Wayzata World Factbook 1996/The World Factbook - 1996 Edition - Wayzata Technology (3079) (1996).iso/mac/TEXT/HUMANrts/W_SAMOA.TXT

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TITLE:  WESTERN SAMOA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1994
AUTHOR:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DATE:  FEBRUARY 1995

                         WESTERN SAMOA


Western Samoa, a small Pacific island country with a population
of approximately 160,000, is a parliamentary democracy but with
certain concessions to Samoan cultural practices.  The
Constitution provides for a Samoan Head of State, a unicameral
legislature of matai (family heads) elected by universal
suffrage, an independent judiciary, protection of Samoan land
and traditional titles, and guarantees of fundamental rights
and freedoms.  Executive authority is vested in the Head of
State, with the Government administered by the Cabinet,
consisting of the Prime Minister and 12 ministers chosen by
him.  All laws passed by the Legislative Assembly need the
approval of the Head of State, Malietoa Tanumafili II, who
holds the position for life.  His successors will be elected by
the Legislative Assembly for 5-year terms.

The culture of Western Samoa is essentially Polynesian but
uniquely Samoan.  Traditional authority is vested in the matai
who are appointed by a consensus of the aiga (extended family)
or by decision of the fono (council of matai).  Ownership of
land is legally vested in the matai who have the responsibility
to direct the economic, social, and political affairs of the
aiga.  Western Samoa has 330 villages with over 25,000 matai.
Each village is governed by a fono, which can fine or otherwise
punish offenses against village rules.

Western Samoa does not have a defense force.  The small
national police force is firmly under the control of the
Government but has little impact beyond Apia, the capital city.

The economy is primarily agricultural and is susceptible to
shifts in world prices for its export commodities.  In recent
years, tourism and light industry have become increasingly
important foreign exchange earners.  Western Samoa is heavily
dependent on foreign aid and on remittances sent to family
members by more than 100,000 Samoans living in Australia, New
Zealand, and the United States.

Western Samoan society is based on a collective value system in
which obligations and responsibilities to the aiga are often
given precedence over individual rights.  Most disagreements
are settled by decision of the fono.  Judgments usually involve
fines or, more rarely, banishment from the village.

The principal human rights abuses arise out of political
discrimination against women and non-matai, and violence
against women.  Societal pressures may interfere with the
ability to conduct fair trials, and there are some restrictions
on freedom of speech and press and religion.  A public
defender's office and an ombudsman's office help Samoans in
their dealings with the courts and the Government.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1  Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
           Freedom from:

     a.  Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing

There were no reports of political or other extrajudicial
killings.  However, there was one instance of vigilante killing
arising out of a decision by a village council dispensing
traditional justice (see Section 1.e.).

     b.  Disappearance

There were no reports of politically motivated disappearance.

     c.  Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
         Treatment or Punishment

The law prohibits torture and other cruel, inhuman, or
degrading treatment or punishment, and there have been no
reports of such practices by police or other government
authorities.  However, villages are controlled by customary
law, and the fonos may mete out banishment as punishment when
deemed necessary.  This is one of the harshest forms of
punishment in this collective society.

     d.  Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile

The law contains safeguards against arbitrary arrest and
preventive detention, and these are widely observed.

     e.  Denial of Fair Public Trial

Western Samoan law assures the right to a fair public trial,
which is honored by the official court system.  However, many
civil and criminal matters are not handled by Western-style
courts but by village fonos, which differ considerably both in
their decisionmaking style and in the number of matai involved
in the decisions.  The Village Fono Act of 1990 gives legal
recognition to the decisions of the fono and provides for
limited recourse of appeal to the Lands and Titles Courts and
to the Supreme Court.  In a 1993 court case, a village fono
ordered the property of a villager to be burned after he had
disobeyed and flouted village rules.  An angry mob killed the
villager and burned all his belongings.  The villager who
actually shot the victim was tried in 1994 and sentenced to
death by the Supreme Court.  The six matai members, though
originally charged by the Supreme Court with inciting murder,
were subsequently only charged with willful damage and received
a minimal fine and no jail sentence.  Western Samoa's Attorney
General has lodged an appeal on the grounds that the sentence
was "inadequate and inappropriate."

     f.  Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
         Correspondence

Western Samoan law provides for protection from invasion of the
home or seizure of property without substantive and procedural
safeguards, including search warrants, which are issued by the
judicial branch.  Practically, however, there is little or no
privacy in the village.  Village officials by law must have
permission to enter homes, but there can be substantial social
pressure to grant such permission.

