News
Sean Douglas
ATTORNEY General John Jeremie said the government has achieved a 42 per cent drop in serious crime in just its nine months in office and was not now going backwards in its fight against crime.
At the House of Representatives sitting, which began on January 16 and ended at 3.38 am the following day, he gave background details to justify why he was piloting the Law Reform (Zones of Special Operation)(Special Security and Community Development Measures) Bill 2026. When the extended state of emergency expires on January 31, this new bill will allow the Prime Minister, with Parliament’s nod, to declare certain special zones where the police and defence force will have extra powers of search, seizure and arrest.
The bill was ultimately passed but without opposition support.
Jeremie related, “Strategic operations by the police service and defence force provided critical insight to us as to the operations, locations, base, activities and affiliations of the gangs, who have been running amok in this country, unchecked, for some ten years.” He said law enforcement has been able to pinpoint the operational bases of the gangs, and their movements and patterns of behaviour.
“It is no secret that many communities across TT have been plagued by criminal activities for many years, with gangs headquartered in and operating in hotspots.
“Gang violence, bloody murders, reprisal killings, extortion and the induction of young men into gangs are the order of the day.”
He said most people would never venture into hotspots.
“Too many communities in TT bear the scars of inter-generational trauma, systemic poverty, and vicious cycles of broken homes and lost children.”
He said law-abiding people in those areas seeking a better life “do so at their own risk” and also face stigma from the wider society due to where they come from.
“But we say these are our people, our citizens, our constituents, and they have been overlooked for far too long.” Jeremie alleged the former government had not lifted a finger for ten years, as citizens were murdered and raped.
He lamented that some people see everything through a lens of colour and race, and might even try to bring that into this debate.
But he cautioned such people to look at what was taking place and to recognise that numbers do not lie. “The bill balances the need for security operations to address serious crimes in defined communities, with the rights of citizens.
“It aims to preserve the rights and freedoms of people residing in those communities.
“The bill also takes into account the need for social intervention and community development.”