Drug Trafficking In The Pacific Discussed At Dubai Police Summit
Pacific police chiefs have discussed the region's drug trafficking problems on a panel at the World Police Summit in Dubai. Christina Persico, RNZ Pacific Bulletin Editor
Pacific police chiefs have discussed the region's drug trafficking problems on a panel at the World Police Summit in Dubai.
The summit, from 13-15 May, included expert panel discussions, workshops, and a technology exhibition.
Fiji Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu, Royal Solomon Islands Police Force Commissioner Mostyn Mangau, and New Zealand Police Assistant Commissioner Bruce O'Brien participated in a fireside chat with the theme: 'The future of the fight: what needs to be done to combat drug trafficking in the Pacific?'
The Pacific Island Chiefs of Police (PICP) said the panellists acknowledged that the region's exposure to drug trafficking is increasing, and discussed how current and future strategies such as the Pacific Transnational Crime Network, and the Pacific Policing Initiative are being leveraged to reduce the Pacific's vulnerabilities.
Speaking to Emirates News Agency, PICP Secretariat executive director Julian Bianco said new drug smuggling patterns represent a direct challenge to security agencies.
He affirmed that stronger regional cooperation and intelligence sharing are vital, particularly with increased maritime drug transit towards Australia and New Zealand.
In a pre-Budget announcement on Saturday, New Zealand's Customs Minister Casey Costello said the country [https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/560558/government-puts-35m-towards-keeping-drugs-out-of-the-country was increasingly being targeted by organised crime groups.
'Transnational and serious organised crime threats are growing worldwide. These groups are increasingly targeting the Pacific and New Zealand, which has some of the world's highest prices for illicit drugs like methamphetamine and cocaine.'
According to the World Police Summit background information, 80 percent of global cocaine seizures are linked to maritime trafficking.
Drug trafficking is not a new problem in the Pacific.
A 2024 UNODC report said the transnational organized crime threat environment in the Pacific is evolving faster than in any previous point in history.
'Transnational organized crime groups are targeting the region as an increasingly important transit route for the trafficking of methamphetamine and cocaine to and from neighbouring regions,' it said.
'The increase in traffic has also led to a spillover in domestic markets in the Pacific, and authorities in some countries have observed a rise in the availability and use of drugs, particularly methamphetamine.
'Local agencies have observed that non-medical drug use is causing serious harm to some users, with increases in domestic violence risks, sexual violence, child neglect, mental and physical health issues, and poor educational and employment outcomes in some Pacific countries.'
Fiji's Narcotics Bureau warned last month the country's battle against drugs could get harder if fentanyl becomes widespread.
FBC reported Jemesa Lave from the Bureau saying this drug is more dangerous than methamphetamine and cocaine.
Earlier this month, New Zealand's top cop has reassured the leaders of Fiji and Samoa that he has their back, as a regionwide drug crisis rolls on.
In January, Samoan authorities intercepted 10 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine (worth almost NZ$2.5 million in street value), which has been described by the Samoa Observer as 'the largest known drug smuggling operation' on the island.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scoop
12 hours ago
- Scoop
Bougainville Woman Cabinet Minister Battling Nine Men To Hold Her Seat
, RNZ Pacific senior journalist One of the first women to hold an open seat in Bougainville, Theonila Roka Matbob, is confident she can win again. Bougainville goes to the polls in the first week of September, and Roka Matbob aims to hold on to her Ioro seat in central Bougainville, where she is up against nine men. The MP, who is also the Minister of Community Government, recently led the campaign that convinced multinational Rio Tinto to clean up the mess caused by the Panguna Mine. RNZ Pacific asked her if she is enjoying running for a second election campaign. (This transcript has been edited for brevity and clarity.) THEONILA ROKA MATBOB: Very, very much, yes. I guess compared to 2020, it is because it was my first time. I had a lot of butterflies, I would say. But this time has been very different. So I am more relaxed, more focused, and also I am more aware of issues that I can actually concentrate on. DON WISEMAN: And one of those issues you've been concentrating on is the aftermath of the Panguna Mine and the destruction and so on caused both environmentally and socially. And I guess that sort of work is going to continue for you? TRM: Yes, so the work is continuing. I had three platforms when I was contesting in 2020: leadership, governance, institutional governance and the accountability on the issues, legacy issues of Pangu na Mine. I thought that the third one was going to be very challenging, given that it involved international stakeholders. But I would say that the one that I thought was going to be very challenging was actually the one that got a lot of traction, and it's already in motion while I'm like back on the trail, defending my seat. DW: In terms of the work that has been undertaken on an assessment of the environmental damage, the impact that the process had had, and the report that has come out, and the obligations that this now places on Rio Tinto. TRM: The recommendations that were made by the report was on a lot of like imminent survey areas that is like on infrastructure that were built by the company back then in the operation days that is now tearing down. And also a lot more than that, there was a call for more intrusive assessment to be done on health and bloodstreams as well for the people, but those other things and also now to into the remediation vehicle, what is it going to look like? These are clear responsibilities that are at the overarching highest level of engagement through the what we call this process, the CP process. It has put the responsibility on Rio Tinto to now tell us, what does the remediation vehicle look like. At the moment, Rio Tinto is looking into that to be able to engage expertise in communication with us, to see how the design for the remediation vehicle would look. It is from the report that the build up is now coming up, and there is more tangible or visible presence on the ground as compared to the time we started. DW: So that process in terms of the removal of the old buildings that's actually got underway, has it? TRM: That process is already underway, the demolition process is underway, and BCL[Bougainville Copper Limited] is the one that's taking the lead. It has engaged our local expertise, who are actually working abroad, but they have hired them because under the process we have local content policy where we have to do shopping for experts from Bougainville, before we'll look into experts from overseas. Apart from that as well, one of the things that I have seen is there