PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC—The Trinidad and Tobago government says its policy has been “and remains not to offer firearm amnesties” as it announced the official publication of the emergency powers under the existing state of emergency (SoE).
The SoE came into effect on December 30 last year and has since been extended by a further three months following the debate in Parliament, as both the government and the opposition trade words as to who is responsible for the significant number of murders in the country.
In a statement, the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs said it is advising the public of the coming into effect of the Emergency Powers (Amendment) Regulations, 2025, which revokes Regulation 11 by amending the Emergency Powers Regulations, 2024.
It said that the Order is confirmed in Legal Notice No. 15 of the Gazette dated 16th January 2025 and that the Cabinet, at its meeting on Thursday, “ agreed to amend the 2024 Emergency Regulations by the deletion of Regulation 11, given that the policy of the Government has been and remains not to offer firearms amnesties.”
It said the Cabinet was advised that Regulation 11 had been lifted from the previous State of Emergency precedents in 2011 and 1990 in the “fast-evolving circumstances” of last December that led to the establishment of the SoE.
“It was neither operationalized by a prescribed period nor an Order made by the 2024 Emergency Regulations, and accordingly, Regulation 11 never took effect. “Further, all firearms recovered to date under the 2024 State of Emergency have been due to seizures by law enforcement and not through the surrender of firearms,” the statement said.
The ministry said that the Cabinet has assented to the Emergency Powers (Amendment) Regulations, 2025, to be made by President Christine Kangaroo pursuant to Section 7 of the Constitution of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
“The safety and well-being of the population remains of paramount importance to the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, and so the 2024 Emergency Regulations (as amended) remain in force,” the statement added.
Meanwhile, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) said that an anti-crime operation conducted earlier this week in the Point Fortin district in southwestern Trinidad targeted a 33-year-old priority offender.
It said during the operation, the police recovered one AR-15 Rifles, seven rounds of 5.56mm ammunition with a magazine, and 250 cannabis plants in a hydroponic grow lab.
The police said the operation was conducted under the Emergency Powers Regulation 2024. The police said also this week, they intercepted a drug transport operation during a routine traffic exercise in Chaguanas in central Trinidad.
They said officers had stopped a vehicle to check its compliance with tint regulations and that “the behavior of the driver and passengers raised officers’ suspicion, prompting a search of the car.
“This search led to the discovery of 20 packets of compressed cannabis, with a total weight of 11.76 kilograms. The estimated street value of the illegal narcotics is approximately TT$1.76 million (One TT dollar=US$0.16 cents),” the police said, adding that the suspects were immediately arrested and are currently assisting police with ongoing inquiries.
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