By Paras Ramoutar, IANS,
Port-of-Spain : When Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh comes here to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in November, top notch security will be put in place for him and other world leaders.
Trinidad and Tobago Foreign Affairs Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon has said the Caribbean country will be going all out “to ensure the safety and security of heads of government and officials at the parley” during Nov 27-29.
She said her government will seek assistance from its CARICOM (Caribbean Community and Common Market) partners and even Commonwealth member countries to ensure the heightened security needed for CHOGM.
“I should say all matters related to the security of heads at the meeting of CHOGM in November and other officials and members of delegations are of critical importance to the government of Trinidad and Tobago,” she said.
The minister said negotiations are well under way with other Caribbean countries to have assistance from their national security forces as well.
“So far, visiting officials of the Commonwealth Secretariat have both formally and informally expressed satisfaction with the level of preparedness of the government,” she said.
Trinidad and Tobago is drawing heavily from its experience when it hosted the Fifth Summit of the Americas last April attended by 33 leaders of the Organisation of American States (OAS), including US President Barack Obama.
Manmohan Singh will be paying his first visit to this country since he became prime minister of India in 2004. Over 50 world leaders are expected to attend CHOGM.
Trinidad and Tobago and India are members of the Commonwealth of Nations, having been former members under the British Empire.
This country’s population of 1.3 million includes 44 percent people of Indian origin, whose forefathers migrated largely from the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar between 1845 and 1917.
(Paras Ramoutar can be contacted at [email protected])