In 1889 the British made Tobago, which previously had its own independent legislature, a ward of neighbouring Trinidad. Demands for greater levels of autonomy from Britain grew following WWI. The depression of the 1930s led to a series of strikes and riots and the growth of a labour movement on the islands. As a consequence, the British granted universal suffrage in 1946 and took measures to institute self-government. Independence eventually came in 1962. In April 1970 the 'Black Power' movement's public demonstrations created a political crisis and an army mutiny, but the government held on to power. Just as it seemed that the country's prospects were slipping, oil was discovered. The oil boom in the 1970s brought prosperity to the islands but the East Indian community became increasingly isolated from political power.

In July 1990, members of a minority Muslim group attempted a coup. They stormed parliament and took 45 hostages, including prime minister ANR Robinson, who was shot in the leg after refusing to resign. Since then, the oil business has taken a downturn and the government has implemented austerity programmes while boosting its efforts to promote tourism on the islands. In 1994, the government introduced tough anti-crime measures to combat what was perceived to be an alarming rise in crime levels in some neighbourhoods.

Corruption developed as a result of a judicial system bogged down with a backlog of drugs-related trials - the country is a stopover in the drugs trade. As a result the death penalty was reintroduced in 1999. More petroleum and natural gas reserves were discovered in the late 1990s, promising a return to prosperity for the nation.

A hung parliament saw the political process mired in uncertainty for most of 2002 until October elections were carried by the government. The economy suffered a massive blow the following year when the state sugar company closed, resulting in the loss of 8000 jobs.

The country now awaits the prime minister's proclamation that by the year 2020, Trinidad & Tobago will reach 'developed country' status. His plan, dubbed Vision 2020 calls for reform on everything from education and healthcare, to poverty and foreign investment. While some people wholeheartedly support this plan, others are sceptical, fearing the greasing of hands and touting of political propaganda will only widen the economic chasm that exists between the nation's wealthy and desperately poor.