Richards holds back for George - Trinidad Guardian Article

http://legacy.guardian.co.tt/archives/2004-09-01/news3.html

Richards holds back for George

Rhonda Charles gets the Hummingbird silver medal from President George Maxwell Richards.

BY SHERWIN LONG
In an unprecedented gesture, President George Maxwell Richards last night prolonged the national awards ceremony to await the arrival of Olympic bronze medallist George Bovell III.
Bovell’s return flight from Athens, Greece, arrived in Trinidad late, and he received the Chaconia gold medal at President’s House, St Ann’s, a few minutes before 8 pm.
Guests who were enjoying the cocktail reception returned to their seats to witness the presentation to T&T’s only medal recipient at this year’s Olympics.
Richards had given all the other awardees their medals earlier.
Delighted to be back home, Bovell wished the country a happy independence and thanked the nation for its support.
“I’m glad I could show the world a powerhouse of our small island and make everybody proud,” he said.
Decked in his Olympic track suit, Bovell said he would take a week off before returning to Auburn University in the US.
Bovell, 21, was one of three young heroes at the ceremony.
He shared the spotlight with 16-year-old Veera Bhajan and 17-year-old Rhonda Charles.
Charles received the Hummingbird silver medal for gallantry, after rescuing a blind woman and her seven-month-old grandaughter from a fire.
Bhajan was honoured with the Hummingbird silver for youth inspiration and development.
The St Augustine Girls’ High School student has no arms and learned to write with her toes.
She gained five distinctions in her CXC examinations and will pursue her A’ Levels studies this term.
Prime Minister Patrick Manning, his wife Hazel, Chief Justice Satnarine Sharma and his wife Kalawaty were among those in attendance.


Student Veera Bhajan gets the Hummingbird silver medal from President George Maxwell Richards.
Photos: SHIRLEY BAHADUR
THE AWARDS
CHACONIA MEDAL (GOLD)
Stephen Michael Ames (Sport)
Arthur Lok Jack (Business)
Zaida Rajnauth (Public service)
Sarah Gloriana Whiteman
(Community service)
Malcolm Anthony Jones
(National economic development)
Joan Massiah (Public service)
George Richard Lycott Bovell III (Sport)
CHACONIA MEDAL (SILVER)
Fenrick R De Four
(Posthumous - public service)
Malick Folk Performing Company (Culture)
Clico Shiv Shakti Dance Company (Culture)
HUMMING BIRD MEDAL (GOLD)
Cynthia Bell (Community service)
Alyson Brown (Culture)
Roy Francis Cape (Culture)
Barnabas Ramon Fortune
(Posthumous - culture)
Felix Roach (Culture)
The WR Torres Foundation for the Blind (Community service)
Edward Williams
(Posthumous - gallantry/loyalty)
Jacqueline Koon How (Culture)
HUMMING BIRD MEDAL (SILVER)
Veera Bhajan (Youth inspiration & development)
Vishwananth Arjoon (Gallantry)
Raj Karan Jadoo
(Community service)
Emmanuel Juman
(Community service)
The Lara Brothers (Culture)
Albert ‘Al’ Ramsawack (Culture)
Chandarath Choko Sookram
(Community service)
Rhonda Charles (Gallantry)
THE PUBLIC SERVICE MEDAL OF MERIT (GOLD)
Joseph Allard (Public service)
Cislyn Baptiste (Public service)
Pamella Benson (Public service)
Carl de Souza (Public service)
Kenneth Phillip (Community service)
Frank Porter (Community service)
 

Plucky Priya’s moment BY LARA PICKFORD-GORDON Saturday, September 1 2007

http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,63399.html

Plucky Priya’s moment

BY LARA PICKFORD-GORDON Saturday, September 1 2007

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FIVE-YEAR-old Priya Seeram yesterday said she was excited and happy she received a Hummingbird Bronze Medal for gallantry.

As she left the stage after receiving her medal from President George Maxwell Richards, little Priya was seen walking with a confident “bounce” and displaying her medal.

Seeram told Newsday that she was not nervous about going on stage in front of the large audience gathered at the spanking new Diplomatic Centre to witness the National Awards Ceremony. There were only a few empty seats in the hall which had a seating capacity of 450.

Priya who will start first year at the Rochard Douglas Presbyterian School in Barrackpore this September, was asked if she will take her medal to school. She said she was going to show her aunty and, “if she let’s me, I will take it to school to show it to my friends.”

