Businessman, activist and media personality Inshan Ishmael passed away yesterday after an 18-month battle with renal cancer.
The outspoken Ishmael succumbed to the disease around 10.30 am. His son, Zaakir Ishmael, announced his father’s death in a Facebook post, saying he “passed peacefully” among his family.
Ishmael was 57 years old.
He operated a roll-on, roll-off vehicle and car parts business for 20 years, but was best known as the founder of the Islamic Broadcasting Network (IBN) and host of Breaking Barriers programme on the channel. Over the years, he became a vocal advocate on social and political issues, even fighting in the courts to have the name of the country’s highest award changed—a battle he won.
Earlier this year, Ishmael revealed his battle with cancer.
Yesterday, hundreds of people from all walks of life turned out at Barakah Grounds, Endeavour, Chaguanas, to pay their final respects. He was laid to rest under Islamic rites.
Among the mourners was his daughter, Zaariyah Ishmael, who fought back tears as she delivered a tribute to her father and his legacy.
“My love to everyone. I thank everyone for being here and for the opportunity to know my family. The past few weeks have been rough,” she said, recalling her father’s final days.
She described the bond she shared with him and how, even in his weakest moments, Ishmael radiated love and strength.
“Every time I came into his room, he would smile at me and tell me to smile back. He looked at me like I knew him. He could see so much beauty in me, even when I looked terrible—no make-up, nothing.”
Zaariyah shared that in his last days, her father asked her to carry his message of love.
“He said, ‘Zaria, I want you to speak in my ear. I want you to spread, and feel, and let everybody know that I love you.’ He never doubted his faith. He would always tell me, ‘Zaria, pray.’ Even in pain, his faith kept him strong.”
Over the years, Inshan Ishmael was no stranger to controversy and the courts.
In 2023, he battled the Tunapuna Piarco Regional Corporation over a barrier and guard booth in Bamboo #2, Valsayn, as a means of countering rising crime in the area. Despite his efforts, the booth and barrier were demolished by the corporation.
He also faced veteran calypsonian Weston Rawlins, also known as Cro Cro, in court over defamation in a song. The judge ruled in Ishmael’s favour, but there was a stay of the $250,000 awarded to him this year.
In 2005, Ishmael famously joined former Sanatan Dharma Maha Saba general secretary Satnarayan Maharaj, now deceased, in challenging the constitutionality of the Trinity Cross—the then name of the country’s highest award—arguing that it was discriminatory to non-Christians.
In 2007, he was arrested under the Anti-Terrorism Act after distributing flyers, a move widely criticised as heavy-handed. He later faced firearms and assault charges in 2017 but was acquitted in 2020 and successfully sued the State for wrongful arrest and malicious prosecution, winning over $300,000 in damages.
Aside from his activism, Ishmael was also a philanthropist, assisting and arranging help for those in need. He was laid to rest at the El Socorro Islamic Cemetery.
