Cogito, ergo sum. I think, therefore I am. (René Descartes, mathematician and philosopher,1599-1650)

Tuesday 5 March 2013

Beatings Video (Updated)

STOP PRESS.Please ignore the sentences n italics.  I am informed the video did not show this incident. IThe video now doing the rounds on the anti-government blogs allegedly shows a police beating of two escaped prisoners in September last year. It is vivid, horrid and looks authentic.  I commented on the incident at the time. The prisoners had allegedly robbed a bank in Samabula and gone on a rampage in other parts of the city that some thought was intended to spark more general unrest. They were reported to have been armed with caneknives and they resisted arrest. One prisoner, Epeli Qaraniqio, a diabetic, later had to have his leg amputated as result. Beatings have long been a common practice used by Fiji Police to obtain confessions and to this extent the September beatings cannot be attributed to a breakdown in law under the present government. Government condemned the beatings but I can't recall if any legal or disciplinary action was taken against its perpetrators.  A public statement is needed from Government and the police that all such happenings will result in legal action and probable dismissal. Two online sites, Fiji Broadcasting and Fiji Village, made the releases published below.  So far there have been no other local print media reports. 

Fiji Broadcasting
Police say they will have to verify contents of a video which show two men being brutally beaten up by other men. Police spokesman, Inspector Atunaisa Sokomuri was alerted of the video by FBC News. The video that has been published on the internet and circulated via mobile phones, shows two men in handcuffs being repeatedly beaten by pipes and other items. In one scene, a dog dragged one of the men along the ground. Sokomuri said they will have to identify where the incident took place as well as who are in the video before police can make an official comment.

Fiji Village
Police Commissioner, Brigadier General Ioane Naivalurua is expected to make a statement in relation to a video that has been published on a number of internet websites showing two handcuffed men getting badly beaten up. When contacted by Fiji Village, he only said that he is aware of the video being circulated and a statement will be released today.  In the video, the two men are handcuffed and are repeatedly beaten up by a group of men. A dog is also seen dragging around one of the handcuffed men while the group of men looks on. The registration of the vehicle is visible in the video and some of the people involved can be clearly seen. We will have more later today.

MEDIA STATEMENT BY THE FIJI POLICE FORCE
Tuesday March 5th, 2013

Like every Fijian, we were disturbed to see the video that has emerged of what appears to be the abuse of two men who, at this stage, we understand to be recaptured prisoners.
A thorough investigation to establish the circumstances of this incident has been ordered.

We  want to stress from the outset that no-one  should prejudice this investigation by speculating on what happened. We need to formally establish the precise facts and we are determined to do so.

At this stage, what we can say is that some of the international reporting on this incident is wrong. We know that the men who appear in this video are not the prisoners who escaped from Naboro last year. We have already established this.

Let us also state that the Fijian security agencies have worked tirelessly over the past few years to give protection and security to ordinary Fijians who suffered through constant home evasions, robberies and violent and wanton crimes. These crimes were perpetrated by a group of criminals with impunity and who had absolutely no regard for lives of ordinary Fijians, respect for basic human dignity and the law.

That said, what is on the video requires investigation. The procedure of investigation we will follow is similar to those followed when complaints have been lodged against police officers in other jurisdictions such as Australia, South Africa, USA and New Zealand.
Therefore, we are not prepared to speculate on the identities of those involved, again so as not to prejudice the investigation. But we can assure you all that we are determined to expeditiously resolve this issue and indeed our investigations have already commenced.

36 comments:

Remove this junta now said...

Croz
You and the few others (for reasons unknown??) who try and give some legitimacy to this military junta will have to spin your tops pretty quickly on this one. Whatever these men did is irrelevant with the treatment they have been given. It is an act of absolute cowardice and thuggery - as are all the cases since Dec 5 2006 when people have been dragged to the military barracks for beatings and worse.
Whatever these bound and tied men did who were subject to these military/police beatings it cannot be worse than taking over a legitimately elected government using thugs with guns. The ordinary soldiers and the police cannot be blamed for what is happening in Fiji under this regime. Where is the leadership? Where is the professionalism? Where is the rule of law? Where is parliament? The country is falling apart under this terrible dictatorship.
Is this how the perpetrators of treason and the coup want to be treated when they are evetually brought to justice? Of course not.

Anonymous said...

