VENEZUELAN MIGRATION TO TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO. TOWARDS AN UNDERSTANDING OF CRIME, GANGS AND VIOLENT EXTREMISM

Abstract

The issue of migration has gained greater importance on the political agendas of many source and destination countries. Various efforts have been taken to monitor migratory movements at the national and international level. However, based on the dearth of literature on the topic of immigration as opposed to emigration it is clear that more needs to be done to assess the specific causes for and the implications of migration and immigration. Migration has been shown to have tremendous influence on receiving nations and existing literature has demonstrated that immigration has a significant impact on the lives of the receiving country's national population, both positively and negatively.

This paper provides an analysis of the existing evidence on the relationships between the migration of Venezuelans into Trinidad and Tobago, (T&T) crime, gang violence and violent extremism.  It argues that there is a direct link between migration and crime, including gang violence. It also shows that unlike what happens in many other migrant receiving states, there is no visible nexus between Venezuelan migration and violent extremism.

Additionally, this paper further examines the reasons for the migration of Venezuelans and the impact this migration has on Trinidad and Tobago over the period 2015-2020. It then looks at the nexus between Venezuelan migrants and crime, gang violence and extremism.  It reviews the broad range of policy responses to migration and then extracts the themes that emerged from interviews with actors in-country. It then offers some recommendations for community NGOs, security officials, and decision makers.