PM: Venezuela incursion will meet 'deadly force'

PRIME Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has drawn battle lines and says any illegal incursion by any unidentified vessel into Trinidad and Tobago's territorial waters will be met with deadly force by local security forces.

Persad-Bissessar also made it clear local drug and human traffickers masquerading as fishermen would be "on their own" if they were caught by the Venezuelans in their maritime areas.

She also vowed government would take a hard line against any Venezuelan drug and human traffickers operating in TT.

Persad-Bissessar stood her ground on these issues at a post-cabinet news conference at the Red House, Port of Spain.

On June 4, Venezuelan vice-president Diosdado Cabello claimed his country's security services had arrested "a group of terrorists" who allegedly entered Venezuela via TT.

Persad-Bissessar said government took Cabello's accusations very seriously.

"I say categorically we have no evidence to validate this at this point."

Persad-Bissessar referred to an article in which Venezuela's justice minister claimed a TT national named Kendal Jheron was allegedly captured in the alleged paramilitary group.

"Again we have seen no evidence to support the comments from this Venezuelan official."

Persad-Bissessar objected strongly to Cabello's vow to "pursue anyone who attempted to de-stabilise Venezuela."

She quoted Cabello's statement that "there must be justice and we (Venezuela) is going after the gangs wherever they are."

Persad-Bissessar declared, 'Today, I want to make it very clear to the Venezuelan government and officials...that they could do whatever they want on Venezuelan territory but they cannot come here. TT territory is off limits to them."

She warned if Cabello's comments were "a veiled threat to enter TT territory...he should reconsider any such intention."

Persad-Bissessar said government must take all threats about potential incursions into TT very seriously.

"I will speak to the Minister of Defence (Wayne Sturge) and the Attorney General (John Jeremie) to seek advice and protection for our Coast Guard, to use deadly force on any unidentified vessel entering TT waters from Venezuela...smuggling military able-bodied men and women... TT is off limits to them."

Persad-Bissessar said recent comments by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Cabello have compelled government "to take seriously the threat by that government...sending their agents into our country to commit acts that could be adverse to our own welfare."

These developments, she continued, have forced government to look at its policy regarding Venezuelan migrants who are military age and able-bodied men and women.

"We have to take this threat seriously now."

Persad-Bissessar said Venezuela taken similar action before elsewhere.

"They have made similar propaganda comments about Guyana and Colombia whenever they had interior political problems or elections and then they engaged in border skirmishes with violence."

She repeated, "We will take these threats very seriously."

Sturge supported Persad-Bissessar's position there is no evidence to support Venezuela's claims of a paramilitary group entering Venezuela from TT.

He told reporters he spoke with TT Defence Force Chief of Staff Vice Marshal Darryl Daniel on the matter.

"He (Daniel) gave me the assurance that the (coastal) radar system did not pick up any such activity."

Sturge said efforts would continue to be made to substantiate Venezuela's claims or determine if government would be in a position to later refute them with certainty.

He added the Venezuelan government had not provided any photographic or other evidence to substantiate their claims of an alleged TT national being held with the alleged paramilitary group.

Sturge said he had not been in direct contact with the Venezuelan government on the matter.

"The Spanish I know is from Duo Lingo (an app to learn Spanish) so that would not have been possible."

Sturge said Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Sean Sobers had contacted officials at TT's Embassy in Caracas to speak with the Venezuelan authorities.

"We do not have a fractious relationship (with Venezuela)."

Sturge warns fishermen: 'Any number could play'

Persad-Bissessar warned local drug, human traffickers and smugglers masquerading as fishermen "if you enter Vene's (Venezuela's) waters to do your illegal acts and you are caught by Venes' authorities...you are on your own."

Over the years, local fishermen have been arrested by Venezuela's Guardia Nacional after they entered Venezuelan waters and were accused by the Venezuelans of engaging in criminal actions. There have also been instances of Venezuelan pirates entering TT waters and attacking local fishermen.

Persad-Bissessar said, "No amount of family crying on Ian (Alleyne's) programmes will cause us to intervene."

Sturge supported Persad-Bissessar's position.

"Any number could play."

He said one only had to look at certain court matters over time to see instances where drug and human traffickers had pretended to be fishermen.

He added there had been videos posted online of dismembered bodies being found in fishing boats.

Sturge claimed that could not have happened if those people were legitimate fishermen.

Persad-Bissessar also rejected Cabello's allegation of "US involvement...again throwing out the tired old bogey of 'blame the Yankees' and he also blamed the treatment of Venes' abroad who fled their homeland."

Persad-Bissessar said Cabello should ask himself why Venezuelans were fleeing their country in the first place.

"Is it because of the behaviour of their own government?"

She vowed no amount of rhetoric from the Venezuelan government would drive a wedge in TT-US relations.

"We stand solidly with the American government on the issues concerning Venezuela. That will not change."

Persad-Bissessar said government wanted no part of "the Venezuelan government's interior political gimmickry."

She insisted TT and Venezuela were peaceful neighbours.

"Let us leave it at that."

On June 2, Maduro said Venezuelan security forces captured a group of terrorists in the country’s east who were carrying a cache of war weapons.

He claimed those individuals entered through the border with TT, and half of them were Colombian citizens.

“Brought in through the Caribbean Sea to enter the country, we must have a thousand eyes and a thousand ears, because the terrorists have not succeeded, nor will they.”

The Venezuelan government recently sought to hold regional elections within the disputed border oil-rich Essequibo region with Guyana,

The Guyanese government has complained of several cases of alleged Venezuelan individuals shooting at Guyanese troops, as recently as last month.

Venezuela has denied the occurrence of at least one such past allegation. Russia, Iran, Cuba and China have strong diplomatic ties with Venezuela.

PM: New migrant plan coming

Persad-Bissessar, who is also chair of the National Security Council, said, "Drug and human trafficking is on the increase along the southern and southwest areas of our country."

She disclosed, "There is an increase in female traffickers...drug and human trafficking."

Persad-Bissessar said, "Let me be clear. Some Venezuelan women are main persons who run the human trafficking rings."

Members of the local Venezuelan community, she continued, "are also escorting gang members from Trinidad to traverse across Venezuela and enter into Colombia to do direct illegal business with cocaine producers."

Persad-Bissessar said, "Some Trinidadian gangs are cutting out the middlemen. They are going straight to Colombian producers...facilitated by those in Venezuela who are being welcomed into this country."

Venezuelans identified in drug and human trafficking activities, she continued, "have registration documents" and are in TT "apparently legally."

Persad-Bissessar said these people "have duped the system."

She added government would work on a new migrant plan in the coming months.

Persad-Bissessar recalled her warning during the election campaign that illegal migrants would be sent back to their home country.

"Yet the crime involving Venes' continues to increase."

Persad-Bissessar said in the interim, she was advising Venezuelan migrants who are in TT "if you wish, you should begin to return to your country."

Sturge said laws were in place to determine the circumstances under which migrants could be deported.

He could not say whether any new migrant policy that government could roll out would be similar to one used by the Trump Administration to deport migrants from the US.

Sturge also said discussions would have to be held on the issue of Venezuelan children being allowed to go to schools locally, based on new developments with Venezuela.