Section 2  Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

     a.  Freedom of Speech and Press

The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the
press.  The Government prints a weekly newspaper containing
news and features dealing largely with government activities.
The Newspapers and Printers Act and the Defamation Act in 1993
require journalists to reveal their sources in the event of a
defamation suit against them.  To date, no court case has
required that these acts be invoked.  In 1994 the Prime
Minister charged the local press with irresponsible journalism
after one of his parliamentary speeches was reported
inaccurately.  He raised the possibility of legislation against
what he called biased and malicious reporting, but no action
has been taken.

Two English-language newspapers and numerous Samoan-language
newspapers are printed regularly in the country.  The
Government operates a radio station and the country's sole
television station, and there are two private radio stations.
Television from neighboring American Samoa is readily available
to viewers in Western Samoa.

     b.  Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The Constitution provides for the right of peaceful assembly
and the right to form associations.  There are no significant
restrictions.  In 1994 Tumua and Pule, traditional leadership
groups representing the two major islands of Upolu and Savaii,
staged a major incident-free demonstration against a newly
imposed value-added tax.

     c.  Freedom of Religion

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, along with
freedom of thought and conscience.  Nearly 100 percent of the
population is Christian.  However, while the Constitution
grants each person the right to change religion or belief and
to worship or teach religion alone or with others, in practice
the matai often choose the religious denomination of the aiga.
There is strong societal pressure to support church leaders and
projects financially.  Such contributions often total more than
30 percent of personal income.

     d.  Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
         Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

The Constitution provides for freedom of internal movement, but
in practice some citizens have been banished either from
village activities or completely from the village.  The
Government actively supports emigration as a "safety valve" for
pressures of a growing population, for potentially rebellious
youths, and because it increases foreign income through
remittances.  The Government does not restrict foreign travel
arbitrarily or the right of citizens to return from abroad.

Section 3  Respect for Political Rights:  The Right of Citizens
           to Change Their Government

Citizens have the right to change their government through
direct, multiparty elections, but women's political rights are
restricted by their lack of matai titles.  While all citizens
above the age of 21 may vote, the right to run for 47 of the 49
seats in the Legislative Assembly remains the prerogative of
the approximately 25,000 matai, 95 percent of whom are men.
The remaining two seats are reserved for citizens not of Samoan
heritage.  While all adult Samoans may vote for the Legislative
Assembly, matai continue to control local government through
the village fono, which are open to them alone.  The 12-member
Cabinet has 1 female member, and women hold 2 of the 47 seats
in Parliament.  The first female judge was named in 1994.

The political process in Western Samoa is more a function of
personality than of party.  The Human Rights Protection Party
(HRPP) led by its leader, Prime Minister Tofilau Eti Alesana,
holds the majority of seats in the Legislative Assembly.  The
Samoan National Development Party is the opposition party.
Unless the Government falls, the next general elections will
not be held until 1996.

Section 4  Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
           Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
           of Human Rights

While there are no official restrictions against their
formation, no official or private human rights organizations
exist.  There are no reports of any international or
nongovernmental requests for investigations of alleged
violations of human rights.

Section 5  Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
           Disability, Language, or Social Status

Western Samoa is a homogeneous society with no significant
ethnic minorities.  Samoan politics and culture are the product
of a heritage of chiefly privilege and power, and members of
certain families have some advantages.  While there is
discrimination against non-matai and women, women (and
particularly female matai) play an important role in society
and may occasionally reach high office.

     Women

The traditional subordinate role of women is changing, albeit
slowly, especially in the more conservative parts of society.
While abuse of women is prohibited by law, social custom
tolerates physical abuse of women within the home.  The role
and rights of the village fonos and tradition would prevent
police from interfering in instances of domestic violence,
barring a complaint from the victim--which village custom
strongly discourages.  While police do receive some complaints
from abused women, domestic violence offenders are most often
punished by village councils, but only if the abuse is
considered extreme.  ("Extreme abuse" would be visibly evident
signs of physical abuse.)  The village religious leader may
also intervene in domestic disputes.

