Fiji is now a destination for drug trafficking, says Police Commissioner

Fiji is no longer just a transit point for illicit drugs, it has now become a destination, Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu has warned.

Speaking at the 27th Attorney-General’s Conference at the Sheraton Fiji Golf and Beach Resort in Denarau last Saturday, Mr Tudravu called for national cooperation as Fiji confronts a deepening drug crisis.

He said the criminal landscape had evolved at an alarming pace, driven by regional demand and Fiji’s increasing vulnerability.

“We have moved from being only a transit point to now becoming a destination, and that is the unfortunate reality,” he said.

Marijuana remains the most seized and cultivated drug from 2022 to 2025.

“I’ve been told I’m wasting my time focusing on marijuana, but the statistics prove otherwise,” he said.

Mr Tudravu warned of growing reliance on marijuana farming as an income source, describing it as a “marijuana economy” spreading across rural communities.

From January to October 2025, a total of 1,540 drug cases were registered, with 1,356 involving marijuana and 184 relating to methamphetamine.

He also said methamphetamine was increasingly being produced in small-scale local labs, raising serious public health concerns.

Mr Tudravu stressed that policing alone cannot defeat the drug crisis.

“The mindset that everything is the police’s responsibility should change to what I can do as a member of society,” he said.

“It can only be done if we support efforts to curb drugs in our communities."