Samoa Poltical Situation

Poltical Situation

Samoa is governed by an elected council, or fono, under a constitutional monarch, Malietoa Tanumafili II. There is continuing debate as to whether people should be allowed to vote against the wishes of their village chiefs, or matai. While the vote is technically entirely free for an individual, in practice those who dissent from the majority village view have been ostracised, thrown out of the village, and even, in extreme cases, killed. The legal system is based on English common law and local customs.