Priya said that when she gets home she will show her cousin, Candice Beharry, her medal.

It was through her act of bravery in raising an alarm when Candice was kidnaped that Priya received her award for gallantry. She said that during that incident in September 2006 she was scared but she still tried to get help.

Candice’s mother Chitrita Beharry said that even up to yesterday evening before the ceremony Priya did not understand why she was getting the award.

“She did not know what she was getting the award for, so we explained to her,” she said. Meanwhile, President George Maxwell Richards yesterday revealed that Dr Brian Copeland will receive this nation’s highest award when a decision is made as to the replacement for the Trinity Cross.

The President made this announcement during a closing address at the end of yesterday’s ceremony.

Richards reminded the audience that no highest award was presented this year because Government has not yet taken a final decision on the recommendations of the Committee set up to review all aspects of this award.

Dr Copeland headed the Genesis pan project which was launched at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine last July. He headed the Project Team.

Richards commended the team for developing a new, exciting and innovative instrument which is the “only discovery so far in the 21 st century.” Dr Copeland said he was speechless on hearing the President’s announcement. He said the Award also recognised the efforts of people involved in the technical areas who have been labouring to improve the steelpan over the years.

Four persons were absent from yesterday’s ceremony. Chaconia (Silver) winner Dunbar Mc Intyre; Chaconia (Bronze) posthumous recipient Agathon Aerni had no one to accept on his behalf. Also absent were Dean Knolly Clarke (Humming Bird (Gold)) and Louis Bryan (Public Service Medal of Merit (Gold)

Linking copyrighted info, legal or not!

Should Linking To Copyrighted Material Be Illegal?

