MINISTER FOR DEFENCE, NATIONAL SECURITY AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS' OPENING ADDRESS FOR THE NATIONAL DIALOGUE SUBSTANCE ABUSE

His Excellency, the New Zealand High Commissioner, Mr Jonathan Curr
Chairperson of Leadership Fiji, Mr William Parkinson
Dean Faculty of Science, Technology & Environment, Ms Anjeela Jokhan
Members of the Leadership Fiji Board and Alumni present
Panel of speakers
Delegates, ladies, gentlemen and students
 
Bula Vinaka and Good Morning.
 
Thank you for the kind invitation to be here to give the Opening Address, at this very important National Dialogue titled “Substance Abuse, let’s talk about it!  Finding a Fijian Solution!”
 
It is indeed a pleasure to be here in a room filled with committed individuals and a community who have come together to dialogue and have conversations – “Talanoa” to help find solutions to this growing problem of drug and substance abuse in Fiji.
 
As Minister responsible for law and order, it bothers me as a parent and responsible citizen of this country to see the indulgence of drug abuse in schools and our youths. My Ministry therefore has consulted on the draft Narcotic strategy to be adopted through whole of Government approach to combat the illicit use of hard drugs. Equally important is the establishment of a Task Force comprising of Permanent Secretaries to oversee the national implementation of the national Strategy in view of resource allocation and commitment towards curbing illegal drug trade.
 
The involvement of experts like Drugs Freeworld, Volatabu Trust and other Civil Societies such as the Salvation Army is a testament of this noble pursuit to put in place a workable government machinery to prevent, prosecute and rehabilitate users and addicts. The United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has mandated States to adopt and align their policies towards the three (3) Pillars namely Supply Reduction, Demand Reduction and Harm Reduction.
 
The streamlining of government processes in strengthening the three (3) key  pillars paves the way forward to tackling drugs in various ways of heightening border security, enhance law enforcement capabilities, and strengthening legislations including the proposal to establish a separate court for narcotics to address this issue of hard drugs.  I must also acknowledge the proposed mobile app currently being designed by the University of the South Pacific (USP) in conjunction with my office as a reporting tool and awareness by members of the public.    
 
Lastly, I know Leadership Fiji believes that the development of leaders is fundamental to a nation’s well-being and to the creation of a society that is economically, socially and politically successful. For leaders to be truly successful, they need to have an inclusive approach with an understanding of Fiji as a nation and how it works. The Leadership Fiji initiative is aimed specifically at assisting our leaders to come together from various sectors, to enhance their ability to cope with demands of the ever-changing world so that Fiji reaches its full potential in the widest sense.
 
The Vision of Leadership Fiji is “develop and enhance the quality of leaders in Fiji” through skills development and building relationships characterized by respect, trust and understanding amongst leaders representing the diverse elements which make up Fiji. Most importantly, Leadership Fiji encourages its participants and Alumnus to take action.
 
When William and his team of concerned Alumni visited me in late August about the idea of hosting this National Dialogue, I did not hesitate to support the initiative. 
 
I have said it before, awareness is very critical, and people need to be made aware. We need a whole of nation approach to this problem. 
 
The idea to convene key stakeholders and the community in conversation to find solutions to Fiji’s drug problem is the very essence of what Leadership Fiji drives, and that is “Leadership is action, not a position”.
 
I am also aware that Leadership Fiji is synonymous with taking action in our communities with various projects, undertaken by each year group, from environmental projects, to social welfare and housing, animal welfare, fire safety and awareness, education, health, financial literacy, and the list goes on.  I know that in 2017 Leadership Fiji convened a similar dialogue on Family Violence with the theme “Creating a Movement of Change”, and brought down 2015 Australian of the Year, Rosie Batty to share her experiences as a survivor of family violence.
 
I congratulate the founders of Leadership Fiji for their vision, the participants, Alumnus and Fellows who have gone through the program for their passionate contributions to the respective community projects and initiatives and to Fiji as a whole.
 
The increase in lawlessness and recent attacks on our police officers and recent deaths of women through family violence is likely linked to drugs and this is appalling in nature, if we are not able to address it now, then when? This is an opportune time to reset and review our national objective in tackling the root courses of the illegal trade in hard drugs. I look forward to the constructive, productive discussions in today’s dialogue.
 
I thank the New Zealand High Commission, who are one of the founding partners of Leadership Fiji for helping support this Dialogue, and the University of the South Pacific for providing the venue to convene this.
 
A big Thank You also to the speakers who have pledged their time to be part of this conversation today.
 
It is with great pleasure that I declare this Dialogue open and wish you all the very best with your deliberations.  I look forward to seeing the outcomes and commit to ensuring that the suggestions will be taken forward into formulating national policies and strategies to eradicate this drug and substance abuse problem.
 
Vinaka Vakalevu.