Concerns regarding the potential use of Fiji’s ports of entry as transit points for drug traffickers are longstanding. On March 12, 1984, The Fiji Times highlighted that Inspector Wally Hayes, a New Zealand drug detection expert in Suva for a course on Detection and Recognition of Drugs, addressed the issue of the national airport being utilized as a transit location.
The week-long training, supported by the United Nations, was designed for the benefit of police, Customs, and Immigration officers. Inspector Hayes informed attendees that transit passengers often lacked scrutiny, making them more likely to transport drugs from regions like the West Coast of the United States and Southeast Asia to Pacific nations such as Australia and New Zealand.
He emphasized the importance of inter-agency cooperation in combating the illegal drug trade. “Unless the Fiji police, the Customs, and Immigration authorities have concrete information, it is virtually impossible for them to make significant progress,” he explained. He underscored the need for police and Customs agencies to share all gathered intelligence.
Inspector Hayes acknowledged that while the country’s drug detection capabilities were somewhat limited, the officials were adept at handling drug-related issues. He pointed out a significant hurdle: public awareness and attitude toward drug problems. “The average person on the street does not want to think about drugs, but their perspective changes when their children are involved,” he remarked.
Accompanying Inspector Hayes were Detective Inspector Govind Raju from Lautoka and Chief Customs Officer Robert Raylor from the National Drug Intelligence Bureau in Wellington, New Zealand.