For anyone traveling to Trinidad and Tobago in the near term, be aware that Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar declared a limited state of emergency on Sunday (August 22), after 140 people were arrested during a crackdown on gangs. This provision also includes a 2100-0500 curfew that is being enforced.
COMMENT: Much of Trinidad's security problems stem from turf wars between drug gangs that are jockeying for control of the huge transshipment trade for South American cocaine destined for the US and Europe. I would discourage discretionary travel to the twin-island Caribbean country until the state of emergency is lifted. It should be noted that the last time the government announced a state of emergency was in July 1990, when a local Muslim extremist group, Jamaat a-Muslimeen, attempted a coup against the central government.
