.
Mother’s Day
Sunday is Mother’s Day. Across the country, the church services are about to start. The doubles lines will be longer than usual.
— Tradewinds Brief Newsroom