As you read this, I will ask you to keep in mind that we are always very polite and accommodating to officials. We understand they have a job to do and we are respectful of their job. During our almost 10 years of full-time cruising and in our previous part-time sailing life, we have been boarded by authorities multiple times. Each time we enter a country, we expect customs to look arroud our boat. This is normal in our lifestyle. However, no searches have ever been like this.
While in New Zealand this past cyclone season, our plan to sail to New Caledonia was be scrubbed due to civil unrest. The environment became unstable and warnings were established to discourage entry for boaters as well as the entire tourism industry. With this happening, we decided to return to Fiji. We had a great time there last year. We opted to visit the island of Vanua Levu, a new area for us to explore. This is where the entry port of Savusavu is located. We did this hesitantly because of recent reports circulating around the internet regarding boat burglaries in the area. Not just a few, but an awful lot of reports of theft. It was also reported that the local authorities were slow to make any attempt to catch the perpetrators.
Our decision was to stay at Nawi Marina located on an island just across from the township of Savusavu. The marina touts very tight 24/7 security, patrols walking the docks, and limited access since it is located on a private island. It should be noted that the burglaries occurred on vessels on moorings or marinas located on the same shore as the town. The mooring buoys are an easy swim from the land and a person at night would most likely go undetected. Away from this, we thought we’d be safe. The last thing we expected was to be violated by customs officials.
On the morning of July 30th, our vessel was boarded by a team of 10 customs agents. Keep in mind as I write about these events, we have already cleared customs and immigration when we arrived about 3 weeks earlier. There was no asking for permission to board. There was no explanation of our rights. They just came onto the vessel. Our vessel was located at Nawi Marina in a berth.
Once again, I am going to emphasize here, we were very polite. We never raised our voices. And, we answered all the questions posed to us.
The first thing they did was to have a dog go through the boat. They did two passes with the dog and of course, nothing was found. This did not stop what continued to be an extremely invasive search. And, by invasive, I mean highly disrespectful and invasive.
They were simultaneously up top and down below as well in the engine compartment. It was not possible for us to watch over all 10 officials. They went through EVERY cabinet, draw, and storage area of the boat. They removed everything and opened all containers. Nothing was placed back properly and our boat was basically ransacked causing us hours of work to re-stow things orderly and securely. They asked us to open our safe and took pictures of very personal documents that did not pertain to the search. We have no idea why or what these pictures will be used for. Nor do we know if the pictures will remain secure as they were using personal cellphone cameras.
During the two-hour search of our vessel, they damaged some items. They removed the covers from our upholstered mattress cushions to inspect the foam inside. When replacing a cover they broke a zipper and tried to hide it. We could tell something happened since the team members responsible for this acted strangely and suddenly started to talk in Fijian. It wasn’t until they were leaving that Cindy noticed the cushion.
In the engine room, an overzealous officer tried to pull glued soundproofing insulation off the walls. In a very firm tone, I demanded she immediately stop this and was met with a scornful stare. No apology for the damage done. How anyone could think this is okay is beyond my imagination.
The same officer attempted to get inside our dinghy that was hanging alongside our boat by the mizzen mast halyard. This setup is not designed to hold much weight. That should appear obvious to anyone with experience aboard boats. I had to ask her to stop. This could have resulted in a very expensive repair if the block at the top of the mast broke. Again, a scornful look in return and no apology.
I was asked how much alcohol we have aboard. I responded that I had no earthly idea. Again, keep in mind we’ve been here for about 3 weeks and have consumed and purchased alcohol at the local shops. The person questioning me referred to our customs declaration we made at the time of entry stating our inventory. This declaration was verified by customs at the time of entry into Fiji is now over 3 weeks old. I simply responded with, we have consumed that. However, in the case of another boater, this was not a sufficient answer.
We were not the only vessel subjected to multiple invasive disrespectful searches. Over the course of a few days, it seems at least 15, or perhaps 20 vessels in the area had to suffer through this. In the case of one person who posted his experience on the internet regarding alcohol, he was forced to provide receipts for alcohol he had aboard since he was now over the limit. Like us, he had also been in Fiji for an ample time to purchase liquor at the local shops. He was forced to show customs on his computer where he had shopped using his credit card. They took pictures of his screen and his personal account information. There are no laws stating we must keep limited alcohol aboard once we’ve cleared into the country.
This is like a customs agent opening the door of a tourist’s hotel room without knocking and asking them how much alcohol they have. And, then asking them to prove it was purchased locally. This is insane.
This is where things get interesting. One of the people came to Cindy showing a picture on their phone and asking her what it was. The agents use personal phones. Again, we have no idea if the information collected is kept secure or how it is used. Nor do we even know that the image was taken aboard our boat since the agent showing it took the picture in another cabin without us being there. Cindy, confused by the image being shown to her simply said, she didn’t know. The agents were now giddy with excitement. They found a plastic bag of white powder.
Cindy was then confronted with the package they had found. It was from our pantry drawer and was icing sugar. The plastic bag also contained the back panel of the original box with the instructions and clearly indicated what the contents of the bag was. Cindy explained the box had gotten wet so she removed the inner bag from the box but kept the contents and box panel labeling.
