Caption: Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles. Photo: T&T Parliament
OPPOSITION Leader Pennelope Beckles is warning that plans by the Trinidad and Tobago government to “crack down” on social media bloggers, represent an “alarming attempt to intimidate independent voices and stifle public scrutiny”.
Homeland Security Minister, Roger Alexander said last weekend that the Kamla Persad Bissessar-led government is examining legal options to curb what he described as the misuse of social media and the spread of misinformation that threatens national safety and security.
Alexander said that discussions are under way on “how we can approach (Attorney General John Jeremie) to see what is the best solution we have” adding that the aim is to craft “a legal approach against that behaviour,” including potential new laws “to limit persons’ continuous misuse of social media and the spread of misinformation.”
He said that the measures would target harmful conduct and not legitimate public expression.
But in a statement, Beckles said that such an act “has no place in a society committed to transparency and accountability.
“In today’s communications landscape, Bloggers, digital commentators, and online journalists play a crucial role in exposing state wrongdoing, amplifying marginalized perspectives, and keeping citizens informed especially against state over-reach.
“Today, Ministers in this Government have invoked Standing Orders of the Parliament to evade scrutiny and account to the citizens through legitimate channels like our Parliament. To fill this vacuum, many socially conscious citizens keep the public updated with critical information on the functioning of our government and holding the Government accountable.”
Beckles said that the threats “to muzzle dissenting voices on the basis of threats to our national security is to attack the very foundation of a free and open society.
“It is deeply troubling that rather than addressing legitimate concerns raised by the public, the Minister has chosen to target the messengers by calling on foreign States to take action against them or invoking emergency power under the current State of Emergency to incarcerate citizens. ”
Beckles said that it is “reprehensible” that the government “is seeking to weaponize the issue of visas and the residency status of Trinbagonians overseas as a means of suppressing public discontent and for the muting of questions and lawful expression.”
She said that the main opposition People’s National Movement (PNM) is reminding citizens “that this latest development is a continuation of a very dangerous pattern of conduct by this Government that should now cause every right-thinking citizen to be repulsed.”
The opposition leader said that this latest attack on the country’s democracy comes after thousands of daily paid workers had been fired by the government , the cancellation of the Independence celebrations “under the guise of “threats to public officials” and “the declaration and extension of a State of Emergency in Trinidad and Tobago under the guise of “threats to certain public officials” as well as “the crackdown on carnival activities under the guise of “noise pollution.”
Beckles said, “We strongly condemn this attempt to weaponise State power against private citizens exercising their constitutional rights. Any government that fears criticism, has abandoned its commitment to democratic values.
“We call on the Minister to immediately retract these threats, affirm respect for free expression, and focus instead on the real issues facing the nation—issues which cannot be solved by silencing critics. The misuse of social media by anyone, can be adequately prosecuted under our criminal and civil laws,” said Beckles.
Meanwhile, the Opposition Leader is questioning the arrival here later on Tuesday of the chairman of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine.
The US Embassy said that Caine will meet with Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar and that the “visit will focus on the two nations’ strong bi-lateral relationship, strengthening regional stability, and regional unity on the vital importance of countering illicit trafficking and transnational criminal organizations”.
Caine is the 22nd chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the US’s highest-ranking military officer, and the principal military advisor to the President, Secretary of Defense, and National Security Council.
Ina statement, Beckles said Trinidad and Tobago citizens “are deeply concerned that this sudden high-level U.S. military visit, coming at a time when the Prime Minister refuses to answer even the most basic questions on national security, raises far more questions than answers.
“A government that withholds critical information from its own people, while three clueless Ministers of National Security remain silent and directionless, is operating less like a democracy and more like a dictatorship.
“The nation demands full transparency now, because Trinidad and Tobago will not accept secrecy, distraction, or a Prime Minister in hiding,” she added.
Caine’s visit here comes as the United States President Donald Trump has ramped up its military presence in the Caribbean Sea ordering an amphibious squadron to the southern Caribbean as part of his effort to address threats from Latin American drug cartels. (CMC)
