Rape Laws Need Attention In Samoa

Written by Mathew Lemisio
Wednesday, 23 January 2008
*Lui Winterstin leaving the Supreme Court for another five years imprisonment* Supreme Court Justice Vui Clarence Nelson has called on Parliamentarians to divert their attention on addressing loopholes that exist in laws that govern the crime of rape in Samoa. Under the country’s current Crimes Ordinance Act of 1961, a male having sexual intercourse with another male without consent is not regarded as rape. That’s because section 47 of the Crimes Ordinance defined rape as “the act of a male person having sexual intercourse with a woman or girl” only. This means if a man forcefully commits sexual intercourse on another male without his consent, under the current law, he gets away with the serious offence of rape which carries the maximum penalty of life imprisonment and faces a much lesser charge of either indecent assault or sodomy which carries lesser penalties. This exactly what happened in the case of a 23-year-old man named Lui Winterstein who was earlier this week convicted and jailed for five years on the charges of sodomy and indecent assault. (Please refer to other story.) Justice Vui remarked that if this case had occurred in other jurisdictions, Winterstein could well have been facing a rape charge. “Under our current laws,” His Honour said, “it defines rape as only a sexual act between a man and a woman without consent.” Justice Vui then said that this issue needs urgent attention of Parliament. After he delivered his sentencing, His Honour then reminded public prosecutor who appeared on behalf of the Attorney General’s office and police to convey the courts concerns to her superiors. This is not the first time this matter was raised before the courts of this country. A few years ago, in another rape case, veteran lawyer and former law lecturer at the University of the South Pacific’s Law School in Port Vila, Leulua’i Tasi Malifa addressed this issue on constitutional grounds. The courts could not do much on the issue as it is not its job to change the laws of the land, which is the job of Parliament. Comments (0) Subscribe to this comment's feed Write comment Name Email Title Comment
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 23 January 2008 )

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