Chamber backs plan for soldiers to have police powers of arrest

The Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce said in a media release Friday it is supporting the Government’s move to give soldiers the power to make arrests while serving with police officers. 

The Chamber stated the measure could “represent an effective weapon in the crime fighting arsenal at this time”.

It added, “The Chamber believes that the country is now at a critical juncture, and cannot continue to depend solely on traditional measures that have been taken, if we are to reduce crime to a level where we can all feel some level of safety in our communities, schools, places of work and homes.”

The Chamber noted police-soldier patrols have existed before to maintain law and order and the initiative head some positive impact on crime. It said, "We believe that giving soldiers the same powers, authorities, privileges and immunities as are given by law to members of the Police Service and others can potentially have a positive impact on the reduction of crime.”

However, the organisation said it is necessary to ensure that there are checks and balances in place to guarantee that the constitutional rights of citizens are
not breached. The Chamber called on the Government to publicly define how
it proposes to measure the success of this initiative over the two-year period during which it would use this security measure.

“We do acknowledge that there is a constraint in the resources in the police service, and we hope that alongside implementing this new measure, immediate efforts are also being made to deal with the current inefficiencies in the service and also to increase the numbers of policemen and women on duty and available
for our crime fighting initiatives on a daily basis,” the Chamber said.

“The fight against crime is for everyone — whether government, individuals or corporations — and the Chamber continues to pledge its support without reservation,” the release stated.