THE terror attacks at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand a week ago has brought the threats of terrorism even closer to our doors, says Police Commissioner Brigadier General Sitiveni Qiliho.
Brig-Gen Qiliho said the emerging threats to the Pacific region were real and law enforcement agencies needed to look at their security landscape.
He made the statement while addressing more than 200 police recruits at the Fiji Police Academy in Nasova, Suva yesterday.
He told the recruits that every day new crime trends emerged, placing more expectations on their service delivery.
“As the nation mourned with the victims’ families, it was also a chance for law enforcement agencies in the Pacific region to reassess their security landscape, as the honourable Prime Minister stated ‘the horrendous attack can happen anywhere’,” Brig-Gen Qiliho said.
“The attack has also spurred a new level of religious and racial intolerance on popular social media platforms, and I have directed the chief of intelligence and investigations and his team to investigate those posting hate speeches aimed at instigating attacks on certain sections of our communities.”
He reminded the recruits that these were some of the demands placed on policing and the urgency in addressing emerging threats would mean juggling many things at once.
“We are not in the business of giving excuses and if we drag our feet the impacts can be devastating for our respective countries. In having officers from Nauru and Tuvalu here, we are able to strengthen collaboration between our police forces to better protect our respective borders,” he added.
