The Minister for Women, Children, and Poverty Alleviation, Lynda Tabuya, is advocating for the reinstatement of the death penalty for drug traffickers apprehended with significant quantities of narcotics.
In a media statement, Tabuya highlighted that Fiji remains a transit hub for drug markets, emphasizing the urgent need for stronger laws to secure the nation’s borders and safeguard its citizens.
She voiced serious concerns about the increasing accessibility of drugs in communities, affecting both adults and children. Tabuya argued that Fiji requires severe deterrents, including the death penalty, to protect those unaware of the dangers posed by drugs. Many individuals are resorting to drug-related activities for quick financial gain, which ultimately inflicts greater harm than any economic benefits derived from the drug trade.
Tabuya asserted that imposing harsher penalties, such as the death penalty, could effectively reduce drug trafficking and its adverse effects in Fiji.
On the topic of the death penalty, it is noteworthy that Fiji abolished capital punishment for ordinary crimes in 1979 and for all offenses in 2015, with the last execution occurring in 1964. In 2015, the FijiFirst government accepted 98 out of 138 recommendations related to the ratification of the UN Convention Against Torture, with some recommendations already implemented at that time. Fiji has consistently expressed its dedication to advancing and safeguarding human rights principles.
Since the enactment of Fiji’s Constitution in 2013, which includes a comprehensive Bill of Rights, the former Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, indicated that Parliament passed legislation eliminating all references to the death penalty from military laws, thus abolishing it from national legislation.