00:00The Trinidad and Tobago National Nursing Association says it had been preparing to stage a demonstration in the coming weeks
00:07to highlight concerns affecting health care workers.
00:10According to the association, the protest was expected to take place outside Parliament, where nurses hoped to draw attention to
00:17issues including wages and working conditions.
00:21However, Parliament is among 15 locations designated as a no-protest zone under recently introduced regulations.
00:28Another issue, the association was signaling to the public and the government that we were planning a demonstration in the
00:40coming days and weeks.
00:42And it was supposed to terminate at the Parliament because we believe the parliamentarians, the policy makers, the Minister of
00:51Health, the Minister of Finance, the Prime Minister must hear the voices of health care workers who continue to work
00:59on 2013 salaries without any mention or any notice when they would get their increase.
01:06So the association was preparing for our demonstration in the coming days to Parliament.
01:14And Parliament is the first place listed in these regulations that have been banned.
01:21He argues that limiting access to those locations could reduce the effectiveness of public demonstrations.
01:27Now it has been taken away, the Ministry of Finance, the Office of the Prime Minister, the Diplomatics Center, Parliament,
01:37since all of these areas where unions normally go to protest has been taken away.
01:44Now it appears unions will have to become extremely creative and protest in other areas where these policy makers possibly
01:55reside.
01:56The nursing association president also questioned whether the measures strike the right balance between public order and citizens' constitutional rights.
02:05He noted that when the state of emergency was introduced, government officials indicated that the focus would be on tackling
02:12criminal activity rather than restricting the activities of law-abiding citizens.
02:18And ironically, we are at a position approaching the month of June 2026 where it appears, it has moved, it
02:31has mushroomed out of dealing with criminal gangs and now targeting citizens who used to have the legitimate right to
02:42express their dissatisfaction
02:44with policies made by our parliamentarians.
02:49Despite the restrictions, Stewart says the association remains committed to advocating on behalf of healthcare workers and is exploring alternative
02:57ways to ensure its concerns are heard.
03:00Charlotte Kisto, TV6 News.
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