Security, justice in TT always matters to Britain

British High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago Tim Stew says crime and justice in this country will always matter to Britain.

He said since he arrived he has been very well aware of the significant concerns citizens here have about security and justice. The headlines all too often shrieked about the criminal outrage, he said, hoping that this particular case will perhaps prove the turning point.

The commissioner was the guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Port of Spain’s “lunch with a purpose” meeting last week at Fitzblackman Drive, Woodbrook. Stew said 30,000 British nationals visited TT each year and the resident British population is between 4000 - 5000 at any one time.

He added that crime affected his people as much as the citizens of this country, where sadly, he has seen a number of his countrymen murdered. He said Britain has significant material investments in this country and warned that investors tend to stay for the good of both countries only where they are confident about security and delivery of justice.

While many may expect change in their organisations, he said, “We have followed in attempting to support institutional efforts here to affect change in security circumstances in this country. My answer has been very different. Not blame, not reorganise and give up and go home. Instead, I try to understand, act and just keep going.

“One of the oldest and simplest justifications for government is protecting citizens against violence. The idea of government as protector requires taxes to fund and train defence forces, police services, build jails, elect and appoint officials to pass and implement the legislation and laws citizens simply must not break.”

Stew said the importance of security should not be in security only, because that brought repression and injustice, but it should always mean security first.

He said each murder was a sad circumstance compelling the high commission to action to make the country safer for all, and also because of the transnational nature of crime, whether it was the flow of narcotics through this country to Europe, which sometimes involved British criminals, or acts of terror which all too often involve international networks, because terrorists do not really respect borders.

Stew said if the high commission was to provide the right support, it had to understand what lies behind crime here and what can be done about it. He said the commission has spent time researching, discussing and building its knowledge, not to cast blame, but to get to the root of the issue.

He said there needed to be greater sensitivity to specific crimes like gender-based violence, more investment in modern training and equipment, quicker delivery of forensic services, more efficient processing of crime cases by the magistrates’ courts, better incentives for the guilty to plead guilty, and a need to tackle impunity to stop people thinking they could do what they wanted without penalty.

“I am a diplomat, not a politician, and I see security as a national issue, not a party political one for points scored. It takes a national effort, and so we work with all, including the private sector, who share the need to work in the same direction to deliver an improved security planet for citizens of this country and its visitors.

“We have programmes of support to strengthen the criminal justice system, not to tell people here how to do things, but working in partnership to share our experience and how we have adapted our legal system.

“This is a time to just keep going. Things that look easy are often the result of prolonged, hard and patient work and security is definitely one of those. Security in TT requires serious, patient, hard work. We all need to keep on growing the skills and deploying the lessons.”