 
Despite how you feel on the matter, online piracy is illegal. Various courts throughout the country have said again and again that uploading pirated works on the Internet for others to download is illegal. The copyright lobby hasn’t really done much about it in recent years after finding out that suing everybody wasn’t good for their image. There is, however, a new war that the copyright lobby is waging that’s far more murky in its legality.
The courts are now having to deal with the issue of linking to content that may be illegal. Copyright law has generally been applied to those who host the content themselves. Now the law is being applied to sites that host zero content, but rather link to content on other Web sites. That’s where the case of Anton Vickerman comes in.
Should linking to copyrighted material be illegal? Where do we draw the line in copyright law? Let us know in the comments.
It was reported Monday that Vickerman was convicted on two counts of conspiracy to defraud. He now stands to serve four years in prison for running surfthechannel.com. The Web site hosted links to content off site – both legal and illegal. He was said to have made £250,000 through advertisements on the site in 2008.
The interesting part is that Vickerman could not be charged for copyright violation. The prosecution had to go with charges of conspiracy to facilitate copyright infringement. Facilitating copyright infringement is a hard sell in most courts because most people charged with the crime usually aren’t aware that the content they’re linking to illegal.
Unfortunately for Vickerman, he sold advertisements on his Web site. The mere fact that he made money by linking to this illegal content is what doomed him in the first place. The prosecution stated that Vickerman’s Web site “was created specifically to make money from criminal activity.” The defense obviously argued that this was not the case, but it’s hard to argue with the £250,000 made over the course of a year. That’s obviously more than what running a link aggregator would cost.
It causes one to think if the result would have been the same if Vicerkman had made no money off of the site. There are plenty of other sites out there that only link to illegal content, but make no money from it. They pay for the servers out of their own pocket or with donations from users. It seems to be a legal gray area that only becomes criminal activity once the site owner starts to make money off of it.
Vickerman isn’t the only UK resident who is facing charges over linking to illegal content, nor is he the most well known. We’ve covered the extradition case of Richard O’Dwyer extensively over the past year and it’s far messier than Vickerman’s case ever was.
For those who need a refresher, O’Dwyer is a 23-year-old from the U.K. who is going to be extradited to the U.S. for copyright infringement. What was his crime? He linked to online streaming videos of U.S. television shows and movies. The kind of shows that citizens in the U.K. can’t easily gain access to until months after their original airing in the U.S.
Just like Vickerman, however, O’Dwyer is being charged because he made money off of his Web site – TVshack.net. The site was reported to have had about 300,000 users per month and he made about £147,000 in revenue over three years from the site. For his crimes, O’Dwyer would be extradited to the U.S. where he could face up to 10 years in prison.
Of course, this brings us to the difference between O’Dwyer and Vickerman. Why can one be tried in the U.K. while the other has to be tried in the U.S.? Many groups and activists don’t see a difference and are fighting to have O’Dwyer tried in his native country. Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales started a petition in June that called for the halting of O’Dwyer’s extradition. He even went so far to say that O’Dwyer is the “human face of the battle between the content industry and the interests of the general public.”
O’Dwyer’s mother even jumped into the fray with a passionate plea for her son to remain in the U.K. She said that her son’s extradition is not about copyright, but rather the U.S. wanting to flex its control over the Internet. She said that her son’s case is about “America trying to control and police the Internet.” She also said that it’s “wrong that America should lay laws down on the Internet for other countries.”
Both Wales and O’Dwyer’s mother bring up good points that lead to a much larger question. Why does the copyright industry care so much about linking to content? Why would they go out of their way to prosecute some guys that ran a Web site that never hosted any of this content, but rather linked to it. Most of the content on these sites were submitted by users. The DMCA has a safe harbor provision that protects Web sites from the actions of its users. Of course, a Web site can only qualify for safe harbor if they have no knowledge about the infringing content. It’s hard to say if Vickerman or O’Dwyer knew the content they were hosting was illegal.
Should O’Dwyer be extradited to the U.S. for merely linking to copyrighted material? Should either men receive DMCA protections? Let us know in the comments.
All of this is meant to lead up to the biggest problem at hand – Google. There are other search engines, but Google has been targeted the most for their actions. The copyright lobby has been constantly on Google’s back for linking to copyrighted content. They even claim that Google prioritizes infringing links over legitimate links in search results for those searching for something as innocuous as “Justin Bieber MP3.”
Back in January, when the debate over SOPA was in full swing, media mogul Rupert Murdoch said that Google was a “piracy leader.” He said that Google streams movies, which I assume he means YouTube, and sells adverts around them. That kind of response to Google is typical hence why Google and other search engines were given a code of conduct by the U.K.’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
The code of conduct says that Google and other search engines should “assign lower rankings to sites that repeatedly make available unlicensed content in breach of copyright.” It also calls upon Google to “stop indexing Web sites that are subject to court orders.” In short, it’s all about the copyright industry wanting Google to stop linking to illegal content. They might have gotten their wish last week.
The Internet collectively freaked out when Google announced that they were adding DMCA takedown notices to their search algorithm. Google’s SVP of Engineering, Amit Singhal, said that “sites with high numbers of removal notices may appear lower in our results.” Many people immediately began to assume that this was just Google bowing to copyright lobby pressure and why wouldn’t they? While it’s highly unlikely that Google would be convicted for copyright violations, the DMCA definitely protects them, it gives them a bargaining chip in Washington and Hollywood.
The mere fact that Google did this in the first place, however, is a major cause for concern. There are plenty of legitimate sites that receive bogus takedown notices all the time. Most of these sites thrive off of user created goods and media. Would Google knock them down in search results because of some overzealous copyright warrior?
Our own Chris Crum was quick to point out that Google’s new ranking signal was only one out of over 200. Sites that were already doing well are still going to keep doing well. Your favorite YouTube videos and Etsy stores are still going to stay near the top of search if Google has anything to say about. What is worrisome is that Google even had to address in the first place.
With Google backing the idea that linking to illegal content is indeed illegal, it only legitimatizes the current trend of going after those that only host links. Will Google’s move make the copyright lobby more aggressive in going after those who run link aggregate sites? Will it only go after those who link to television shows and movies? What about news aggregate sites that link to content from the overly protective AP?
It’s still too early to tell, but a war on links may be coming. The Internet was built on links, but that may not be the case for much longer if laws continue to punish the mere act of linking.





http://www.webpronews.com/should-linking-to-copyrighted-material-be-illegal-2012-08

Newsday article about young recipients of the awards!

http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,21392.html

Two role model youths

Thursday, September 2 2004

VEERA BHAJAN and Rhonda Charles were hailed as exemplars to all young people at last night’s National Awards ceremony at President’s House and should inspire other youths to strive for excellence at the national level. Bhajan, despite being born without arms, achieved seven CXC distinctions at this year’s Ordinary Level examinations. Charles risked her life to save a 76-year-old blind woman from a burning building. Both young women were awarded the Humming Bird Silver Medal at last night’s awards. Of Bhajan’s and Charles’ achievements, Chaconia Gold Medal recipient and Petrotrin chairman Malcolm Jones said: “I think it excellent that people are being recognised for their contributions pretty early. By doing that, you are really encouraging other young people to contribute in a significant way.” Fellow Chaconia Gold Medal recipient, businessman Arthur Lok Jack agreed with Jones. “I think that young people should be able to get the awards as long as they deserve it,” Lok Jack said.

