The Fiji Police Force is proposing the strengthening of police independence in the Constitution by ensuring the Commissioner is operationally autonomous and not bound by ministerial directions.
While making their submission to the Constitution Review Commission, Assistant Commissioner of Police Planning, Research and Doctrine Viliame Soko says this aligns the Fiji Police with the independent morals of FICAC and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution.
He says their responsibility shall be the maintenance of law and order, the preservation of peace, the protection of life and property, the prevention and detection of crime, and enforcement of all laws and regulations, with which it is directly charged and shall be entitled to have armouries for the performance of any such duties to carry out.
ACP Soko says they propose that a police officer or any person authorized by law may use force as is reasonably necessary and proportionate in the circumstances for the purpose of effecting a lawful arrest or preventing the escape of a person in legal custody, protecting any person from unlawful violence, preventing the commission of a serious criminal offences or suppressing a raid or insurrection.
He says the use of lethal force shall be permitted as a last resort where there is an immediate threat of death or serious injury to the officer or another person.
The Assistant Commissioner says any use of force resulting in injury or death must be subject of a mandatory written report and an automatic internal investigation.
ACP Soko says in cases involving the discharge of firearms or serious injury, the Fiji Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission or an independent police oversight body must have the power to conduct a parallel investigation.
He says the amendment will include a requirement that once a person is subdued or in custody, the police have an immediate constitutional duty to provide medical assistance if force was applied.
They are seeking amendments to the Constitution to provide for digital covert surveillance, warrantless searches when needed, and the removal of ministerial oversight over operational policing.
ACP Soko says the State should have the power to conduct digital covert surveillance and communication interception, provided such actions are carried out under a judicial warrant or meet strictly defined national security and public safety thresholds.
He says the proposal is a police officer may exercise the power to arrest, search without warrant when the officer has reasons to believe that it is necessary to do so in order to prevent the concealment, loss or destruction of anything connected with an offence.
Soko says the inclusion of these powers is justified by the evolving nature of the modern crime scene.
He further says that if an officer must wait for hours for a warrant while a suspect is actively deleting a digital letter or flushing physical evidence, the judicial process is defeated before it begins.
INSERT: Soko on surveillance 21 apr
Soko says the proposal includes safeguards requiring reasonableness, judicial oversight, strict documentation of necessity, and narrowly defined national security powers to ensure democratic rights and privacy are protected.
He says any misuse of these powers should result in the inclusion of evidence in court in disciplinary action against the offending officers, ensuring that the right to privacy remains a respected pillar of a Fijian law.
The Assistant Commissioner says the Minister may issue general policy guidelines regarding the strategic priorities of the Force but the Commissioner shall have the final authority on operational command, including investigations, deployment, and internal administrations.
He says the Commissioner remains accountable to the Constitutional Officers' Commission regarding performance, conduct, and appointment standards.
He also proposes that the Constitution explicitly recognizes the Police Commissioner's exclusive authority to designate a temporary successor.
Soko says the proposal is that the Commissioner of Police has the sole prerogative to select and designate, in writing, a Deputy Commissioner of Police or an Assistant Commissioner of Police to exercise the full powers and functions of the office of the Commissioner during any period of the Commissioner's absence or temporary incapacity.
He says the officer designed shall have the authority to act and execute all statutory duties, discretions and powers vested in the Commissioner by this Constitution or any other written law, notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary in such law.
The Assistant Commissioner says this power of selection is an internal command function and shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority.
He further says that it is a constitutional necessity that the Commissioner of Police be granted the same structural autonomy already afforded to the RFMF, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, and FICAC.
He says by removing the mandate for ministerial direction and clarifying the commissioners' sole prerogative in matters of command and delegation, it is ensured that the policing decisions, from tactical operations to the use of force, are made with professional integrity and objective merits.
Soko says they are asking for a Constitution that empowers the force to be a neutral instrument of justice, accountable to the people of Fiji through the judiciary and the Constitution, rather than a subject of executive policy.
The Assistant Commissioner says in doing so, the Police Force strengthens the rule of law, safeguards the fundamental rights of every Fijian, and ensure the Fiji Police Force remains a professional, apolitical, and a trusted guardian of our nation.
