There have been 129 cases of Fiji police officers being seriously assaulted so far this year, with the latest incidents prompting Fiji's acting police commissioner to make a public appeal.
A file photo of Fijian police officers patrolling in the main street in Lautoka. Photo: rafaelbenari/123RF
Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu said the attacks had been on officers who were simply conducting their duties to keep Fiji safe and they must stop.
"Police officers put their lives on the line every day and when one is injured or loses their life while executing his or her duties, it impacts our service delivery, not to mention the pain and suffering it causes to the officers' families," he said in a statement.
Police would not take threats against officers' lives lightly, Mr Tudravu said.
"Last week, the death of one of our own has brought to the forefront the real threats confronting our officers who are simply doing their job," he said.
A Fiji police officer, 24, died after being stabbed while trying to make an arrest earlier this month.
Meanwhile, four people are currently in custody after allegedly assaulting and threatening officers.
Three youths issued death threats towards a patrol team after they were asked to move from an area.
In a separate case, an officer was allegedly assaulted outside a police post.
The suspect was a passenger in a taxi, which had stopped as the driver sought help.
Last week, another officer was injured while manning a checkpoint in Nadi after the suspect's vehicle allegedly hit the officer.
Mr Tudravu said police officers needed everyone's support in order to do their jobs effectively.
"I understand at times we are criticised for the actions of a few of our officers, and if there are incidents that we need to look into in terms of our services, let us know so our Internal Affairs team can investigate and discipline officers if necessary".