is an increased interest from both international and national and local partners as well in understanding the areas where the report, assessment report has pointed out. There is quite a lot happening, as compared to the past years when, towards the end of our political phase in parliament, usually there is always silence and only campaigns go on. But for now, it has been different. A lot of people are more engaged, even participating on the policy programs and projects. DW: Yes, your government wants to reopen the Panguna Mine and open it fairly soon. You must have misgivings about that. TRM: I have been getting a lot of questions around that, and I have been telling them my personal stance has never changed. But I can never come in between the government's interest. What I have been doing recently as a way of responding and uniting people, both who are believers of reopening and those that do not believe in reopening, like myself. We have created a platform by a registering business entity that can actually work in between people and the government, so that there is more or less a participatory approach. The company that we have registered is the one that will be tasked to work more on the politics of economics around Panguna and all the other prospects that we have in other natural resources as well. I would say that whichever way the government points us, I can now, with conviction, say that I am ready with my office and the workforce that I have right now, I can comfortably say that we can be able to accommodate for both opinions, pro and against. DW: In your Ioro electorate seat it's not the biggest lineup of candidates, but the thing about Bougainville politics is they can be fairly volatile. So how confident are you? TRM: I am confident, despite the long line up that we have about nine people who are against me, nine men, interestingly, were against me. I would say that, given the grasp that I have and also building up from 2020, I can clearly say that I am very confident. If I am not confident, then it will take the space of giving opportunity for other people and also on campaign strategies as well. I have learnt my way through in diversifying and understanding the different experiences that I have in the constituency as well.
Scoop
a day ago
- Scoop
Consumer Watchdog Warns Fijians About Auckland-Based Tiktokker's Money-Making Scheme
Fiji's consumer watchdog is warning Fijians to stay away from a TikTok "business opportunity" run out of Auckland. The Consumer Council of Fiji (CCF) issued a warning on 11 July about a series of viral TikToks that encourage viewers to pay upfront "joining fees" with promises of instant earnings. The TikToker has amassed tens of thousands of views on videos promoting "LiveGood", a multi-level marketing (MLM) company based in Florida that sells nutrition supplements. "An individual named Ricky Nair LG, reportedly based in New Zealand, is actively promoting this scheme in Fiji. It promises high returns through 'matrix spillover' and encourages people to pay a US$49.95 joining fee and a monthly US$9.95 subscription." "It resembles a pyramid scheme, where earnings are based solely on recruiting others. It promises unrealistic weekly payments of up to $1000 for simply signing others up." Council CEO Seema Shandil told RNZ Pacific that they want to prevent Fijians from falling for online scams before too much money is lost. "We are trying to raise [awareness]...we have experienced it, and we know that eventually this is going to fall apart and people are going to lose heaps." LiveGood's MLM structure involves sellers who improve their ranking by selling products, getting customers to pay for a US$9.95 a month membership, and by recruiting, or "sponsoring", more sellers. The sellers earn a 2.5 percent commission on products sold, passing the rest of their revenue up to their sponsor, who would in turn pay a share up to theirs, and so on. In his videos, Nair often refers to "matrix spillover" as a means of earning income through Livegood. The "matrix" refers to a hierarchical structure of sellers, with their sponsors above them. Members may then recruit their own, or on their downline, that they did not personally recruit. Thus, the top seller is generating income without having to do anything. "How many he has recruited, I don't know, but he's using all these techniques to lure the vulnerable," Shandil said. While there are sellers based in New Zealand, it is unclear how popular LiveGood is among Kiwis. Shandil said that the fact NZ-based sellers are appealing to Fijians is a major red flag. "They are people sitting in New Zealand, and they are aggressively marketing it to the people of Fiji. So why do you think that doing that?" Consumer watchdog 'hasn't got a clue' - TikTokker When RNZ Pacific contacted Nair, he denied any wrongdoing. "The Consumer Council [of Fiji] hasn't got a clue," he said. Nair said that there are "heaps" of sellers in New Zealand, most using TikTok and Facebook to sell worldwide. "I'm just sending the referrals. If they want, they join. If they don't want, they don't join." He said that he receives a commission for every member that he refers, and that he has 47 members in his downline, with 21 from Fiji. He said he does not profit from their sales. But Nair has publicly boasted his "Gold ranking", which, according to LiveGood rules means he has at least 100 people, and at most 499 people, below him on his "enroller tree". Despite posting that new members could make "$1000 a week" if they sign up under him, Nair said they have to work for it by recruiting new members themselves. "Everybody are doing their own way of marketing, right? I'm just posting that. But if people gonna contact me, then I gonna explain them how it gonna work (sic)." According to Scam Detector, the TikTokker's storefront website has a score of 45.8/100, meaning it has a low-to-medium trust score, and is likely a scam. "This website has a pretty low score, which means caution is advised," it states. Proceed with caution - Commerce Commission The New Zealand Commerce Commission says that it is aware of LiveGood's presence in New Zealand, and they are keeping a close watch. The Commission's general manager of competition, fair trading and credit Vanessa Horne said it received two enquiries about the multi-level marketer (MLM) in 2023. "While MLMs are not prohibited under the Fair Trading Act, businesses and individuals operating MLMs could still breach the Act if they make misleading or false claims about either the benefits of signing up to the MLM scheme and/or the goods or services the MLM sells." Horne said that an essential element of a pyramid scheme is that the return depends on the continued recruitment of new members, not product sales. Another is that they offer financial return based on recruitment fees. "Some promoters of pyramid schemes do try and make their schemes sound lawful. Consumers should be careful to ensure that a scheme is genuinely a multi-level marketing scheme, and not an illegal pyramid selling scheme before becoming involved with it." "The Commission encourages anyone who believes a business has breached the Fair Trading Act or one of the other laws we enforce, to report it, using the 'report a concern' form on our website."
