Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar is demanding that Government regularize all Venezuelans with migrant cards who do not have criminal records and allow them to hold driving permits and begin contributing to the NIS system.
In a press release yesterday, Persad-Bissessar said Venezuelan migrants who are law-abiding and contributing to T&T’s economy should be fully integrated into society.
“I am extremely disappointed that the Government has not yet seen it fit to honour our international obligations under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. Instead, the Government implemented a haphazard policy in 2020 and they recklessly failed to follow up on supporting policies and programmes,” she said.
The Opposition Leader added: “Migrants cannot obtain driver’s licences and cannot be registered for National Insurance. They cannot tell employers that it’s okay to hire them because their migrant permits have expired and their academic qualifications are not recognized. They are unbanked and vulnerable to exploitation.”
She also noted: “Our public primary healthcare system is apparently open to them, but how effective is that when our medical staff do not speak their language?”
Persad-Bissessar called for eligible migrants to be fully integrated into society by:
Regularising all who hold migrant cards and have no police record.
Allowing Venezuelan migrant card holders to be allowed to apply for driver’s permits.
Allowing Venezuelan migrants to pay all applicable taxes as T&T citizens and to begin contributing to the NIS.
Allowing Venezuelan children to attend public schools to educate themselves.
Allowing part of T&T’s medical staff to be trained in basic Spanish to allow Venezuelans to access medical care.
