27 Aug 2007

A call to re-arm Fiji police being treated cautiously by force which says it's coping

1:18 pm on 27 August 2007

A call to re-arm Fiji police is being downplayed by the force which says it is coping with crime with the resources it has.

The appeal followed the death of a taxi driver on the weekend which the Fiji Taxi Union called a brutal killing and the third such incident in six months.

25 year old Murad Buksh was found hanging from a bridge in Veisari near Suva and the union says it's clear thugs are no longer afraid of police who should be re-armed.

But, Assistant Superintendent, Ulaiasi Ravula, says police are yet to determine the cause of death.

He says re-arming the force would be a decision taken at a senior level but they are managing.

"We've received similar calls before and what we're facing right now, the type of crimes that we're facing here - they are adhoc type of crimes and we have not reached the stage where we can term them as organised type of crimes. They are more related to domestic issues. And, as it is, we feel that police, with the kind of resources that we have, we are managing."

Assistant superintendent Ravula.