SUVA, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- Fijian Police Commissioner Brigadier General Sitiveni Qiliho opened the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency workshop on Clandestine Labs in Suva, capital of Fiji, on Monday, saying that the most common substance abuse in Fiji are marijuana, methamphetamine, cigarettes, kava and alcohol.
According to Fiji Broadcasting Corporation (FBC), Qiliho said close to 100 out of the 500 psychiatric patients admitted at the St Giles Hospital in Suva from May last year to April this year have succumbed to the effects of substance abuse.
The only psychiatric hospital in Fiji that offers both in-patient care and treatment and psychiatric community care services, St. Giles Hospital also serves as an educational institution for medical students in the island nation.
Meanwhile, U.S. drug enforcement officials are in Fiji to share their knowledge and expertise on the rapid and expanding drug trade. Officers from the Fijian Police force together with revenue and customs authority are part of the two weeks training.
Fiji has recorded an increase in the domestic availability of methamphetamine and the seizures made warrant the need to strengthen intelligence gathering between local and international agencies.
The Fijian police are concerned about the increasing use of the illegal drug methamphetamine in the island nation. Qiliho said that it was obvious that violent crimes were associated with methamphetamine.
