Features, General T&T, PNM, Politics

Remembering Eric Williams

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By Raffique Shah
September 24, 2011

Eric WilliamsTHIRTY-FIVE years ago yesterday, I became an MP in the first Parliament of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It was an historic moment in many ways. I affirmed, meaning I did not take an oath using one of the holy books, which was not a first. But when I raised a clenched fist, symbol of the Black Power movement, as Clerk of the House Emmanuel Carter administered the affirmation, I glanced at Prime Minister Dr Eric Williams.
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Court, Crime in T&T, Gender, General T&T, Law, Police, Sex Crimes, Violence

Suspects Nabbed for Rape of Mother and Daughter

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Suspect in Central rapes surrenders on ‘Crime Watch’
By Gyasi Gonzales and Camille Bethel
UPDATED: September 25, 2011 – Trinidad Express
CrimeFour men are now in police custody for the robbery and rape of the Central mother and daughter and police say the arrest of a fifth man in connection with the incident is imminent.

Masked men broke into the family’s house in Longdenville, Chaguanas, around 2.30 a.m. on Thursday, raping the 49-year-old mother and her 17-year-old daughter and beating her two sons who were at home at the time. They stole cash and jewelry and the family’s car.
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Finance, General T&T, International, Law, Politics

Scandalous Wheeling and Dealing at CL Financial

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Most shocking

Newsday Editorial
September 21, 2011 – newsday.co.tt

Lawrence Duprey and Andre MonteilScandalous is the word for revelations about the behind the scenes wheeling and dealing at CL Financial, the cooking of the books, the hiring of a convicted felon to serve as the group’s global representative and other dubious deals geared toward fulfilling one, single-minded objective: the establishment of a global empire.
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Africa, Court, Crime in T&T, General T&T, Law, People's Partnership, PNM, Police, Politics, Security

The CJ’s Wisdom

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By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
September 20, 2011

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeSooner or later it had to happen. Amidst the chaos and head-in-the-sand posture, a mature voice had to rise up and address the implications of the state of emergency (SOE) that was declared by the government. While so many of my fellow citizens, buoyed by the apparent calm of the society welcomed the suspension of many of our civil liberties, it took a brave voice to remind us that a constitution cannot suspend itself and that the declaration of a SOE does not automatically abrogate all of our right as citizens.
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Court, Crime in T&T, General T&T, Law, Media, People's Partnership, Police, Politics, Security, Violence

DPP tells ‘office holders’ back off

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By Anika Gumbs-Sandiford
September 18, 2011 – guardian.co.tt

Director of Public Prosecutions Roger GaspardBack off! This is the strong message being sent by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard to “office holders” regarding the arrest of citizens under the state of emergency. Warning that he would “continue to jealously guard his office at all cost,” Gaspard, in an exclusive interview with Sunday Guardian, said his office would continue to act independently. On the Attorney General’s decision to retain a battery of attorneys to assist with the prosecution of matters under the state of emergency, Gaspard said: “No other office holder would be allowed to choose any attorney for me for the prosecution of any matter; that choice remains exclusively mine.” On the issue of the perception of a war between the AG and the DPP, Gaspard said: “I know of no war between the AG and myself. There are no winners in war. I humbly prefer simply to continue to do my work soberly so as to protect and advance the public’s interest.”
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Court, Crime in T&T, General T&T, Law, Media, People's Partnership, Police, Politics, Security, Violence

DPP’s Decision

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newsday.co.tt
September 18, 2011

Nelson Street robbery in broad daylight!To our knowledge, none of the actors involved in criminal activity caught on the CCTV footage provided by the state and published this week by this newspaper had active matters before the courts. Quite the contrary. It was our belief that some of the individuals who appeared on the screens may have been men from Nelson Street who were freed of the charge that they were gang members after the DPP advised the Chief Magistrate that the State had insufficient evidence against them. Once there is no matter before the court, we are free to publish the footage, the only risk being that of defamation, a matter for the civil, not criminal courts and thus no concern of the DPP.
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Crime in T&T, General T&T, Labour, Law, Police, Politics

Squandering Emergency Gains

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By Raffique Shah
September 18, 2011

Raffique ShahMANY moons ago—I must have been age 15, still attending college—a simple incident exposed me to the abuse of power, authority, uniform, maybe a combination of all these, by certain police officers. We Form Four or Five boys, as we awaited the bus to take us to our home districts, used to lime in a concrete drain (it was clean and offered some shade) that we had christened “Canal Park”.
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Caribbean, Crime in T&T, Drug Trade, General T&T, Jamaica, Law, Police, Security

Marijuana in the chicken: Drug bust at Point Lisas

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September 17, 2011
guardian.co.tt

MarijuanaAfter hours of continuous searching at the Port of Point Lisas, police seized yet another 40-foot container of high grade Arizona marijuana on Thursday evening. Customs and Excise officers said the haul had a street value of $7.4 million. But in a news release late yesterday the Police Service Public Affairs Unit quoted the street value as $30 million. The release said the value had been confirmed by an “expert in the field of narcotics.” But Customs communications manager, Alicia Charles, said yesterday Customs and Excise worked out the figure by calculating a kilo of marijuana to be approximately $8,000. She said the officers found 38 bags of marijuana weighing more than 921 kilos.
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General T&T, Media, People's Partnership, PNM, Politics, Racism Watch, Violence

Needed: A second Emancipation

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By Michael Harris
September 11, 2011 – trinidadexpress.com

PNMMy column last Monday [PNM’s children] seems to have ignited something of a furore among readers. On talk shows, in the blogs, and in letters to the editor, there was a surprisingly huge outpouring of feedback as everyone appeared to have something to say about my article.
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Africa, Court, Crime in T&T, Culture, General T&T, India, Law, People's Partnership, Police, Politics, Race and Identity, Racism Watch, Security, Violence

Fulfilling Prophecy

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By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
September 14, 2011

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeWilliam Hardin Burnley was the biggest slave holder in Trinidad and Tobago. In 1813 Sir Ralph Woodford arrived in the island as the governor. One of his first tasks was to secure sufficient laborers for the island, Trinidad being notorious for not having sufficient laborers to till its soil. One year after he arrived he asked each member of his Board of Council to come up with suggestions to induce laborers to settle in the country.
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