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2021 Samoan Constitutional Crisis
A constitutional crisis began in Samoa on 22 May 2021 when O le Ao o le Malo (Head of State) Tuimalealiʻifano Vaʻaletoʻa Sualauvi II issued a proclamation purporting to prevent the Legislative Assembly from meeting in the wake of the general election in April 2021. Court rulings had upheld the election results, giving a parliamentary majority to the Faʻatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) party, led by Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa. On 24 May 2021, a makeshift ceremony was held outside of Parliament to swear in Mata'afa as prime minister. On 23 July the Court of Appeal declared that the ceremony was binding and that FAST had been the government since that date. Background The election of 9 April 2021 resulted in a 25/25 tie between the ruling Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP) of former Prime Minister Tuila'epa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi and the FAST party of Fiamē Naomi Mataafa, with the remaining seat held by the independent Tuala Iosefo Ponifasio. On 20 April 2021, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Legislative Assembly Of Samoa
The Legislative Assembly ( sm, Fono Aoao Faitulafono a Samoa), also known as the Parliament of Samoa ( sm, Palemene o Samoa), is the national legislature of Samoa, seated at Apia, where the country's central administration is situated. Samoan Parliament is composed of two parts: the O le Ao o le Malo (head of state) and the Legislative Assembly. In the Samoan language, the Legislative Assembly of Samoa is sometimes referred to as the Samoan Fono while the ''government'' of the country is referred to as the Malo. The word ''fono'' is a Samoan and Polynesian term for councils or meetings great and small and applies to national assemblies and legislatures, as well as local village councils. The modern government of Samoa exists on a national level alongside the country's '' fa'amatai'' indigenous chiefly system of governance and social organisation. In his or her own right, the O le Ao o le Malo can summon and call together the Legislative Assembly, and can prorogue or dissolve P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Court Of Appeal Of Samoa
The Supreme Court of Samoa () is the superior court dealing with the administration of justice in Samoa. It was established by Part VI of the Constitution of Samoa. It consists of the Chief Justice of Samoa and other judges as appointed by the Head of State on the advice of the Prime Minister of Samoa. Judges serve until they reach the age of 68 years, and can only be removed from office on the address of the Legislative Assembly on grounds of misbehaviour or infirmity; this requires a two-thirds majority of all MPs. Acting Judges may be appointed for a fixed term. The court has jurisdiction over the interpretation of the constitution, enforcement of fundamental rights, and membership of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa. It also has "such original, appellate and revisional jurisdiction as may be provided by Act". At present this is criminal jurisdiction where there is a statutory maximum sentence of more than seven years and a civil jurisdiction where the amount claimed is more ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Papali’i Li’o Taeu Masipau
Papali’i Li’o Oloipola Taeu Masipau (born ) is a Samoan politician and Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa. Papali’i is a lawyer and former Assistant Police Commissioner. He was first elected to the Fono as a candidate for the Tautua Samoa Party in the 2011 Samoan general election. He lost his seat in the 2016 election. In 2019 he ran as a candidate for the Human Rights Protection Party The Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP, sm, Vaega Faaupufai e Puipuia Aia Tatau a Tagata) is a Samoan political party. It was founded in 1982 and dominated Samoan party politics for decades thereafter, leading every government until their defea ... in the Fa’asaleleaga No. 2 by-election, but was unsuccessful. He was re-elected as a candidate for the F.A.S.T. party for Fa’asaleleaga No. 3 in the 2021 election. On 22 May 2021 he was nominated by FAST as Speaker. On 24 May he was sworn in in an ad-hoc ceremony after being locked out of Parliament. The appointment was dis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Su'a Hellene Wallwork
Su'a Hellene Wallwork-Lamb is a Samoan lawyer and jurist. Since September 2021 she has been Attorney-General of Samoa. Su'a is from Lefaga and was educated at the University of Auckland. After working in the Office of the Attorney-General, she returned to New Zealand, where she worked for the New Zealand Police and the Commerce Commission and in private practice. In 2013 she returned to Samoa and established a law firm with her husband. In April 2016 she was appointed Sweden's Honorary Consul in Samoa. In March 2017 she was elected President of the Samoa Law Society. She served as vice-president for the next three years, and was elected president again in 2021. As Vice-president of the society she fronted the society's submissions during the 2021 Samoan constitutional crisis, criticising ''O le Ao o le Malo'' Tuimalealiʻifano Vaʻaletoʻa Sualauvi II's attempt to stop parliament from meeting and the Human Rights Protection Party's post-crisis attacks on the judiciary. She was a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cabinet Of Samoa
The Cabinet is the executive branch of the government of the Independent State of Samoa. Per article 31(1) of the Constitution, executive power is vested in the Head of State. Per article 26(1), however, "the Head of State in the performance of his functions shall act on the advice of Cabinet, the Prime Minister or the appropriate Minister, as the case may be". Article 32(1) provides that the Cabinet "shall have the general direction and control of the executive government" of Samoa. The Cabinet is composed, per article 32(2), of the Prime Minister and "not fewer than eight nor more than twelve other Members of Parliament", appointed by the Head of State on the advice of the Prime Minister. XVII Cabinet This Cabinet was appointed by Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa during the 2021 Samoan constitutional crisis following the April 2021 Samoan general election. The previous cabinet purported to continue in a caretaker role. On 23 July 2021 the Court of Appeal ruled that the swearing-in ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fuiavailili Egon Keil
