Trinidad and Tobago has concluded a state of emergency that provided the government with extensive powers to address crime, including the authority to detain individuals without charge. Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar announced in parliament on Wednesday that the government would not prolong the state of emergency, which had been enacted in 2024 and extended in 2025. Instead, the government plans to pursue a "permanent legal framework" for crime control.
The proposed legislation aims to create a permanent structure for targeted operations against violent crime, gangs, illegal weapons, and the criminal networks financing them, while ensuring protections for law-abiding citizens, judicial oversight, and parliamentary accountability, according to a social media post by the Prime Minister.
The government faced backlash for a series of mass arrests that curtailed essential civil liberties, justified as necessary for combating crime and perceived security threats. Among those arrested was a prominent businessman and his wife, who were implicated in an alleged plot to assassinate the Prime Minister but were never charged and were subsequently released.
The state of emergency measures were last extended in June, with the Prime Minister reporting that over 5,800 individuals had been arrested since a March extension, with approximately 2,250 of those still uncharged. It remains uncertain if these individuals will be released now that the state of emergency has ended.
Lawyer Criston Williams expressed to The Associated Press that he anticipates some of those detained without charge may file lawsuits against the government and has called for an investigation by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights into potential government abuses.
Williams described the treatment of detainees, stating, "They are transported to us blindfolded, shackled, hands behind their backs, a gray knapsack over their heads," and noted that meetings with lawyers occurred under the watch of armed law enforcement personnel, undermining attorney-client privilege.
In 2024, police reported a record 624 homicides in Trinidad and Tobago, which has a population of approximately 1.4 million. This figure reportedly decreased to 369 in 2025, with 255 killings recorded this year compared to 268 during the same period in 2025.