SUVA, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- The street value of hard drugs intercepted in Fiji between 2017 and 2019 is around 63 million Fiji dollars (about 29 million U.S. dollars), a Fijian minister said on Wednesday.
Fiji's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Defense and National Security Inia Seruiratu said in Parliament on Wednesday that the seizure of drugs at the points of entry around Fiji was due to the hard work of the Police Dog Unit, the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) and the Immigration Department.
The recent discovery of transponders and numerous blocks of hard drugs in Fiji's island shores indicates the vulnerability to drug trade routes, he said, adding that to overcome it, the Fijian government has funded the purchase of new intercept boats to strengthen law enforcement forces around the island nation.
The minister said that controlling Fiji's borders will always be a challenge but the FRCS is taking necessary steps to strengthen surveillance at the points of entry.
Fiji's Commissioner of Police Sitiveni Qiliho said earlier that the war on drugs was a never-ending battle that evolved at a rapid pace, which needed an integrated, multilateral and multi-agency response to control.