Pathetic - your defence now put you on the back of the pickup truck hitting the man along with the rest

Dragon said...

The police force is a disgrace and has been since P. U Raman was removed in 1987. The whole lot should be sacked and new graduates recruited instead. Corrupt violent and political, and the senior ones are the worst type of leaders. Naivalarua is a decent man in a terrible institution. The police were busy stuffing votes into ballot papers in 2006 remember?

Anonymous said...

Dear Croz
I follow your pages, but not for the already published news you repeat. It is your comments that keeps me enthralled. Your obsession with putting the best spin possible for the current government on all you have to say is total. You of course admonish them soundly with your feather duster when they stray from the Crosby defined path of good governance. But for those opposed, you come out with all guns blazing. No stone is left unturned in discrediting the messenger.

What does the crimes of the prisoners have to do with the beatings they received while handcuffed in custody? Even if Epeli Qaraniqio was diabetic, what evidence do you have, other than the questionable statements of military doctors that being diabetic was the reason for the amputation? Could a bone infection in an unattended compound fracture have had anything to do with it? What real value did it add to this terrible event to include those points in your posting? The truth is you just can't help it.
You seem to me to be a bit like a kindly old uncle, intellectual, but so stuck in a groove that you have totally lost track of reality.
I have a lot of sympathy for where you started from. I was right there with you at the start. But the world has moved on. Fiji is now facing a very different problem. It is time my good friend to take off the blinkers and see what is really happening.

Crosbie Walsh said...

@ Remove junta now and Anonymous ... You confuse reporting background or context with support for one side or the other. But we all assumed it was the September escapes which the police deny. I'll wait for a report on the police investigation. You won't. My guess is that you have already made up your mind on this and, presumably, every accusation that can be used to attack the Bainimarama government. If you are educated men, you should be ashamed. Condemn the act. Wait until more evidence is in before attributing blame.

Crosbie Walsh said...


@ Anonymous ... My position on the Bainimarama government is stated in the Blog Aims,Publisher page. Wave your cursor under the blog title. Sorry I can't agree with you on how things are progressing. Ups and downs, but Fiji is moving on. Best wishes,Croz

Anonymous said...

But what has police brutality which is found in every country in the world to do with Croz or the B govt? Hopefully it will be investigated and the officers charged.

Anonymous said...

Crosbie you mothet fucker, the video clearly shows the brutal beating of a man handcuffed. He could not defend himself. asshole, is that acceptable to the white society you live in?

The junta must go said...

Croz
Do you understand what treason is? Do you understand what a dictatorship is? Do you really think the free world is going to sit idle while Bainimarama's thugs continue to commit horrendous human rights abuses and destroy democracy and the rule of law? This is Fiji not some Taliban state.....I hope...

Get some integrity corz said...

Hogtied men being bashed senseless by illegal junta thugs is 'Fiji moving on'? It is becoming easier to understand how you and your missus accepted a freebie holiday from these human rights abusing monsters?

Anonymous said...

Dear Croz,
Thanks for taking the time to reply. I appreciate you manners, even if your attitude is off the mark.
With respect to the position stated in the Blog Aims, I find it more revealing to consider what you do in your selective reporting and comments, rather than what you say in your aims.
With respect to ups and downs, please apply your intellect to discerning blatant vote/popularity 'ups' from the sustained grind of steps to ensure permanent Bainimarama power/immunity 'downs'. Be sure to consider this in the context of a controlled local media and far more brutality than what has just been exposed for the world to see. Please take the time to slowly consider how the situation really looks from ground zero; and please do this with the attitude that maybe you have misread some of the signs.
.

Anonymous said...

White man on NZ pension is always waiting, waiting, waiting... waiting for something to justify the evil... you are up there bashing away along with the rest of them.

Anonymous said...

This Mr Hitler fellow is a nice fellow. Somethings seem to be a bit wrong, but we should wait, for the full investigation, and the comprehensive report. Wait. Try and put it into context. Then, you shall see why I think this Mr Hitler fellow is so good. And remember, that most evil was done when people were obeying the local order of the time, not when they were disobeying it. And these were evil men who were being beaten. So we should await context. Wait. I cannot rush to judgment.

Honi Soit said...

