Trinidad government considers state of emergency

guardian TT ^ | 07/20/03 | guardian

[Pikamax]

Government has been seriously considering a State of Emergency in Trinidad and Tobago, high-level officials said yesterday.

They claim it has been on the agenda of Prime Minister Patrick Manning as chairman of the National Security Council, for the past few weeks.

The State of Emergency was one of the major recommendations of the Ken Gordon Committee Report on Crime presented to Cabinet in May. A source said in recent weeks Government decision makers have been busy weighing the pros and cons of the move

With six kidnappings for ransom last week, and a call by the San Juan and Chaguanas business associations for curfews, the source said Government was hesitating for three main reasons, including the disruption of the economy, T&T’s international reputation and social dislocation.

“Their first concern is about the likely disruption of the economy if the State of Emergency is called,” the source said.

The most appropriate curfew hours of 6 pm to 6 am would considerably limit people’s movements. There is also the question of whether to call the State of Emergency in various parts of Trinidad, the whole country, or to exclude Tobago, the source said.

Since the curfews would mean less activities, businessmen are yet to collectively say if they are willing to shoulder the likely financial losses incurred.

Decision makers have consulted with legal experts who suggested that information acquired during a State of Emergency can be converted into justifiable evidence because “persons taken into custody and interrogated may well give details and offer to become State witnesses.”

But if Government implements a State of Emergency it must be ratified by Parliament within 10 days.

The source said, considering the Opposition’s intransigence in supporting Government, this could bring a premature end to any inroads made by the police and army, who would be empowered with special privileges to detain and question crime suspects.

It would also mean notifying international bodies like the OAS and UN and the establishment of a Special Tribunal possibly requiring the importation of foreign jurists.

This, the source said, would be a costly and lengthy exercise.

The second consideration, the source said, was T&T’s international standing and its reputation for being a politically stable, investment-friendly country.

Noting that the world was already looking at T&T as “a country under siege” a State of Emergency would mean that the international community would not be willing to take investment risks, the source said.

“The question is, can we afford this halt of international commerce, and if so, for how long? And, if we can, then how will we regain the confidence of the international community once it is lifted?” he asked.

The third consideration, the source noted, would be social dislocation and frustration faced by the citizenry.

“Are people really prepared for the inconvenience and lack of freedom that calling a State of Emergency implies? Can they handle the seriousness of this action?” he asked.

“These are the considerations official decision makers have given serious thought to, and are basing their decisions on. Government is not reacting out of frustration or anger, but on concrete information.”

[xrp]

Great...another problem in another major oil producing/refining country. Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Venezuela, now Trinidad. Who's NEXT?

[kerosene]

Being very familiar with things in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T), I can tell you that their kidnapping problem will go away when the T&T government recognizes that all people have the right to keep and bear arms, and that they may use those arms for self-defense.

In T&T, only high-level members of government (and their friends), certain business owners, and "wild-game" hunters are allowed to apply for a firearm license. Of course, the application process is long and drawn-out and usually results in a denial. Don't even think about owning a firearm without a license, as a prison sentence is the typical punishment for possessing a firearm without a license. Prisons in T&T are not like those we have in these United States.

As in most socialist-minded countries, Joe and Mary Sugarcane are not allowed to defend themselves with a firearm, let alone own one. Cutlass or machete? Fine, but don't try to conceal it.

As always, the criminals have guns, in spite of gun control. Ever the entrepreneurs, the criminals have determined that kidnapping has a very low risk, since most law-abiding people are unarmed, and a very high profit margin, because most of the families pay the ransom.

The solution is simple: let everyone carry concealed. After a few kidnappings get foiled by armed citizens, where the bad guys die in a hail of bullets, complete with nationwide television and newspaper coverage, the criminals in T&T will get a clue and find another high-profit crime.

[Cindy]

TRINIDAD EXPRESS.com - News
http://www.trinidadexpress.com

[Cindy]

FR Discussion Regarding "New Terror Threat From Caribbean (Trinidad and Tobago) Insight on the News ^ | 1/17/03 | Scott Wheeler"
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/824678/posts

[Pikamax]

Trinidad assistant held by U.S. immigration authorities
Posted: Thursday July 17, 2003 6:14 PM
Updated: Thursday July 17, 2003 6:59 PM

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/2003/07/17/int_rdp/

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) -- A coach with Trinidad and Tobago's national soccer team who once participated in a failed coup attempt was detained at Miami's airport on suspicion of holding a forged U.S. visa, a team spokesman said Thursday.