Both men said they were honoured to receive their respective awards. Lok Jack expressed the hope that there would be more National Awards for business. Speaking to Newsday, Bhajan said: “I feel very elated (to receive this award). I really hope this will inspire other young people and other students to do well. I really feel honoured.” She encouraged youths to “stay focussed on your dreams and goals.” Charles said her entire community was elated at her achievement and she was especially happy that her mother Mabel was out of hospital, even though she could not attend the awards. She added that while her act of bravery did not frighten her, receiving a National Award did. Retired Permanent Secretary Zilda Rajnauth said she was pleased to receive her Chaconia Gold Medal and it was a tribute to the hard work which Permanent Secretaries did behind the scenes of Government every day. “Our job is to make our ministers look good while maintaining our integrity as accounting officers,” she said.

article on awards distribution 2011:

In their honour

Thursday, September 1 2011

One of the heroes of World War II, Philip Louis Ulric Cross, and a former First Lady of Trinidad and Tobago, Mrs Zalayhar Hassanali, were among the four persons saluted yesterday with the country’s highest award, the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Mr Cross, a retired judge, received his award for his work in the field of Law, while Mrs Hassanali received her accolade for her contribution to community service.

The other Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago recipients were well-known businesswoman, Mrs Helen Bhagwansingh, and retired businessman, Anthony Norman Sabga. Meanwhile, another front line business executive, Robert (Bob) Yorke was given the Chaconia Medal (Gold), along with attorney at law, Mrs Stephanie Daly; Louis Patrick Arnold, arranger, and Pundit Hardath Maharaj. Hazel Angela Brown, Coordinator of the Network of NGOs, received the Medal for the Development of Women (Gold), along with former senator, Diana Mahabir-Wyatt.

Meanwhile, the sterling contributions in community work in Beetham Gardens of retired police inspector Sheila Prince and police officer, Derrick Sharbodie, for his service in Diego Martin did not go unrecognised as they were presented with the Public Service Medal of Merit (Silver) by President George Maxwell Richards before a clearly appreciative audience.

It was Trinidad and Tobago’s 49th Independence Day awards since the nation gained its freedom in 1962 and the wide range of medals and recipients were a truthful reflection of the appreciation of a grateful nation for their contribution to TT’s economic and social development over the years.

Of special interest is that Fr Clyde Harvey, long respected not only in the field of religion but in service to the community as well, had his decades long work recognised with the Humming Bird Medal (Gold).

Another recipient of the award was former Calypso Monarch, Denyse Plummer. Fr Harvey’s medal was for religion and community service while Plummer’s was listed as entertainer.

Irma Ipanya Simonette, wife of a former general secretary of the People’s National Movement, Nicholas Simonette, was in the Humming Bird Medal (Silver) row along with the Malick Tassa Drummers and the Dow Village Ramleela and Cultural Organisation Incorporated, all three for their work in culture.

The Public Service Medal of Merit (Gold) category embraced retired Major General Edmund Ernest Dillon; a retired Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mrs Margaret Sampson-Browne; Mrs Gladys Gafoor, a retired Judge; Dr Austin Trinidade, an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist, and Pundit Hardeo Persad, a retired school teacher.

No one should underestimate the importance of the annual Independence Day national awards as they serve not only to bring to the wider attention of the public the work of persons who have made unstinting contributions to Trinidad and Tobago, but act as a spur to others, whether young, middle aged or not so young, to strive to build their country. We should like to emphasise that the accent is not on the awards but on the work itself. Indeed, Trinidad and Tobago is full of unsung heroes. In turn, many of those saluted have awards bestowed on them posthumously.

For example, one of Trinidad and Tobago’s foremost figures in the field of establishing and directing facilities for the education of poor and even challenged children, Desmond Allum, was awarded the Chaconia Medal (Silver) posthumously for his long and dedicated work in the field of community service. Allum, who was better known as an attorney at law and in the field of politics, quietly and without ceremony for decades sought to help literally scores of children from economically disadvantaged families residing mainly in the St Ann’s and Cascade areas.

