A Bobo Shanti priest has written to the United Nations requesting peacekeeping troops in Trinidad and Tobago.
He claimed this country has been “caught up in the grip of brutal and murderous criminal elements.”
In his letter addressed to UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres, Priest Shakal, who hails from Champs Fleurs, said he needed to bring attention to the “appalling situation” in TT.
He introduced himself as a priest and member of the Ethiopian African Black International Congress (the Bobo Shanti mansion of Rastafarianism).
“Sir, my reason for writing to you is to demonstrate my indignation against the rampant killing of innocent civilians.”
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TT's murder toll has already surpassed 90 for 2025, and the country has been under a state of emergency since December 30, 2024.
The letter continues, “Criminals are engaged in a systematic and unwarranted looting, killing, kidnapping, raping, robberies, torture, car-jacking and beheading. After being killed, corpses have been exhumed from cemeteries and burnt to ashes. Police stations have come under a barrage of gunfire. Home invasions – thousands of people have had their homes broken into for no apparent reason.”
He said the atrocities in the country have reached a “horrifying proportion” that has left people to wonder “whether their country was liberation from the frying pan to the fire.
“Even places of worship have come under constant attack. Hindu temples have been vandalised and burnt, foodstuffs have been looted, pundits have been killed in cold blood…Catholic churches have been vandalised – their priest hog-tied, beaten and robbed…”
He then pleaded with Guterres to send UN peacekeeping troops “to restore law and order.
“The criminal's guns speak louder than any law of rational rules,” he added.
On its website, the UN says its peacekeeping services “help countries navigate the difficult path from conflict to peace.”
It adds, “We have unique strengths, including legitimacy, burden sharing, and an ability to deploy troops and police from around the world, integrating them with civilian peacekeepers to address a range of mandates set by the UN Security Council and General Assembly.”
Asked why he chose to do this, the priest told Sunday Newsday he felt compelled to “take it to the highest level…
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“It is out of control.”
On Friday, a UN spokesperson told Newsday the office had not yet received the letter.
The priest said he also plans to send a copy of his letter to President Christine Kangaloo.
