Amnesty: 2002 saw marked increase in TT crime

The 2003 Amnesty International Annual Country Report for Trinidad and Tobago has noted, in its opening paragraph that there was an increase in crime in TT in  2002.

Unlike those of previous years, the 2003 report, which covers the period January to December 2002, states, “There was a marked increase in crime, with at least 170 people murdered.” It also noted that at least 80 men and four women were on death row at the end of 2002, but said that no executions were carried out and no death warrants were issued. “Courts continued to impose death sentences; at least one woman and six men were sentenced to hang. Defendants facing a mandatory death sentence continued to appear in court without legal representation,” the report said. In this regard, the report named Peter Cadette who it said appeared before a magistrate’s court in March 2002, charged with the murder of his wife and child, “a capital offence, without a lawyer to represent him.”

In TT, the report also noted, many prisoners lacked the most basic facilities to ensure hygiene. Some inmates, the report stated, were forced to defecate onto newspapers which then had to be stored in a bucket that was emptied frequently. There were also reports of inmate-on-inmate violence as well as brutality by prison guards. Police brutality was also listed as a problem. It named 15 year old school boy David Sooklal who alleged that he was beaten by police officers, causing him to vomit blood. The officers were allegedly attempting to get information about his brother. He was taken into custody, but released shortly after without charge. In July 2002, the report said, Kenton Sylvester was awarded TT$220,000 compensation after being beaten in 1992 by police who mistook him for a member of an armed gang. He suffered two broken arms, eight fractured ribs and liver damage.

In November 2002, according to the report, Edmund Ancil, Bruce Henry and Ashford Ramdhan alleged they were beaten by police officers to force them to confess to a high-profile murder. During a court appearance, the three men detailed their allegations and showed the judge burns allegedly inflicted by police officers with cigarettes and other marks allegedly caused by beatings. The magistrate ordered that the men receive medical treatment. A fourth accused, Irene Ragbir, alleged that she had been denied legal assistance while being questioned by the police. However, TT’s report was mild compared to Jamaica’s which stated: “The economic situation remained dire with a large number of people living below the poverty line. Jamaican society continued to suffer from an extremely high level of violent crime; at least 1,045 people were reported murdered, including 16 police officers.”