The Hall of Justice, Port of Spain. - File photo
SENIOR Magistrate Taramatie Ramdass revoked the occasional bar and dancehall licences granted to Classic Kings Promotions for the November Freeze dancehall event, originally scheduled for this Saturday, November 16, at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Tarouba.
The revocation, made on November 15, follows the promoters’ decision to cancel the event. Police, represented by Senior Counsel Ravi Rajcoomar, successfully petitioned the court to revoke the licences after informing Magistrate Ramdass of the event’s cancellation.
“At the end of the day, if the event is cancelled, there is no need for a licence,” Rajcoomar argued, noting that the only alternative would have been to send the matter back to the Licensing Committee.
Attorney Krysan Rambert, representing Classic Kings Promotions, provided an undertaking that the licences would not be used, prompting Magistrate Ramdass to revoke them immediately.
The decision comes just one day after the San Fernando Licensing Committee overruled police objections to grant the licences. The committee, chaired by Magistracy Registrar Krishna Jaglal, determined that the police failed to prove that the event posed a credible risk to public safety or was linked to gang activity.
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The promoters had planned for an increased police presence of over 100 officers to address safety concerns. However, promoter Kyle Yarde revealed that the cancellation was inevitable after attorneys for two headlining Jamaican dancehall acts —Chronic Law and Najeeri— indicated their clients would be denied entry into Trinidad and Tobago.
“How can a show go on without the main acts? There is no show,” Yarde admitted, expressing frustration at the financial losses incurred.
Yarde criticised the police’s opposition to the event, calling it a blow to local entrepreneurship.
“How do you shut down an entire event? How is this a crime-fighting strategy to hurt a businessman’s livelihood? I’ve sold tickets, paid for the venue, and invested heavily, and two days before, they want to shut it down. It’s very sad,” he lamented.
Yarde questioned whether promoters were being unfairly targeted, adding, “We are not the source of crime. Why is the state targeting us? Is that the initiative to fight crime?
"How can a promoter recover from this?" he asked.
Acting ASP Wayne Stanley, of the Special Investigations Unit, had previously objected to the event during the Licensing Committee hearing. He presented evidence linking certain dancehall artists and their music to gang activity, arguing that their lyrical content often glorifies gun violence, drug use, and other criminal behaviours, potentially inciting violence.
The heightened scrutiny comes amid a surge in gang-related murders across TT in 2024, particularly in high-risk areas like Port of Spain and North East Trinidad. Police have also pointed to recent violence in the local music community, including incidents involving Trinibad artists, as justification for their cautious approach to such events.
This latest cancellation follows a series of similar decisions, including the revocation of permissions for a Beetham Gardens party last week and an event celebrating Trinibad artist Kman Sixx’s birthday was called off in Port of Spain for lack of necessary legal approvals.
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Attorney Jason Jackson also represented Classic Kings Promotions.
