Transcript
ATUNAISA TAUMOEPEAU: Mainly like drunken driving and drinking in public places which I believe, Tonga is still a country that consuming alcohol [in public] is an offence here.
JO O'BRIEN: So why then have you launched this operation?
AT: Since we had a few deaths on the roads in the past months and we looked at that, it's mainly on Friday night and Saturday night and we see one of the strategies that we put a lot of our police officers on the road and also in the places with liquor licenses we have to exercise our power there then police come out Friday nights in a big number. Since we've started this 137 people in that first week, that was in the last week of July, it seems to us it's coming down, the number we arrested on the weekends, Friday nights and Saturday nights coming down to around 41 last week.
JO: So you think it's showing some sort of success then?
AT: Yes yes, mainly for example in serious crimes, it's reduced, we reduced the number of activities in serious crime that's been reported to police in the past weeks. The central area of Nuku'alofa mainly in the capital of Nuku'alofa, its criminal activities have been going down.
JO: So do you think people might be just not going out and being drunk in public because they're aware that this operation is going on?
AT: I think that's a deliberation of this operation and I think the message is really going out to the general public yes.
JO: Is there a need to tighten up on the availability of alcohol would that make a difference?
AT: Yes, there are a lot of other night-clubs and bars on Friday night, bars close at one o'clock on Friday night and just before midnight on Saturday night and people come out of the bar, there are other avenues in Nuku'alofa and other surrounding areas in the vicinity of Nuku'alofa people might know that police spot check around that area, they might sneak out of the police checkpoint but police are looking in the next few weeks to have reinforcements for traffic and have a look whether drunken driving is still continuing.
JO: I also read that you might be looking at some techniques from New Zealand particularly in regards to dealing with young people?
AT: Yes, that's very true almost everybody has to carry a national ID here in Tonga but that's another thing we are looking at, the different age people who are going to the night-club and the bars, if you are not 18 you're not allowed to go in such areas like that yes.
