THE Royal Solomon Island Police Force Pacific Games Planning Team (PGPT) met with the Games Organizing Committee as part of the preparation for the Pacific Games 2023 (PG23).
The joint Royal Solomon Island Police Force (RSIPF) and Solomons’ International Assistance Force (SIAF) and PGPT met with the Games Organising Committee (GOC) as at their Headquarters in Honiara on Wednesday 1 March 2023.
The joint RSIPF and SIAF team were led by Assistant Commissioner (AC) National Operation Evelyn Thugea, who is the Chair of the Security Committee and the joint team Lead Planner, Superintendent Fred Suhara. GOC was represented by Mr Jack Smith, Senior Manager for Venue and Games Services, and his team.
The security committee meeting focused around the standing terms of reference mandated by the Solomon Island Government (SIG) to the RSIPF on providing a security overlay from law enforcement perspective and the requirements from GOC to the RSIPF, to deliver a ‘Safe and Green’ Pacific Games environment.
The ongoing collaboration between the RSIPF PG23 Planning Team, GOC and external stakeholders on the security aspect of the games is essential to the vision of the RSIPF in creating a safe and secure environment that is conducive to the successful delivery of the XVII Pacific Games.
This is the first major event that the RSIPF will be planning with the assistance of the SIAF planning team and other policing partners, of such a scale. This Pacific Games will include 24 Nations with 24 sporting events held across multiple venues with multiple villages to accommodate athletes.
RSIPF Lead Planner for the PG23, Superintendent (Supt) Fred Suhara says,“Providing a security overlay for PG23 will be a huge task, but my joint planning team is ready to take on this challenge.”
Supt Suhara says, “The success of providing such a security operation will throw the RSIPF Planning capability on par with its regional Policing counterparts in delivering large scale policing operations for major events in the Solomon Islands and regionally.”
