While members of the Beetham community have repeatedly blamed neglect and lack of jobs for protests, which have included blocking roads and the highway, a brief look at the community's history shows that the majority of protests have been due to some type of conflict with police.
The protests have mostly stemmed from incidents where police shot or killed members of the community, or police arrested a member of the community.
Last week, residents of Beetham Gardens spilled onto the highway, dragging debris and throwing items at oncoming vehicles as they raged against what they claimed to view as neglect and a lack of jobs.
The residents called for those in authority to agree to give contracts to residents to clean the drains in and around their community. That same morning, two residents of the community, well-known to police, were detained for questioning, but residents said their action had nothing to do with this.
On Friday, the Prime Minister addressed the nation and said he had instructed Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams and the Minister of National Security Edmund Dillon to do what was necessary to enforce the law.
In Parliament, also on Friday, Dillon said the plan to treat with such incidents was more community outreach.
He was replying to Opposition questions in Parliament on the protest.
Dillon, in a written statement, later detailed measures the ministry intends to implement in order to improve trust between the TTPS and citizens.
He said, “The TTPS has indicated that the organization will continue its efforts to increase the level of trust and confidence between the police and citizens.
"This will be achieved through the continuation of the following initiatives of the TTPS: Prosecute and discipline errant officers, engage directly with community members through town meetings, Station Action Councils, neighbourhood watch groups. It also involves the continuation of Community Policing initiatives and increased participation in Police Youth Clubs."
Police intend to remove kid gloves
While Dr Rowley and Dillon provide policy and instructions, the person in charge of the Port-of-Spain Division of the T&T Police Service, Senior Superintendent Floris Hodge-Griffith, yesterday said her officers were prepared to remove the kid gloves they used to treat the community.
"As the commander in charge of the division I am telling you, I am not prepared to treat with that situation lightly, I was disappointed in the residents.
"We spend time, resources and energy to uplift the community with youth programmes and homework programmes. What people would have seen over the years was a police service not trying to aggravate a delicate situation.
"We've done a lot of community work there and we have programmes and officers dedicated to those areas, but I believe the time has come that we will no longer treat them with kid gloves."
The police are still reviewing footage in order to identify people who would have broken the law on Thursday.
Charges can range from offences such as throwing missiles, loitering or being a public nuisance.
She said the Police Service was aware that there were law-abiding citizens in the community and the police wanted to help them.
The Sunday Guardian attempted to speak to Laventille West MP Fitzgerald Hinds about plans for the community.
Residents said they had not heard from or seen Hinds since the incident. While Hinds was present in Parliament on Friday, he did not answer calls from this reporter or respond to a text message sent to his phone.
—reporting by Gail Alexander
Doma: Efforts must be made to guarantee there is no repeat
In response to questions about how such protests affected the capital city, President of the Downtown Owners and Merchants Association Gregory Aboud said the situation needed both short-term and long-term solutions.
"In the short term, the episode creates a tremendous apprehension among the public on all strata of the society. Without the highway access to the city is reduced to a trickle on the Eastern Main Road side and that would have an immediate impact on access to the city and people's willingness to access. It does not take much imagination to understand it has a negative impact on the future of the capital of our country," Aboud said.
He said the long-term issue was one of alternate access and the need for variable points of access to and from the capital, which he said was an issue which had attracted action from none of the successive regimes.
"It is not just the commercial point of view of the highway being critical to the capital city but the entire western peninsula not only for commerce but in case of national disasters. It is untenable that there should be one major artery that connects West to East and South."
He said another long-term issue which arose was the future of the people at the Beetham Gardens
"The society at large is being questioned about its tolerance of lawlessness in other areas of national life including in the disbursement of lucrative contracts and disbursement of public funds on the one hand, while on the other hand speaking to other classes in this society about the need for lawful behaviour.
"In the short-term, every effort must be made to guarantee no repeat of this episode of chaos but in the medium term action must begin at once to create a more just society in which everyone understands that law and order are being maintained across all boundaries and strata of the society."
Look back at protests by Beetham residents:
November 23, 2017—Beetham residents protested on the Priority Bus Route and Beetham Highway in what residents have described as a demand for jobs, though conflicting reports suggested the protest was in response to the detention of two men in the community.
August 28, 2017—Beetham Gardens residents staged a heated protest during which they threatened the police and threw debris onto the Beetham Highway. The residents claimed the police were unfairly targeting people in the area.
May 1, 2017—Beetham residents protest after a community leader was taken into police custody for the possession of marijuana. While the community claims police victimisation and abuse of power, police labelled the exercise a success.
Jan 17 2017—Beetham Gardens residents protested along the Priority Bus Route in January, claiming that rum manufacturer Angostura Ltd has been pouring industrial effluent into the drains alongside their homes for years and they would not take it any more.
Jan 24, 2014—Beetham Gardens attempted to block a portion of the Beetham Highway and then the Priority Bus Route in the vicinity of Pashley Street, Laventille, in protest, after Randy Williams, 25, a father of three, of Phase Five, was shot during an encounter with the police outside the Beetham Landfill.
Sept, 1, 2013—Beetham Gardens residents protested over the police shooting of Christopher Greaves. Residents of the area began fiery protests after Greaves, 23, was shot dead by police. The protests were staged along the Eastern Main Road, Priority Bus Route and Beetham Highway, with residents blocking the roadways with debris, confronting police and even throwing rocks and other pieces of debris at vehicles along the PBR and the highway.
May 24, 2012—Beetham Gardens residents burned tyres, old fridges and furniture blocking the east-bound lane of the Beetham Highway to protest a lack of jobs and complain of government neglect.
July 1, 2011—Angry residents of Beethem Gardens lit large piles of debris on fire on both the bus route and the east-bound lane of the Beetham Highway. According to police, the protest was in retaliation over the arrest of a well-known gang leader who was arrested at his Beethem Gardens residence. Residents alleged they faced police brutality during the arrest.
Jan 29 2011—Beetham Gardens residents blocked the Priority Bus Route and the east-bound lane of the Beetham Highway to highlight "police oppression and brutality" in their area, following a police exercise in the area which saw the arrest of a known "community leader" who was wanted for shooting at the police. Another 27 men, with the eldest being 60 and the youngest 19, were detained for outstanding warrants, possession of firearms and ammunition, shooting with intent, robbery, common assault and possession of narcotics, according to police.
Oct 10, 2009—Beetham residents blocked the highway and part of the Priority Bus Route after police killed two men.