Update: 4:52PM TWENTY five students from schools in the Central and Western divisions participated in a week-long camp organised by the Fiji Police Force community policing team.
The camping activity was held in line with the Bluelight concept of empowering youths.
Nasinu Community Policing Cluster Chief Corporal Sevu Waqa said the aim of bringing the students together was to teach them the importance of discipline and education and how the two worked hand in hand in determining their future.
“A lot of youths who are involved in criminal activities today are doing so because there are personal factors that have led to them leading a life of crime, which is unfortunate,” Cpl Waqa said.
“However, if we give them an avenue where they are able to express themselves freely, we can learn so much about the issues they’re facing whether it be in the home or school environment and show them ways to overcome their problems.”
He said the activities were designed in a way that students had to interact with both the facilitators and their peers.
?Some of the students have opened up saying things like getting to school late in the morning because of personal issues at home affects them in their ability to focus on their education.
?As parents, these are things we may take for granted because being a few minutes late to school may be insignificant to us, but to them it?s a big deal and if we allow these things to fester, it becomes a bigger problem and that?s what we are trying to avoid.”
The camp, held at the Assemblies of God High School, was held in partnership with AUSaid and UNICEF.
