PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad — Trinidad Declares State of Emergency effective Tuesday, March 3, 2026, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said in a national statement after the National Security Council received briefings citing increased gang-related violence and credible threats against security personnel.
Persad-Bissessar said the National Security Council met Monday, March 2, at the Diplomatic Centre and was briefed by Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro, Chief of Defence Staff Don Polo, and Strategic Services Agency head Alicia Henry.
She said the council noted that since the previous state of emergency ended on Jan. 31, there has been an increase in violent criminal activity across the country, with much of it attributed to members of organized criminal gangs.
The Prime Minister said the council was told that several recent acts of criminality resulted in multiple deaths due to mass shootings and that continuing reprisal shootings among gangs, if left unchecked, would endanger public safety.
Why Trinidad Declares State of Emergency Now
Persad-Bissessar said the National Security Council was informed that intelligence recently gathered indicates credible threats to attack police officers, prison officers, and other members of the security and legal services.
She framed the move as a response to a deteriorating security environment since the last emergency period ended, with officials warning that escalating retaliatory violence could threaten frontline personnel and the wider public.
The Prime Minister, who recently addressed regional security cooperation ahead of a planned U.S. meeting in Florida, had previously warned criminal gangs and detainees released from prison that if they could not “behave themselves,” she would have no hesitation in having another state of emergency declared.
She said violent gang members would be returned “straight to prison,” and added that those who assist criminality, including friends and family who aid their actions, would also face legal consequences as part of the government’s wider crackdown on organized gangs.
“In light of the foregoing and in all the circumstances,” Persad-Bissessar said the National Security Council resolved to immediately advise President Christine Kangaloo to declare that a State of Public Emergency exists in Trinidad and Tobago with effect from March 3.
Persad-Bissessar said that on March 2, the President declared the state of emergency.
Government Cites Zero-Tolerance Policy and Ongoing Operations
The Prime Minister said the emergency measure is consistent with what she described as the government’s zero-tolerance approach to crime and criminal gangs.
She pointed to “numerous successful, strategic operations” conducted by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service and the Armed Forces over the last 10 months as part of that approach.
Persad-Bissessar also cited legislation introduced in Parliament to empower and protect law-abiding citizens, alongside ongoing reforms to the criminal justice system, as evidence of the administration’s broader strategy to address violent crime.
She said the government intends to use all available resources to prevent recent gains from being reversed by those she described as determined to inflict harm on citizens.
In her statement, Persad-Bissessar said the government has achieved gains in “significantly reducing the murder rates and the incidents of violent crime against citizens,” and that the administration will act to ensure those gains are not “reversed and overturned.”
Public Safety Focus as Emergency Takes Effect March 3
While the Prime Minister’s statement did not outline specific regulations that will accompany the emergency, the government positioned the declaration as a necessary public safety measure in response to rising gang violence, mass shootings, and threats directed at security officers and related services.
Persad-Bissessar said the government’s priority is the protection of law-abiding citizens and maintaining public order, with enforcement efforts aimed at preventing retaliatory attacks and disrupting criminal gang activity.
The declaration takes effect Tuesday, March 3, 2026.
