Trinidad and Tobago lifts state of emergency after mass arrest backlash
T&T Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar confirmed the emergency powers will not be renewed, citing plans for a permanent anti-crime legal framework instead.
T&T ends emergency powers as uncharged detainees await fate
Trinidad and Tobago has lifted its state of emergency, ending a regime that gave the government sweeping powers to detain people without charge, aljazeera.com reports.
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar told parliament on Wednesday that the measures would not be extended. Two separate states of emergency — one declared in 2024 and another in 2025 — had each been prolonged through successive extensions. The government will now pursue a "permanent legal framework" in their place.
"The proposed legislation will establish a permanent legal framework for targeted operations against violent crime, gangs, illegal weapons and the criminal networks that finance them, while providing safeguards for law-abiding citizens, judicial oversight and parliamentary accountability," Persad-Bissessar said in a social media post.
The emergency measures drew sustained criticism over a mass arrest campaign that suspended core civil liberties. Among those detained were a prominent businessman and his wife, held on allegations of involvement in a plot to assassinate the prime minister; both were released without charge.
Since a March extension, more than 5,800 people have been arrested, according to the prime minister. Approximately 2,250 of those remain uncharged, and whether they will now be freed is not yet clear.
Lawyer Criston Williams told The Associated Press he expects a wave of lawsuits from those held without charge. He also called on the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to investigate potential government abuses.
Williams described the conditions in which detainees were brought to legal consultations. "They are transported to us blindfolded, shackled, hands behind their backs, a gray knapsack over their heads," he said. Meetings with lawyers took place before five armed law enforcement personnel who "refer to themselves as operator one, two, three, four, five," he added. "There's a camera above, so guess what, there's nothing like attorney-client privilege."
Police recorded a high of 624 killings in the country of approximately 1.4 million people in 2024. That figure fell to 369 in 2025. So far this year, 255 killings have been recorded, compared with 268 over the same period last year.
Source: Google News TT — Crime