RNZ News
2 days ago
- RNZ News
New Zealand challenges Cook Islands PM to independence vote after his comments on China
By Losirene Lacanivalu , Cook Islands A spokesperson for the Office of the Cook Islands PM said the Cook Islands government remains committed to its constitutional relationship with New Zealand. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Eleisha Foon New Zealand has called on Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown to test the views of the Cook Islands people and hold a referendum on independence from New Zealand following his latest defence of agreements with China. New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs made this comment in response to PM Brown's recent statement defending the nation's new strategic partnership with China, as he cited the need for diverse international partners to fund a $650 million infrastructure plan. Speaking at the opening of the Pa Enua Governance Forum on Monday local time, Brown said that if NZ cannot help fund their proposed infrastructure plan, then the country "will go somewhere else and look for that help" . A spokesperson for the New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs told Cook Islands News that these comments are the latest in a long line of public statements by Brown over the past year that "have badly mischaracterised the New Zealand Government's approach to our foreign policy and our relationship with the Cook Islands". "With each mischaracterisation of the New Zealand approach, Prime Minister Brown makes it harder to restore trust in the New Zealand-Cook Islands relationship." The spokesperson said that it has been clear to New Zealand for some time that Brown, "bristles at the constraints placed on him by the Cook Islands' free association relationship with New Zealand, and that he wishes for the Cook Islands to be completely free of those constraints". "If Prime Minister Brown wishes to run a foreign and defence policy without the need to consult New Zealand, and in contravention of New Zealand interests, then he ought to respect the Cook Islands people enough to test their views and call a referendum on independence from New Zealand. "New Zealand has always made clear that should the Cook Islands people wish to become independent of New Zealand, then we would support them in their wish. For its part, the New Zealand Government deeply values the free association model and its cherished relationship with the Cook Islands people." A spokesperson for the Office of the Cook Islands PM (Wednesday NZT) defended the comments PM Brown made on Monday. "The Prime Minister's remarks at the Pa Enua Governance Forum reflected a conversation with island leaders about the delivery of infrastructure and development outcomes. They were not a statement on foreign policy, and should not be read as a departure from the Cook Islands' long-standing relationship with New Zealand," the spokesperson said. "The Government remains committed to its constitutional relationship with New Zealand and to the constructive engagement currently underway between our two countries. "We have no further comment to make." On Monday (Tuesday NZT), PM Brown addressed the need for Cook Islands to have diverse international partners to fund a multi-million-dollar infrastructure plan that New Zealand alone cannot support, despite NZ's concerns and paused funding. He said that the country's national infrastructure investment plan costs $650m for infrastructural work across the country, including buildings, transportation, and so on. "New Zealand can't afford to give us that amount of money…we have to develop our partnerships with other larger countries to get the support we need to meet our infrastructure needs," Brown said. "Let me set the record straight about the reality of life, we need to build our infrastructure, we need to improve our standards in the Pa Enua, me kare rauka mai ta te Nuti Reni (if we can't get help from New Zealand), we will go somewhere else and look for that help, and that's what we've been doing." The New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said: "For 60 years, it has delivered a great deal for the development of the Cook Islands and its people. Indeed, the living standards in the Cook Islands are a testament to the free association model's success." "New Zealand looks forward to celebrating 60 years of free association on 4 August with the Cook Islands people, both in Rarotonga via the visit of Her Excellency the Governor-General and at events in New Zealand." Opposition MP and Cook Islands United Party leader Teariki Heather, who disagrees with a referendum for independence, says, "We should never forget the hand that has fed us all these years." Heather said that if PM Brown were to demand independence, he would organise a rally and protest against it, adding that Brown "should resign as Prime Minister of this country". -This article was first published by Cook Islands News .
