Samoan matai system upheld on appeal

Press, 28 August 1982, Page 1

Samoan matai system upheld on appeal

PA Wellington Western Samoa’s Court of Appeal, made up of .three New Zealanders, yesterday held the validity of the country’s Electoral Act, resolving a critical constitutional crisis in which doubt was thrown on the legality of electing a new Parliament, according to Wellington’s "Evening Post.” The decision upholds the matai system of voting in which only the head of a family has the right to vote: According to the five respondents, the matai system disenfranchises a large number of people and minority interest groups, particularly women. The judges — Sir Robin Qooke, of Wellington (presi-

dent), Professor Ken Keith, of Victoria University, and a’ retired South Island Supreme Court judge, Mr. Justice Mills, overturned a decision by Samoa's former Chief Justice, Mr Justice St John, of Australia, the “Post” reported. Mr Justice St John had ruled, earlier this year, that Samoa's Electoral Act was unconstitutional because it permitted only matai the right to vote. He said this conflicted with provisions of the constituion which, provided for equality for all. The judgment ostensibly left the country with an illegal Parliament and with no means of electing a new one. But in a 41-page judgment — read by the registrar of

the Court in Apia yesterday — the Court of Appeal found that the provisions of the Constitution on the equality of all did not specifically apply to the question of matai suffrage. “When the Constitution is considered as a whole, we do not think that the question (of suffrage) is left in any true obscurity,” the judgment said. Referring to the constitutional convention of 1961, the Court noted that the question of universal suffrage was actually put forward and rejected. “Our conclusion that the Constitution does not guarantee universal suffrage has been arrived at without the aid of reference to the convention’s proceedings; but we think it right to refer to those proceedings so as to make sure that the words of the Constituion. as adopted by the convention, do convey what was fully intended.”

Because of what the Court described as the public importance of the issue, the appellant, the Attorney-Gen-, eral, has been ordered to pay the costs of the respondents. The respondents were Saipa’ia Olomalu, of Satuimalufilufi; Roderick Crichton, of Pesega; Georgina Cecilia Moore, of, Vaivase; Leinati Cecilia Netzler, of Moto’otua; and Dorothy Pereira, of Apia. The Court said its judgment did not imply any view on the part of the Court about whether the matai system should continue to be used as' the basis for electing an Assembly. As well, as being an allNew Zealand Bench, New Zealand was represented among counsel when la former Wellington diplomat, Mr Colin Aikman, appeared with the Attorney-General, Mr Neroni Slade. Mr Aikman took part in the drawing up of the Constitution in 1961.