I was up top in the cockpit. A man showed me the package and asked me what it was. This is after they had already asked Cindy. I looked at it and pointed to the panel inside the bag from the box. I said, it’s icing sugar. He informed me they would be taking it for testing. I told him to stick his finger in it and try tasting it. They took it and we never saw it again. We were not given any receipt or paperwork for the confiscation. I am wondering if it is even legal here in Fiji to remove someone’s personal property without a receipt. We were never informed of the outcome of the testing and our sugar wasn’t returned.
The same man who posted about the booze and the ridiculous line of questioning from his boarding party had issues with medications inside his first-aid bag. As cruisers, we carry an extensive first-aid kit. These often include pharmaceutical items to treat infections or medical conditions. Maritime laws allow us to carry these items internationally. Most countries ask that any pharmaceuticals remain in unopened packages so they can be identified. His boarding party opened all the packages and removed them for testing. Even if they return these items now that they are open, he technically cannot have them aboard when entering his next port. He now has to eat the cost of these medications.
At this point, I am going to turn the table on to you the reader for a little bit and ask you a very serious question. How would you feel if while you were at home when your front door opened and a gang of police entered your home and began searching? They go through your trash, your underwear drawers, your jewelry box (while you are not there), they take pictures of your items, they take items from your medicine cabinet, and generally ransack your house. Yes, our boat is our home and this is exactly what happened. And, it was not thieves or hoodlums. It was government officials.
At no time did anyone state the reason for the search but we think it might have been a training exercise. Even if this was the case, it makes no sense to violate the rights and privacy of your visiting guests by using them as unwilling Guinea pigs. Again, we have been boarded numerous times in many other countries. We have no issue with being boarded and searched. It was the way in which it was done that was the issue.
As if this wasn’t enough, it happened again!
A couple of weeks later on 29th August, we were enjoying a mooring at Paradise Taveuni Resort on the southwestern tip of Taveuni Island. I noticed an inflatable with about 10 people, obviously government officers in the mooring area. They approached our vessel and asked to come aboard.
I politely explained we had already been searched twice (once at our time of entry and again on July 30th) and they should have a record of this since things were damaged aboard our vessel and they had no need to search it again. Then, they accused us of having our AIS turned off. Having the AIS on in Fijian waters is a requirement. I told them the AIS was on and they should be able to see the location signal our vessel is transmitting.
I noticed one of the personnel aboard looking at his phone. He told us the AIS signal showed us being at an alternative location. If you can believe this, they accused us of turning off our AIS because the free app they were using showed our position from yesterday. I explained to the guy that if he wanted to use the app, he needed to subscribe to it for a small fee to be able to obtain the most current locations. If he had done this, he’d see our current location. This was met with blank stares.
A part of the boarding team included a US Coast Guard member. I guess the USA has nothing better to do with their taxpayer’s money. I could see the USCG Cutter in the distance and suggested to him to radio the ship and ask them if they could see us on AIS and to report our location. Needless to say, this didn’t happen. They were just trying to use the justification of checking to see if our AIS was on as an excuse to board our home, again.
I made clear, that I would not permit all of them to come aboard. They asked to see our clearance paperwork and we willingly showed it to them but did not allow them aboard. Well, as you can imagine, this didn’t go over well. The crew returned our paperwork and pulled away from our boat for a sidebar. I assume they were asking for further instructions from the mother ship.
After about 30 minutes, they returned. The USCG took the lead and asked if one person could come aboard to verify our paperwork (yes, the very same paperwork they just looked at).
Knowing the next thing that would probably happen would be our vessel being seized and impounded since we have absolutely zero rights in a situation such as this, we agreed to have one person aboard to verify paperwork. This turns out to be a lie. Eight people boarded. This is what happened next.
The USCG insisted on seeing the interior of our vessel and performed a “safety check” on our UK flagged vessel in Fijian waters. This entails looking to see that toilet valves are closed and there is no oil in the bilge. He again brought up the subject of AIS. I showed him the unit and showed him the flashing transmit indicator. I also explained that if the Fijians are going to accuse us of breaking the law, they need to have an app that is fully paid for and working. Obviously, no comment from the USCG.
I have to admit at this point, my patience is running thin. My tone certainly indicated I wasn’t happy about being boarded by eight people and when people started to randomly roam about our boat, I let them know this behavior is unacceptable and asked them to leave. They didn’t.
I was recently contacted by a Fiji Times reporter asking for a comment about the vessel boardings that took place in Savusavu because of a comment I made on Facebook regarding the boarding. I didn’t feel like I could be open since the last thing we need was retaliation from the authorities. Based on my experience and interactions with them, I wouldn’t rule this out. However, I have sent her a copy of this post and hope this craziness will soon stop as people become aware.
These events have most definitely left a very foul taste in my mouth to the point I will never return to Fiji. I post this so other cruisers can be aware of these events in the Suvasuva area including Nawi Marina.
We have since departed Fiji cutting our planned stay there short. Sadly, this has to go down as the very worst experience we’ve encountered with government officials in all of our 30 years of sailing. And, while I understand Fiji has a drug smuggling problem they are trying to resolve, these repeated violations of our privacy haven’t resolved anything.