Fuiavailili Egon Lincoln Keil (born ~1965) was Samoa's Police Commissioner from March 2015 to August 2021. Early life Keil is from the village of Palauli. He is the son of businessman Maposua Rudolf Keil. He was educated at California State University, Dominguez Hills, graduating with a B.Sc. in criminal justice administration. After working for a year as a prison guard in the Utah Department of Corrections, he joined the Los Angeles Police Department in 1995. He served for 17 years with the LAPD, rising to the rank of Assistant Watch Commander. He returned to Samoa in 2012, where he operated a car repair business and on the board of the Samoa Fire and Emergency Services Authority. Police commissioner In March 2015 Keil was appointed Samoan Police Commissioner, the first person from outside the Samoan police to be appointed to the job. When appointed he announced his intention to improve police accountability, and shortly after being appointed he suspended four police officers f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satiu Simativa Perese
Satiu Simativa Perese (born 1962) is a Samoan judge. He has served as the Chief Justice of Samoa since 12 June 2020. Perese was born in Magiagi, Samoa and educated at Magiagi Primary School. His family moved to New Zealand when he was a child. He studied business at Massey University and then became a newsreader for Radio New Zealand. In 1986 he began studying law at Victoria University of Wellington, from which he graduated in 1989, and he was admitted to the bar in 1990. He subsequently worked for the New Zealand Crown Law Office. In 1995 he became the first Samoan to win a Harkness Fellowship, and studied at Columbia University in New York. Perese was admitted to the bar in Samoa in 1999, and has also worked in the Cook Islands. From 2000 to 2002 he was President of the Pacific Lawyers Society, and in 2002 he was appointed as inaugural chair of the National Pacific Radio Trust, which operates the Pacific Media Network. From 2003 to 2009 he was a member of the New Zealand Hum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nonu Lose Niumata
Nonu Lose Niumata is a Samoan politician and former Member of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa. He is a member of the Human Rights Protection Party. Niumata is from the villages of Fusi (Suli moni ole Manu'a le Sagalala), Fausaga (Aiga Toleafoa), Vaie'e (Aiga Te'o) and Tafitoala Safata. He spent 27 years working for Samoa's Accident Compensation Corporation, 20 of them as chief executive officer (CEO). After retiring, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Samoa in the 2016 Samoan general election General elections were held in Samoa on 4 March 2016 to determine the composition of the 16th Parliament. Two parties contested the election, the ruling Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP), led by prime minister Tuila'epa Sa'ilele Malielega .... He is a Chartered Accountant with Samoa Institute of Accountants, and a former President of Samoa Institute of Accountants for 3 consecutive years. He was re-elected in the 2021 election. On 7 July 2021 he resigned as part of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Doctrine Of Necessity
The doctrine of necessity is the basis on which extra-constitutional actions by administrative authority, which are designed to restore order or attain power on the pretext of stability, are considered to be lawful even if such an action contravenes established constitution, laws, norms, or conventions. The maxim on which the doctrine is based originated in the writings of the medieval jurist Henry de Bracton, and similar justifications for this kind of extra-legal action have been advanced by more recent legal authorities, including William Blackstone. In a controversial 1954 judgment, Pakistani Chief Justice Muhammad Munir validated the extra-constitutional use of emergency powers by Governor General, Ghulam Mohammad. In his judgment, the Chief Justice cited Bracton's maxim, 'that which is otherwise not lawful is made lawful by necessity', thereby providing the label that would come to be attached to the judgment and the doctrine that it was establishing. The doctrine of nece ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seiuli Ueligitone Seiuli
Seiuli Ueligitone Seiuli is a Samoan politician and a former member of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa. He is a member of the Human Rights Protection Party. Seiuli was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Samoa The Legislative Assembly ( sm, Fono Aoao Faitulafono a Samoa), also known as the Parliament of Samoa ( sm, Palemene o Samoa), is the national legislature of Samoa, seated at Apia, where the country's central administration is situated. Samoan P ... at the 2015 Sagaga-le-Usoga by-election. He was re-elected in the 2016 election and appointed Associate Minister of Works, Transport and Infrastructure. In October 2018 he was one of a group of chiefs charged with contempt of court for bestowing the Malietoa title in violation of a court order. He was re-elected at the 2021 election, but his election was overturned by an election petition, which found him guilty of bribery and treating and banned him from office for 15 years. References Living people Memb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Savalenoa Mareva Betham Annandale
Savalenoa Mareva Betham Annandale is a Samoan lawyer and jurist. From July 2020 to September 2021, she served as Attorney-General of Samoa. Previously she had served as the first female president of the Samoa Law Society. Annandale was educated at the University of Central Queensland, graduating with a B.A. in history in 1991. She then studied law at the University of the South Pacific, graduating with a law degree in 1997. She worked as a public servant in New Zealand for the Department of Corrections, Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade before returning to Samoa to work for the Office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration. She then entered private practice with her husband Lauaki Jason Annandale and served as President of the Samoa Law Society until 2017. In 2016, she called for judges of the Land and Titles Court of Samoa to receive legal training. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she was appointe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
