Gypsy's call for visitors despite SoE: Come for Carnival, it's safe

Veteran calypsonian and National Carnival Commission (NCC) chairman Winston “Gypsy” Peters says he welcomes government’s decision to put the country under a state of emergency (SoE), but hastened to point out that the annual national Carnival remains a very safe festival.

Government announced the measure on Monday and said its decision not to have a curfew was based on Carnival and keeping economic activity going. This week and the coming ones represent a major period in the entertainment industry as the Christmas period branches into Carnival.

Many Old Year’s night events are expected to take place, including Hyatt’s New Year’s Eve Masquerade Ball, Jamboree’s Diamond Ball and Magdalena Grand Resort’s New Year’s Eve gala ­­­– Shimmer and Shine in Paradise.

In an interview on Monday Gypsy said TT has to protect Carnival whether the country is in an SoE or not.

“Carnival is a gross foreign exchange (forex) earner for TT and, as you know, we are in a situation now where we are short on forex and we need to run our country. So we cannot allow the disruption of Carnival.”

Thousands have already booked their passage, hotel rooms and all else to come to the country for the yearly celebrations, he added. The SoE will not only safeguard citizens but visitors too. He said it was in a sense a “limited SoE,”,as the police and army have emergency powers but there was no implementation of a curfew or other rules restricting people’s movement and ability to publicly gather in groups. Gypsy was grateful for this, as the commission was at an advanced stage of planning for Carnival 2025.

Even though there might be “inconveniences,” as  acting Attorney General Stuart Young said when discussing the mechanics of the SoE, Gypsy said this was something with which people had to live and manage.

“When people make life inconvenient for us, we have to ensure that we are prepared to live with these inconveniences.

“The government is right, because its job is to look after the citizenry.”

Asked how this could lead to behavioural change, Gypsy said sometimes the government had to extract behavioural change from people and the SoE was one way to do so.

He hoped the country would see a decrease in “nefarious” activities.

Support for SoE

He then reminded the world that the government was trying to curb the behaviour of a few who made life difficult for many.

“Please come to TT for Carnival, it is a safe place to be,” he said.

Lost Tribe’s creative director Valmiki Maharaj said the organisation supported the government’s decision to declare an SoE.

Maharaj said safety had always been a concern for the Carnival organisation.

“We have been with the authorities and our team putting measures in place to ensure the safety of our masqueraders.”

He said Tribe’s team would continue to listen to the press conferences and all official government communications and was willing to work with them.

While it was happening at a crucial time for the industry, he said Tribe remained in support of the authorities to ensure the country remained in the best of public health and safety.

He was also happy the government took Carnival and business into consideration, as this period (Christmas into Carnival) was a defining one for many who worked in hospitality and entertainment.

“I am sure for many people, when they first heard the phrase ‘state of emergency,’they would have been concerned. But listening to the information from the presser, the decisions they have made and continue to make have made people feel a little bit better and allow them to be in a better position where people will be paying attention and making sure things go well for economic activity over the next few months.”

Promoter Randy Glasgow also said he was happy with the government’s decision, but believes business will be affected by the SoE.
However, businesses like his and others were willing to make adjustments in the greater national interest, he said. But he anticipated that mature audiences for his Ladies’ Night Out and similar events may be hesitant to attend shows under the SoE.