Newsday congratulates all of the awardees of this year’s Independence Day celebrations and salutes their fine work and unselfish contributions.

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© newsday.co.tt - www.newsday.co.tt
http://www.newsday.co.tt/editorial/print,0,146548.html

another link with national awards info

The National Awards of Trinidad and Tobago acknowledge the involvement of citizens and non-nationals who have had a significant and positive impact on the twin island Republic. The awards which were instituted in 1969 have been presented yearly in four categories, they are:


• The Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (replaced the Trinity Cross as the Highest Award)
•The Trinity Cross (Last awarded in 2005)
• The Chaconia Medal
• The Humming Bird Medal
• The Public Servants’ Medal of Merit


ORDER OF THE REPUBLIC OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Order of the Republic Trinidad and Tobago

The Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago was installed as Trinidad and Tobago’s highest national award in 2008 and replaced the Trinity Cross for distinguished and outstanding Service to Trinidad and Tobago.

The design of the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago acknowledges the contribution of the first inhabitants of Trinidad and Tobago embodied in the crest surmounting the medallion. The waves and constellation tell the story that Trinidad and Tobago consist of people from all over the world and their descendants, bringing social and cultural attributes to produce a special, talented people with great potential.

The award is 18 carat yellow gold and hangs from a short-length, striped gros-grain ribbon in the national colours, red, white and black. On the front of the award there are three circles each encompassing a feature of the National Symbols of Trinidad and Tobago, with a crest at the top. Within the crest is a feathered head dress of an Amerindian chief, which represents the aboriginal culture of the twin island.
The centre of the design features a disc, upon which the familiar image of one of our national birds, the Scarlet Ibis is standing on the south- western peninsula of Trinidad and the Mot Mot perched on the image of Tobago both imposed in bas-relief. At the top of the circle is the Chaconia Flower, the National flower of Trinidad and Tobago. In the middle circle there is a display of twelve outer notes of a tenor pan. On the notes are a pair of pan sticks. The steel pan is placed on the award as it is the National instrument of the twin island republic. Within the third and outer circle are images which represent the sea and sky. Waves at the bottom represent the sea whilst the sky is represented via clusters of star shapes and fine granulation.
On the back of the award, the words “Order of the Republic” are engraved.

The name of the Society to replace the Order of the Trinity is The Distinguished Society of Trinidad and Tobago and the initial O.R.T.T. is to be used by future holders of this award, after their names.
The Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is only awarded in gold and is limited to five recipients each year, though the number may be less.
In 2008, the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago was awarded to the following recipients for Distinguished and Outstanding Service to Trinidad and Tobago in the Steelpan Development.

• Professor Brian Copeland 
• Mr. Bertram “Bertie” Lloyd Marshall Steelpan Innovator
• Mr. Anthony Williams Steelpan Innovator

In order to be nominated for an award, a “Nomination for a National Award” form must be filled out. Forms and more information about nomination submission can be obtained at The Office of The Prime Minister, Tobago House of Assembly and City and Town Halls.


THE MEDAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF WOMEN

The Medal for the Development of Women will be awarded for the first time this year. It is to be granted to individuals, for their contribution to the development of women's rights and issues. Like the other medals, with the exception of the Order of The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the Medal for the Development of Women may be awarded in gold, siver and bronze to a maximum of ten persons a year.
The Proposed Criteria for the National Award for the Medal for the Development of Women
The award categories and the corresponding criteria for those awards are as follows:
CATEGORY 1:
Nominations for Award in respect of a person:
Candidates must demonstrate innovation in the promotion of gender equity for no less than ten (10) years through the promotion of:
• Gender equality in the work place.
• The elimination of all forms of discrimination against women by the promotion of gender equity.
• Legislative and cultural reform to ensure gender equity.
• Institutional mechanisms for the advancements of women.
• Economic empowerment by: Overcoming marginalization, oppressive social norms access and rights to resources; Offering women choices and opportunities; and Encouraging women to fulfill their potential
• Education- based programs, initiatives or personal action in the empowerment of women; and
• Entrepreneurial activities
CATEGORY 2: 
Nomination for reward in respect of Organizations
Corporations/ Organizations must demonstrate innovation in the promotion of gender equity for no less than ten (10) years through: 
• The empowerment of women through initiatives, policies (procurement, hiring, training, etc.) or corporate social responsibility.
• Outstanding contributions to women’s organizations that support soc-economic empowerment and/or through achievement in the corporate world.
DESIGN:
The medal consists of three parts: a medallion to which is attached a bar and winged shaped which partially surrounds the medallion and is hinged to it. 
THE SYMBOLS:
1. Women’s symbol- ( This symbol for the planet Venus is used in Biology for the female sex
and is a stylized representation of Venus’ hand mirror. Generally it is a circle with a small equilateral cross underneath.) In this drawing it occupies the centre of the medal and its cross quadrisect the map of Trinidad and Tobago.
2. A Globe- representing the world is contained within the circle of the symbol.
3. A winged Form- articulated and suspended from the central disc is a stylized winged shaped element whose radial sections are defined in bas relief.