Many cases of rape may still go unreported because tradition
and custom discourage it.  In spite of this, the authorities
note a greater number of reported cases of rape, as women are
slowly becoming more forthcoming with the police.  Rape cases
that do reach the courts are treated seriously.  Convicted
offenders are often given relatively stiff sentences of several
years' imprisonment.

     Children

The Government's commitment to the welfare of children is
reflected in legislation and in its continued efforts to
strengthen the educational system.  The law prohibits abuse of
children, but tradition tolerates physical abuse of children
within the home.

     People with Disabilities

The Government has passed no legislation pertaining to the
status of handicapped or disabled persons or regarding
accessibility for the disabled.  Samoan tradition dictates that
handicapped persons be cared for by their family, and this
custom is widely observed in practice.

Section 6  Worker Rights

     a.  The Right of Association

Western Samoan workers have legally unrestricted rights to
establish and join organizations of their own choosing.  To
date, two trade unions have been organized.  The Western Samoa
National Union, organized in 1994, is a six-member association
which includes workers from the three major banks.  A second
union represents members at the sole large factory in the
country.  Both unions are independent of the Government and
political parties.  There are no laws specific to union
activity in Western Samoa.  The Commissioner of Labour would
adjudicate any cases of retribution against strikers or union
leaders on a case-by-case basis.

The Public Service Association, representing government
workers, an increasingly important sector of the work force,
also functions as a union.  The Supreme Court has upheld the
right of government workers to strike, subject to certain
restrictions imposed principally for reasons of public safety.
Workers in the private sector have the right to strike, but in
1994 there were none.  The Public Service Association freely
maintains relations with international bodies and participates
in bilateral exchanges.

     b.  The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

While workers have the legal right to engage in collective
bargaining, they have seldom practiced it due to the newness of
union activity and the inexperience of union leaders.  However,
the Public Service Association engages in collective bargaining
on behalf of government workers, including bargaining on
wages.  Minimum wages are set by an advisory commission to the
Minister of Labour.  Wages in the private sector are determined
by competitive demand for the required skills.  Any antiunion
discrimination case would be reported to and adjudicated by the
Commissioner of Labour.  Arbitration and mediation procedures
are in place to resolve labor disputes, although these rarely
arise.

Labor law and practice in the one export processing zone are
the same as in the rest of the country.

     c.  Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

While the Government does not demand compulsory labor and it is
prohibited by law, in this collective society people are
frequently called upon to work for their villages.  Most people
do so willingly, but, if not, the matai can compel them to do
so.

     d.  Minimum Age for Employment of Children

Under the terms of the Labor and Employment Act of 1972 as
amended, it is illegal to employ children under 15 years of age
except in "safe and light work."  The Commissioner of Labor
refers complaints about illegal child labor to the Attorney
General for enforcement.  The Attorney General has received no
complaints about violation of the child labor laws, which
probably seldom occurs.  The law does not apply to service
rendered to the matai, some of whom require children to work,
primarily on village farms.

     e.  Acceptable Conditions of Work

The Labor and Employment Act of 1972 as amended established for
the private sector a 40-hour workweek and a small minimum
wage.  The hourly minimum wage is $0.42 (Tala 1.05).  This
minimum wage suffices for a basic standard of living when
supplemented by the subsistence farming and fishing in which
most families engage.  The Labour and Employment Act of 1972
provides that no worker should be required to work for more
than 40 hours in any 1 week.

The Act also establishes certain rudimentary safety and health
standards, which the Attorney General is responsible for
enforcing.  Independent observers report, however, that the
safety laws are not strictly enforced except when accidents
highlight noncompliance.  Many agricultural workers, among
others, are inadequately protected from pesticides and other
dangers to health.  Government education programs are
addressing these concerns.  The Act does not apply to service
rendered to the matai.  While the Act does not specifically
address the right of workers to remove themselves from a
dangerous work situation, a report of such a case to the
Commissioner of Labour would prompt an investigation, without
jeopardy to continued employment.  Government employees are
covered under different and more stringent regulations, which
are adequately enforced by the Public Service Commission.