| Asia-Pacific Regional Press Freedom Seminar Country Report - Samoa Having to make materials (such as correspondence and photos) available to someone suing a newspaper for defamation before the case goes to court, is one of the restrictive elements of the 1995 Defamation Act which is in place in Samoa's media laws. This is also well before a determination if there is a case or no case to answer. We in the media see this as mainly a ploy by the government at the time to discourage members of the public from writing revealing letters to the editor under non-de-plumes, often about mismanagement and corruption in high places. Samoa also has a Criminal Libel Law still in place, a legislation recently used by the late Prime Minister against the Samoa Observer newspaper. The case was dropped after the passing of the plaintiff. Such legislation is seen as archaic and must be scrapped. There are also the Printers and Publishers Act; and the Indecent Publications Act. Samoa's media today, enjoy unrestricted freedoms within the confines of the principles and ethics of the trade, compared to say seven to ten years ago when three pieces of legislations were rushed through parliament mainly to curb media and information freedom. The laws are still in place although we have been told by our political masters that they serve a purpose synonymous to 'Big Brother' - watching over you. Samoa's media exploded over that time especially privately ownership media outlets. Today with a population of 171,000, there are seven radio stations - 1 state owned assuming the role of the public broadcaster, three fully commercial stations owned by a single company and two owned (separately) and operated by the Pentecostal churches. | |
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