Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 13/12/2025 09:48

Trinidad and Tobago needs complete fireworks ban now

THE EDITOR: Every year citizens across TT brace for the same nightmare: fireworks exploding in residential areas, traumatised children and elderly, terrified animals, and communities drowning in noise. Now the government proposes a “permit system” for individuals – a plan so weak, so porous, and so ripe for corruption that it almost guarantees failure. There can be no compromise when the mental and physical well-being of a nation is at stake. Allowing “controlled” fireworks is like allowing “limited” murder. The danger is the danger – no permit will change that. Many citizens remember nights spent comforting shaking pets, calming children in tears, or checking on frail relatives rattled by explosions. One woman I spoke with described her elderly father clutching his chest during a burst of illegal fireworks. “I thought I would lose him,” she said. These are not rare stories; they are the lived reality of thousands. Other nations – from Ireland to Argentina to several Australian states – have banned consumer fireworks entirely. Why? Because governments recognised what ours still pretends not to see: public safety must outweigh private entertainment. Here at home, another crisis unfolds daily: uncontrolled noise pollution. Recreational areas meant for peace – rivers, beaches, parks – are hijacked by vehicles packed with giant boom boxes, leaving no space for anything but the driver and the deafening assault they unleash. This is not culture. This is not enjoyment. This is environmental and psychological harm masquerading as “fun.” Yet, the Chaguaramas Development Authority shows us what enforcement looks like. They patrol, they monitor, they protect the peace. If one small region can do it, why can’t the entire country? The law already recognises our right to quiet enjoyment of public spaces. Section after section of environmental and nuisance legislation sits unused, unenforced, untouched. What good are laws if they exist only on paper? It is time for decisive action: • Total ban on consumer fireworks – no individual permits, no loopholes. • Full enforcement of existing noise-pollution laws, nationwide. • Patrols in all recreational areas, modelled after the CDA. • Clamping down on noise boxes in recreational areas and heavy penalties for repeat offenders. Peace is not a luxury. Peace is a right. TT deserves better than another round of explosions, excuses, and empty promises. A complete fireworks ban is not extreme – it is overdue. RAVI C RAMKISSOON Tunapuna The post Trinidad and Tobago needs complete fireworks ban now appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.