Former Calypso Monarch Weston “Cro Cro” Rawlins has 28 days to respond to a legal action threat by businessman Inshan Ishmael for alleged defamatory comments in his 2023 calypso, Another Sat Outside Again.
Should the veteran calypsonian fail to respond to the pre-action protocol letter by Ishmael’s attorney, Richard Jagessar, he may face the High Court.
The action pertains to Rawlins’ performance of the calypso on February 5, which mentions the name Ishmael as well as Bamboo, where Ishmael operates his business.
In the letter issued yesterday, Jagessar said Rawlins’ calypso was untrue and lowered his client’s reputation and resulted in a loss of sales at his business.
Ishmael, a used car dealer and television presenter, seeks a claim that would order Rawlins to immediately issue a written apology published in all three daily newspapers and an injunction preventing him from performing any song that defames him.
The claim also seeks an injunction to prevent Rawlins from redistributing any performance that defames Ishmael and pay general damages for defamation, aggravated damages, costs and any further reliefs the court considers fit.
“Further, take notice that we are of the view that this matter ought to be resolved amicably and quickly, failing which, we have firm instructions to file the proposed claim no later than 28 days after the date of this letter,” Jagessar said.
While the song does not mention Ishmael specifically, Jagessar said the words identify his client. He said any reasonable person would assume the Ishmael referred to in the song was his client.
He also noted Rawlins’ response to a journalist, where he did not deny Ishmael was the subject of the calypso.
Jagessar said Rawlins performed the calypso in front of over 100 people, and there were recordings of the performance on several social media platforms, making the alleged defamation widely published.
Jagessar said the alleged defamatory comments lowered Ishmael’s reputation in the community and gives people the impression Ishmael is involved in criminal activity, is a racist, lacks integrity, is a hypocrite and attacks and called upon other people in Trinidad to attack a young Afro-Trinidadian man.
“There is no justification for the words used. The performer, by his lyrics, is separating the listeners into two groups: ‘we’ and them, where ‘we’ refer to people of the performer’s race and the meaning people who sell doubles and pies and perform chutney songs. The lyrics taken as a whole are intended to divide the listeners and Trinidad and Tobago along a racial line,” Jagessar said.