THE TRINITY CROSS
The Trinity Cross was the highest National Award in the twin island Republic. On June 5, 2008 the Trinity Cross was replaced by the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The Trinity Cross was granted to nationals and non-nationals of Trinidad and Tobago who portrayed distinguished and outstanding service to Trinidad and Tobago. It is also awarded for gallantry in the face of the enemy, or for gallant conduct. The identifying colour on the Borders of Ribbons for this medal is gold.
The recipients of the first Trinity Cross Gold were:
• Dr. Rudranath Capildeo for his contribution in the sphere of Science.
• Ellis Clarke (Sir) - C.M.G., Q.C. who drafted the Constitution of Independent Trinidad and Tobago
• Solomon Hochoy (His Excellency Sir) - G.C.M.G., G.C.V.O., O.B.E. The then Governor General and Ex-Officio of Trinidad and Tobago
• Finbar Ryan (His Excellency Count) - O.P. in the sphere of religion as he was the then Archbishop of Port of Spain.
• Hugh Wooding (The Right Honourable Sir) - P.C., C.B.E., Q.C. For his contribution to Justice as he was the then Chief Justice

To see a full list of award recipients for all awards click here.


CHACONIA MEDAL
The Medal was aptly named after the Chaconia flower, which is the National Flower of Trinidad and Tobago and coincidentally blooms annually around August 31, just in time for Independence Day. It was first awarded in 1969 on the introduction of National Awards in Trinidad and Tobago. The identifying colour on the border of  the ribbon for this medal is light green.
The Medal, which is awarded in gold, silver and bronze is awarded to persons who have served the country in the field of social work. It is awarded to community workers in respective organizations who have promoted community spirit and national welfare through their long and meritorious service. The Chaconia Medal is awarded to a maximum of ten persons.

HUMMING BIRD MEDAL
Trinidad's indigenous name was Cairi or Kairi but often written Iere. Iere, which actually is an Arawakan terms  that means "the island", was thought by many to mean, “The Land of the Humming Bird”. The Humming Bird, one of the National birds of the Island, is also represented through this medal. The identifying colour on the borders of ribbon for this medal is Royal Blue.
The Humming Bird Medal is awarded to persons in the private or public sector for loyal and devoted service to their community and country. Additionally, the medal, which is awarded in gold, silver and bronze to a maximum of fifteen persons, may also be presented to persons for their gallantry or any other heroic action.

PUBLIC SERVICE MEDAL OF MERIT
The Public Service Medal of Merit is awarded to the members of the Civil and Protective Services. This Medal also includes recipients from the Defence and Cadet Forces, members of Statutory Boards and Committees of other quasi Public Services.
The Medal is awarded in gold, silver and bronze. The Gold medal is awarded to persons who have shown outstanding and meritorious service. The Silver Medal is awarded for long and meritorious service and the Bronze Medal is presented for good conduct and long service.
The identifying colours of the borders of ribbon are:
Gold Medal - Purple
Silver Medal - Light Blue
Bronze Medal - Silver


http://www.news.gov.tt/index.php?news=455

National Awards Nominations Form

Another website found, giving details on nominations for the National Awards:

Members of the public are invited to nominate citizens from Trinidad and Tobago for the National Awards 2012. Those interested must complete a National Awards nomination form which can be collected at the Office of the Prime Minister (see address below) or  downloaded on the link below.

http://www.opm.gov.tt/happening_now.php?mid=15