Introducing legislation to protect our elderly

Our coun­try is steeped in cul­ture and tra­di­tion. Our blend of African and In­di­an in­flu­ences cre­ates a unique iden­ti­ty, set­ting us apart from many oth­er coun­tries and is­lands. Our is­land’s sto­ry stems from mi­gra­tion, coloni­sa­tion, and re­silience. Our mu­sic, food, and fes­ti­vals re­flect where we came from, the strug­gles we en­dured, and the hope for the fu­ture we are build­ing. Some tra­di­tions will last much longer than oth­ers, and some tra­di­tions may be so dat­ed that the time for change has come.

In many coun­tries across the world, chil­dren jour­ney off to uni­ver­si­ty be­tween the ages of 17 and 18; most nev­er re­turn home to re­side per­ma­nent­ly, but ven­ture off to job op­por­tu­ni­ties and life out­side of their par­ents’ roof. Even birds throw their ba­bies out of the nest when it is time for them to fly.

In­de­pen­dence from par­ents is viewed as es­sen­tial in some cul­tures and even in the an­i­mal king­dom. In sweet T&T, we have clung to the tra­di­tion of ex­tend­ed fam­i­lies. There is a com­fort to both par­ents and adult chil­dren of con­tin­u­ing to live un­der the same roof, long af­ter par­ents have grown old and frail and chil­dren have be­come par­ents them­selves. A mu­tu­al ben­e­fit ex­ists in ex­tend­ed fam­i­lies, but on­ly so long as mu­tu­al love and re­spect con­tin­ue to ex­ist.