00:00During the opening ceremony of the three-day workshop focused on finding a
00:04regional approach to a migration policy in the Caribbean that began on Monday at
00:09the Hilton Trinidad Hotel, thoughts were expressed for those recovering from the
00:14passage of Hurricane Beryl in the region last week among the speakers CARICOM
00:19Assistant Secretary General Alison Drayton. It is very evident that the
00:24region has been facing and will continue to face various challenges that affect
00:28all of the lives and livelihoods of our citizens. Coming from climate change the
00:35last week has been a very unwelcome reminder of the challenges but I think
00:44provides an impetus to us to move speedily on elaborating the framework.
00:51Michel Klein-Solomon, Director of the Department of Data at the International
00:56Organization for Migration, the IOM, spoke about finding the right balance.
01:01It is of course the sovereign right of states to determine their own migration
01:07policies in conformity with international law. IOM is here to help
01:13that process at global, regional, national, and local levels as governments and the
01:22international community grapple with multiple overlapping crises while
01:28striving to achieve the sustainable development goals. We spoke with the
01:34National Security Minister to get the government's position about one key
01:39challenge with regard to the issue of migration. While many migrants arrive in
01:44Trinidad and Tobago seeking employment towards their goals of a better life
01:48there is the challenge of those who are on a different path. How does the
01:53government find that balance in dealing with the issue of migration and then the
01:58issue of dealing with national security? Yeah that's a really genuinely sensible
02:04and good question. This is the issue, this is what government is. Different
02:09individuals, different sectors in the society, in the economy, different
02:15religious groups have different perspectives on the same matter. The
02:21government's business is to take all of the matters into account and to try to
02:26find the widest and the deepest national or public interest. Minister Hines spoke
02:33of Trinidad and Tobago's commitment to being part of the international
02:36community as the nation continues to grapple with a high level of gun
02:41violence which includes murders. Because as we have migration from Venezuela for
02:46an example or Colombia, the people who come are not always the most congenial
02:54and sociable person. Sometimes gang members come among them and therefore we
03:01have these matters that constantly take into account. During his speech the
03:06National Security Minister spoke about the government's migrant registration
03:09framework established in 2019. Which allowed regular and irregular Venezuelan
03:17and all other migrants in Trinidad and Tobago to register with the state
03:24allowing them at the same time to work and live here. We didn't put them in
03:34camps anyplace, keep them in those conditions. They are allowed to roam, some
03:41marry Trinbagonians. Minister Hines also said the government very recently
03:46amended the immigration regulations to allow primary school-age children of
03:50those registered in the migrant registration framework to be able to
03:55attend the public schools in Trinidad and Tobago. In responding to the question
03:59posed by TV6 News, the National Security Minister said while most of the
04:04migrants registered, some did not. In the context of our policy which I outlined
04:09this morning, those who do not deserve the protection of the Constitution and
04:14the laws of Trinidad and Tobago will and have been repatriated to wherever they
04:20would have come from. The National Security Minister said that on a daily
04:24basis the state receives several applications from those seeking to
04:28become citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. Jule Brown, TV6 News.
Comments