Prime Min­is­ter Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar, in her Christ­mas mes­sage, has em­pha­sised the im­por­tance of safe­ty, com­pas­sion, and re­flec­tion dur­ing the fes­tive sea­son.

Re­flect­ing on the life of Je­sus Christ, she said, “He has sent me to pro­claim free­dom for the cap­tives and to set the op­pressed free (Luke 4:18). Christ’s life re­minds us that true strength is found in ser­vice, and that au­thor­i­ty with­out com­pas­sion be­comes op­pres­sion.”

She high­light­ed the na­tion’s free­doms, not­ing, “In Trinidad and To­ba­go, we are blessed to cel­e­brate Christ­mas safe­ly with our fam­i­lies and com­mu­ni­ties. Homes are filled with light, mu­sic, and joy, made pos­si­ble be­cause we are free to wor­ship, gath­er, and live with­out fear.”

Ac­knowl­edg­ing chal­lenges in the wider Caribbean, the Prime Min­is­ter added, “Yet we re­main mind­ful that many in our re­gion face re­pres­sion, vi­o­lence, and eco­nom­ic hard­ship. Tyran­ny and op­pres­sion have torn fam­i­lies apart, forc­ing many in­to refugee lives. Christ­mas is a re­minder that in­jus­tice does not en­dure and hope al­ways shines in the dark­ness.”

Look­ing back on the past year, she said, “Our na­tion has be­gun to steady it­self. There is re­newed se­ri­ous­ness in pub­lic life and a stronger fo­cus on ser­vice, re­spon­si­bil­i­ty, and in­tegri­ty. Chal­lenges re­main, but I am con­fi­dent that plac­ing the wel­fare of our peo­ple first will shape a brighter fu­ture.”

Prime Min­is­ter Per­sad-Bisses­sar urged cit­i­zens to pri­ori­tise safe­ty, warn­ing against drunk-dri­ving and stress­ing the need to pro­tect chil­dren and vul­ner­a­ble mem­bers of the com­mu­ni­ty.

“Be care­ful on our roads. Do not drink and dri­ve. En­sure that chil­dren are su­per­vised and pro­tect­ed at all times. Look out for your neigh­bours and care for your fam­i­lies and pets. These acts of re­spon­si­bil­i­ty are acts of love,” she said, em­pha­sis­ing that safe­ty is cen­tral to a joy­ful and peace­ful Christ­mas.

She con­clud­ed with a mes­sage of hope and faith:

“May we all re­joice in the gifts of light Christ­mas brings: love that warms our hearts, faith that guides our jour­ney, and hope that as­sures us op­pres­sion and in­jus­tice are nev­er the fi­nal word.”