Mia, Kamla Row – Over Kamla’s Kidnapped Charge, Mia Calls It Defamatory

2026-02-28 - 13:25

A diplomatic row has emerged between Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago following sharp exchanges between Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley and Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar over the controversial 2022 detention and transfer of businessman Brent Thomas. Speaking yesterday, Mottley strongly rejected Persad-Bissessar’s description of the incident as a kidnapping, calling the allegation “a scurrilous lie and defamatory in the extreme.” The disagreement surfaced during the opening of the 50th Heads of Government Meeting of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), where Persad-Bissessar referenced the case while addressing regional cooperation and legal accountability. Dispute Over Characterisation of 2022 Incident During her speech, Persad-Bissessar stated: “In October 2022, the then-sitting T&T government coordinated the kidnapping of a Trinidad citizen from another Caricom state. He was visiting another Caricom state, and he was kidnapped. Our Supreme Court has ruled that he was kidnapped. He was placed in handcuffs, transported to the airport, and then back to Trinidad. I think an RSS plane was used to transport him. He was kidnapped.” The remarks referred to Thomas’s arrest at a hotel in Barbados and his subsequent return to Trinidad aboard a military aircraft. At the time, the operation proceeded without formal extradition proceedings initiated by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service, a key issue later scrutinized by the courts. A High Court ruling subsequently described the action as an “unlawful abduction,” leading to an official apology from the Trinidad and Tobago government. Both Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago accepted liability for breaches of constitutional rights arising from the incident. Mottley Rejects “Kidnapping” Allegation Responding publicly, Mottley said the use of the term kidnapping misrepresented the circumstances and unfairly implicated Barbadian officials. “To describe it as a kidnapping is a most unfortunate term because arrest warrants were presented by the Trinidad police to the Barbados police. As to what happened, we don’t know because we don’t get involved in operational matters. So, as it transpired, we, in fact, knew nothing about it. It is only when this matter became a public issue that we then had to launch an investigation into what transpired and it was clear that the Trinidad and Tobago police, as has been the practice for decades in this region, would have supplied an arrest warrant which the Barbados police would have acted upon.” She added: “But to describe it as kidnapping or to suggest that any member of Cabinet or any member of the permanent secretary class or government of Barbados is involved in kidnapping is a scurrilous lie and defamatory in the extreme. We all know what transpired and it is regrettable that it happened.” Push for Regional Legal Reform Despite rejecting the accusation, Mottley acknowledged that the incident exposed weaknesses in longstanding informal cooperation among Caribbean law-enforcement agencies. “We understood at the time and we said, our attorney general said at the time, that the formal process of extradition, which we do extra-regionally with other countries, has not and was not practiced in the region among ourselves by any country in the region. And therefore, to that extent, we acknowledge that we need to be able to change how we operate,” she said. She pointed to ongoing efforts to implement the CARICOM Arrest Warrant system, designed to standardize procedures for cross-border arrests and transfers within the region. Although the treaty entered into force at the regional level in 2018, it only becomes enforceable once individual member states pass domestic legislation. Several countries remain at different stages of implementation. Diplomatic Tone Softens Despite the strong language used by Mottley, Persad-Bissessar signaled there was no personal dispute between the leaders. “She (Mottley) repeated what her former AG Dale Marshall said in their parliament in 2023 regarding the Brent Thomas case. I don’t see anything wrong with that,” Persad-Bissessar said. “Sure, she did an interview and gave her views in a pleasant manner. I don’t see any issue.” Broader Regional Implications The exchange highlights ongoing challenges facing Caribbean governments as they attempt to balance regional security cooperation with constitutional protections and due process. Legal experts have noted that increased movement of people and criminal networks across borders has intensified pressure on CARICOM states to modernize extradition and policing frameworks. As leaders continue discussions on justice reform and regional integration, the controversy has renewed urgency to harmonize legal systems to prevent similar disputes and strengthen trust among Caribbean nations.