21 Nov 2011

Police official says French Polynesia policing is complex

6:45 am on 21 November 2011

The director general of the French police says the force in French Polynesia manages to solve 50 percent more of the reported crimes than it does in France.

Speaking after a tour of French Polynesia's outer islands, Frederic Pechenard says however the vastness of the archipelago makes policing complex.

But he says police in French Polynesia solve half of all burglary cases while in France the figure is only 15 percent.

Mr Pechenard has also called for a change in the police recruitment process as currently applicants must sit application tests at the same time.

This means day time tests in Paris are set for night time in some of France's overseas territories and colonies.

He has now flown to New Caledonia to discuss increasing police numbers following a promise given by the President Nicolas Sarkozy during his Noumea visit three months ago.