Let us right now make this absolutely plain and clear: there is and never can be any justification whatsoever for what has just been observed twice on this video. It is a disgusting and degrading, dehumanizing exhibition of wilful ignorance and the brutalisation of not only the captured men but of all the perpetrators. This phrase "wilful ignorance" was used more than once back in the darkness of 2000 and 2001. Horror obtained and evil could be smelled in the very air of Fiji. Are we to revisit this Hell On Earth? Because if we do not purge these perpetrators of evil, then we shall.....and soon. Not once have the victims of these alleged criminals been referred to. The women, the families whose lives they have violated. But their assailants are also violators. They violate the very air we breathe because they are universally incompetent and unworthy of the Codes of Conduct and the Police Regulations they are sworn to uphold. Off with all their heads! We would behead them ourselves, were we able. Unworthy of our trust. T Unworthy of their pay. Unworthy ever to wear a uniform again paid for by public funds. Their devilish, uncouth, raucous laughter with taunts remind one of Jesus Himself in agony on the Cross surrounded by posturing, poking fools. Yet He found it possible to forgive? May God have mercy on them for they know not what they do!They are destroying what is left of the Once Proud, Nation State of Fiji and sending us all to hell: criminals and victims alike. For there is No one 'in-between' now. We are all in this enterprise as one.

Well done Michael Field said...

Well done Mr Field. You gave the facist junta fools a good slap around the head today.

Ram Sami said...

There has been a lot of beatings since 14 May 1987.

The posters who only condemn the beatings from Dec 2006, have their own agenda in the matter, they couldnt give 2 hoots to the people being beaten up in the video.

Anonymous said...

I feel if Croz Walsh spoke or understood native Fijian language he would have understood the video better - for the comments went way beyond the call of duty - Croz - where does the Police/Army/Correctional Manuals say after the suspect has been arrested, handcuffed and put in a truck - that one should then begin the beatings, poke and prod the man's rear with steel poles and the disgusting act of one of them who grabbed this prisoner's ankles and tried to beat and beat around like someone chopping the top of a Fijian coconut - oh, bugger your comments - saying let's wait for the police report - you are sick, Croz and all others - especially those who support such barbarity. I would love to see the day when you, Croz, are subjected to same treatment - no, you will scream its violation of your human rights, dignity and even manhood - which these thugs were after - for they asked him in Fijian to display his private parts - and worst - filming them, SICKOS!

Anonymous said...

Ram Sami - well, if I was a fascist or nationalist Indian, I could say the same - pity, Rabuka didnt kill the Indo-Fijians in their thousands - for Fiji belongs to us - but no, that is not the way the world should go about - I wonder if these prisoners had done somethings to these thugs or their families?

Severa said...

Yeah where were these born again human rights people when thugs and police officers were targetting Indians in Dawasamu? Where were they when there were protests about prison conditions? Where were they when prisoners wete beaten up by prison officers and police in 1989, 1995, and 2000? I will tell you, they were lying low because they supported the itaukei governments in power at that time. Give us a break. The video is shocking, but beating up of prisoners has been happening for decades. And now you wake up?

More beatings please said...

Croz, I am not going to shed a tear for these criminals!! They should have got more smacking... they are pigs and deserved it!! My family is sleeping safe... the police are on the front-line with these thugs.. god bless the policsforce.. more beatings please ... they deserve it!

God bless the police said...

Rabuka missed a lot of things... now he understands what he started!! how does it feel when you get your own medicine!! Awww.. I feel so sorry for that poor convict bastards... NOT.. they can die and go to hell!! If the NGOs feel sorry then Shamima should share her house with these crims!! They will make sure she understands what a gangbang is!!

God bless the Police force said...

Awwww .. I feel so sorry for the nice prisoners getting beaten up!! Nobody cares!!.. if NZ wants them they can have them... They are prisoners for a reason.. not because they are saints or angels!! I will support the police because they put their lives for the safety of others!! If you think these guys are some sort of human beings that deserve more compassion.. then why dont you let them roam around your wives and kids at home.. they are NOT humans... to be human ..you must respect another human first!! Live by the sword then die by the sword!!Why are complaining about the pain.. you asked for it!! Security is good now and I am happy with it!!

Anonymous said...

God bless your twisted reasoning - the issue is law and order - if police want to take the law (the illegal regime's laws) into their own hands - then why not join the prisoners - that is the crux of the matter

Anonymous said...