Assistant coach Jamaal Shabaaz was one of 114 members of the Muslim group Jamaat al-Muslimeen who staged the 1990 coup attempt in the Caribbean country.

"He always had problems getting a visa because of that incident in 1990," team spokesman Shaun Fuentes said.

Shabaaz was detained last Friday and was still being held Thursday at a federal detention center in Miami, Fuentes said. U.S. immigration officials said they couldn't immediately provide information on the case.

Shabaaz has said he stills belongs to the Trinidadian Muslim group, which maintains it no longer advocates violence.

On July 27, 1990, members of the group bombed police headquarters, stormed Parliament and took the prime minister and his Cabinet hostage. During the siege, 24 people were killed and hundreds wounded, mostly in clashes between police and mobs.

The government told the insurrectionists they would receive amnesty if they surrendered, but when they did, authorities arrested them. A court later ruled the arrests were illegal, and the rebels, including Shabaaz, received a national pardon.

Shabaaz, also known by the name Hyron Best, was a national youth goalkeeper before he converted to Islam and took his Muslim name.

He was detained while trying to enter the United States to attend a soccer coaching course, team officials said.

Shabaaz, who also has served as coach of the national women's team, traveled to the United States on other occasions in recent years.

Those seeking Shabaaz's release include government officials, the Caribbean country's soccer federation and Jack Warner, president of soccer's governing body of North and Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF).

"I have not been able to speak with him directly, but he has been able to get my e-mails and has indicated that that he is comfortable in light of the circumstances," Warner said Wednesday night. "We will be trying our utmost to see if he can be released soon."

Warner said the coach was taken aside for questioning due to a problem with his visa. "Of course, once they heard he was involved in the 1990 coup attempt, they panicked and he was immediately taken away," he said.

He said attorney Nathaniel King, who represented Shabaaz and others after the coup attempt, would help provide documents on the case to support requests for his release.

[Cindy]

THE TRINIDAD GUARDIAN: "CURFEW ON PM's CARDS" (July 20, 2003)
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Government has been seriously considering a State of Emergency in Trinidad and Tobago, high-level officials said yesterday.

They claim it has been on the agenda of Prime Minister Patrick Manning as chairman of the National Security Council, for the past few weeks.

The State of Emergency was one of the major recommendations of the Ken Gordon Committee Report on Crime presented to Cabinet in May. A source said in recent weeks Government decision makers have been busy weighing the pros and cons of the move."
http://www.guardian.co.tt/news4.html

[Cindy]

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "A coach with Trinidad and Tobago's national soccer team who once participated in a failed coup attempt was detained at Miami's airport on suspicion of holding a forged U.S. visa, a team spokesman said Thursday.

Assistant coach Jamaal Shabaaz was one of 114 members of the Muslim group Jamaat al-Muslimeen who staged the 1990 coup attempt in the Caribbean country."

GOOGLE Search Term: "Jamaal Shabaaz"
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22Jamaal+Shabaaz%22&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&filter=0

GOOGLE Search Term: "Jamaal Shabazz"
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22Jamaal+Shabazz%22&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&start=70&sa=N&filter=0

GOOGLE Search Term: "Jamaat al-Muslimeen"
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22Jamaat+al-Muslimeen%22&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&filter=0

[Cindy]

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE - Consular Information Sheet: "TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO"
http://travel.state.gov/trinidad_tobago.html

[Cindy]

Info Ping

[MeekOneGOP]

Heads up, Laz ! In your neighborhood. Trinidad, not Tobago though.

Trinidad Map

[raybbr]

Send in the U.S. Troops!!!!!

[Lazamataz]

Upon close examination of their online newspaper, I noticed an extremely high level of murders and also at least one kidnapping a day. The kidnapping would invariably be of some businessman or foreign national.

[GWB00]

Wow! I was trying to schedule a trip to visit a customer this week. I did not realize things are so out of hand.

[MeekOneGOP]

Crime gone rampant in Trinidad, it appears.
Things are quiet on your rock, then ??

[Lazamataz]

Wow! I was trying to schedule a trip to visit a customer this week. I did not realize things are so out of hand.

Kidnapping is your #1 concern.

[Lazamataz]

Crime gone rampant in Trinidad, it appears. Things are quiet on your rock, then ?

Yes, Atlanta, GA is relatively quiet.

[MeekOneGOP]

Nice to hear.
Now I am confused. You fly the Trinidad flag.

[Lazamataz]

Now I am confused. You fly the Trinidad flag.

I confuse and bedazzle people.

[MeekOneGOP]

I confuse and bedazzle people.

hehe! Who are you really ????

I could have sworn I saw you post that you were on Tobago. My mistake I guess.