The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) patrol boat RSIPV Lata is currently in the Shortland Islands in the Western Province after it left Honiara on 13 April 2018 on border patrol duties.
Deputy Commissioner (DC) of RSIPF for Operations, Gabriel Manelusi says, “The RSIPV Lata left Honiara on an operation to monitor movement of people in and out of the common border area with Papua New Guinea (PNG) and other activities in the Shortland Islands.”
He adds: “On board the RSIPV Lata are officers of the Police Response Team (PRT) together with other representatives of Honiara based specialised Departments and Divisions. They have been tasked to team up with RSIPF officers in the Western and Choiseul Provinces to investigate alleged criminal activities of people crossing the common Solomon Islands – PNG border.”
“The RSIPF has the primary mandate to ensure the citizens of the Shortlands are not threatened by criminal activities and that Solomon Islands’ interests are not undermined by any foreign nationals who are not authorised by the laws of this country or any recognised agreement signed by the Solomon Islands Government with our neighbour PNG to do business on our side of the common border,” says DC Manelusi.
He says, “I call on the people at the Shortland Islands and Choiseul Province to assist our police officers who are deployed to the border on board police patrol boat and as well our officers stationed in Western and Choiseul Provinces with any information on illegal activities going on in the common border with neighbouring Bougainville Island and as well involving our own citizens on our side of the border.”
Police can be contacted on phone numbers Gizo: 60999 and Taro: 63199/63100 or the Police Communication Centre: 23666 or the free toll 999.