Lets cool down people - haven't seen the video but from what is described it is unacceptable and should be condemned.

However we need and investigation to understand if this is a few rogue Police Officers or a systematic issue in Fiji. From what i have heard beating of criminals is a lot more common these days as there is no where to complain.

I believe SDL was a racist Government but a dictatorship is worse due to a lack of accountability and transparency

Free said...

Prisoners have rights too. They are human too. How will we teach them that violence is unacceptable when we show them violence?

Anonymous said...

We all learn from what our leaders do not say. Lets remember Francis Kean punched and kicked to death a innocent civilian and even after being sentance with mansluaghter was not locked up, did not lose his job or salary and has since been promoted several times.

Beware what you ask for said...

The fools in this pro-junta blog celebrating the horrendous human rights abuses on bound prisoners should be aware of what they ask for - they might get it? Fiji as a nation has been brutalised by a poorly led military. Military thuggery and oppression of Fiji will be a continuing feature of the nation for a long time until the military gets decent leadership. Some of those applauding this regime brutality will squeal like stuck geese once this out of control military turns on them. The rule of law in Fiji, under the current treasonous administration, is a lost cause.

Anonymous said...

@Crosbie Walsh What happened to your follow-up article on The Fiji Times? Some of us have been waiting since 26 February to read your "fuller article on the issue, and the difficulties facing the media"! You ended your short analysis by telling us that we would see more "in a few days time." We understand that sometimes the rest of life gets in the way but about two weeks have passed. This is too long to wait! Let's hear what you have to say about it already.

Anonymous said...

Croz, you, Shazza and Grubby make a good threesome team on illegal regime spin. I wonder if yous have this combination in practice anywhere else?

Angels will not trust them said...

How can you show a rapist that rape is unacceptable?? They have done the deed now face the law and the big stick!! Maybe you would like to leave your daughters and wives with these nice, sweet, god fearing prisoners to teach them that rape is unacceptable!! These pigs deserve the punishment they got.. human rights.. respect ours before I will respect yours! God forbid if a young female is isolated with a group of these god fearing prisoners. They will not be so kind and gentle to the little angel!! Lock them up and make sure they understand what their position in society is!! My respect will always be for the hard working police... they work day and night and protect society. These thugs feed on society and shit their crap on society..deserved all they got and wished they receive more! Maybe you would still like to teach them how to respect humans?

%$#@! said...

Perhaps Croz might bother to get transcript of what was actually said by the thugs. But i doubt very much he could be bothered as he is alrady establishing his position and response in line with the theme from the regime flunkies and clearly the regime goons could do very much worse and his support would still be guaranteed.

lauan said...

Yes Croz lets go the 'regime police seriously investigate regime police' angle. Hurrah for Fiji.

Nadera Boi said...

Anonymous Nadera Boy said...

Crosbie Walsh you moron!! what proof do you want? Keep supporting Bai & co and write the best for them as when time come for them to go,you are also going with them..We will never forget..http://nz.news.yahoo.com/a/-/world/16299091/amnesty-urges-fiji-regime-to-investigate-torture-video/#

Long Live Fiji & Down with Bainimarama.. Dou veitauri dagger na sotia kece dou blog tiko mai na page qoka,baleta ya na ka tukuna o Bai veikemudou moni vakacacani kemami na Valataka na Dina e baleti Viti!!

Anonymous said...

Anonymous:i think wat happening in our society has to stopped because its not acceptable and its not humane
and for wat ever wrongs theyve committed,prison is there they can serve there life there,but not being brutality beaten.god bless.....

Anonymous said...

Mr Crosbie Shoes, I saw your name on C4.5 website so then googled you and found this blog. Let me say on C4.5 blog most people are for what C4.5 is saying however I find it interesting that over 98% comments are negative to what you blog. Have ever thought may be just may be you got it wrong?

Anonymous said...

Graham Davis tries to bring justification of this violence in the video by comparing to rest of the world incidents. This is Fiji and we don't need to be like others. Full stop. Mr Grubby your mate Frank also needs to come out and say the same.

Now to investigate we simply go back to the day the 2 prisoners were put in jail. You then check who brought them in. Talk to those officers and ask who gave them the prisoners. It's easy simply follow the chain. Oh even easier is to ask the prisoners. But that would mean Frank has to take action against his own goon mates. Now we don't want too many secrets getting leaked.