Over the Years

 Along the way…Trinidad and Tobago Police Service

Explored by Christopher Columbus, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) attained its independence from British colonial rule in 1962. It is considered as one of the most prosperous Caribbean country largely because of its extractive industries and thriving tourism.

Policing in Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad under Spanish Rule

Trinidad remained in Spanish possession, despite raids by other European countries, before it was ultimately seceded to Britain in 1802. Tobago passed between Britain and France several times, but was given to Britain in 1814. It was in 1889 that the two islands were made into a single colony. Under Spanish law before the conquest of Trinidad by the British forces, the police force came under the control of the Mayor of Agualcil, who was a member of the Illustrious Cabildo which formed the effective government of the colony. The police in those days comprised of six men who functioned out of St. Joseph, the old capital of Trinidad. The ethnic inhabitants, Arawaks rebelled intensely against the Spanish colonial establishment leaving the six person police contingent completely ineffective. The establishment headed by Governor Chacon was in shambles with Trinidad facing a real turbulent time when the Britishers came in.

A town police post at Laventille / Morvant Source: Trinidad Express

The arrival of the British

Colonel Thomas Picton commanded the island of Trinidad. He dealt forcefully with insurgents and revolutionaries by deportations, public hangings, decapitations at the town gate and other public places to create a climate of fear.

The military tradition of the police service in Trinidad, which has come down to the present, has its origins from Picton's time. Picton instituted the compulsory enlistment of Free Blacks and coloured men into the police and as a result the force was soon regarded not as an essential service but more as a form of punishment.

The police force became an important employer for the Barbadians, Grenadians and Vincentians and other 'small islanders' who came in great numbers to the island. As former police commissioner Eustace Bernard writes in his memoirs, " The Trinidadian thought it was unfortunate to become a policeman and that the status if any was very low indeed."

The structure at that time

From six men, the police service rose to hundred constables in 1823. These constables were mainly from Barbados. The commissioned officers were from Europe, with an inspector later called Inspector Commandment in charge of the service. He was assisted by two sub-inspectors. Not all Barbadians who entered the force in those years had African ancestors. There was in Barbados a relatively large community of impoverished Europeans, who had been transported to the island during the previous century, to serve as servants to the police officials. They were called " Red Legs" .

The year 1862 saw the establishment of a "plain clothes detective branch". In 1876, the first official Police Headquarters was built. It contained a residence for the head of the force as well as quarters for the volunteer corps. In 1877, five members of the Royal Irish Constabulary were brought into the local police force.

The police force gradually strengthened with changes in the command structure. The police service was severely tested in the last decade of the 19th century with the Hosay Riots. It was only in 1903 that the police service came to be recognised as a major service provider. The higher echelons of command structure were still held by the Britishers. The locals other than looking into security considerations were mainly 'trained' to make beds, sweep floors, clean the yards and chop wood for their British counterparts.

Meanwhile in Tobago…

The island of Tobago had no specific police authority managing its security concerns. The commander of the Trinidad police service was also in charge of the security in the island of Tobago.

Trinidad and Tobago Police Service as of now…

Eustace Bernard was the first local man who rose from the rank of a constable to the Commissioner of Police in 1943. The Police Service is divided between the police and the fire and ambulance services and is under the Ministry of National Security.

The police have eight divisions - seven on Trinidad and one on Tobago. Branches include a riot control unit (called the Police Mobile Force), units for highway control and crime investigation, and a court and process unit, which is responsible for preparing court cases up to committal proceedings. Although most police personnel are trained at the Police Training School, trainee constables are occasionally sent to Britain for additional training.

Drug trafficking has presented serious national security problems in the country. The Scott Drug Report which was made public in 1987 described an explosive increase in the use of cocaine, attributing it to Trinidad and Tobago's location on the trade route between the producers in Peru, Bolivia, Colombia and the main market in the United States. It implicated many policemen, some of whom held senior posts. Since then, a special task force has been set up which deals with drug trafficking.

The Jewish influence There is no synagogue in Trinidad and Tobago, and you can count the number of Jews here on one hand, but their influence, and the marks they have left behind remind the natives that they once had a bigger presence in the country. One of the foremost marks of the Jewish presence is the Magen David or the six-point Star of David. This symbol adorns the local Police jeeps, flag, hats and buttons on the blue and gray uniform. In its center is the copper romped Hummingbird. The history dates back to the 1930s when Trinidad was still under British colonial rule. British Police Commissioner, Colonel Arthur Stephen Mavrogordato was stationed in Palestine before he took over the commanding position of the Trinidad Constabulary. It was he who suggested the Magen David be used as the police emblem, a symbol he had known from the Palestine flag. Some attribute the use of the Magen David to the fact that it was considered as a talisman that brought good luck. The use of the Magen David as the police emblem makes the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service as the only unique police service in the world that does not use its country's Coat of Arms as its official symbol.