State of Emergency in Trinidad & Tobago. Day 3

I just cannot share my feelings on this at the moment as there are so many unanswered questions.  

These are some of the rules and regulations during a State of Emergency:

• The State of Emergency grants special powers to the police and military:
• Search and seizure powers will not require a search warrant;
• Military to have power to arrest and detain before transfer to the police;
• Police can arrest and detain for up to 24 hours after which a magistrate, or assistant superintendent (or higher), will be able to add an extra 7 days;
• No bail for those arrested during the State of Emergency;
• Courts no longer will have the power to grant bail.

It is strongly advised you to respect the curfew in the affected areas and to comply with directives issued by the Government of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago, military and police units.. Travel times might be affected by these measures, so ensure you have sufficient time to reach your destination before curfew

This is the advisory from the British High Commission.

On 21 August 2011, a Limited State of Emergency was called into effect by the Prime Minister. There is a curfew in place for designated "hotspots" in Trinidad from 21:00 to 05:00 local time. Although the State of Emergency extends to Tobago, the island has no designated "hotspots" and is not affected by the curfew. We strongly advise you to respect the curfew in the affected areas and to comply with directives issued by the Government of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago, military and police units.  

You should be aware that there are high levels of violent crime, especially shootings and  kidnappings. British nationals have been victims of violent attacks, particularly in Tobago where law enforcement is weak.

38 British nationals required consular assistance in Trinidad and Tobago in the period April 2010 - March 2011.

Believe me, living in the tropics, is not all it's cracked up to be!