Village laws exist for a reason

By Nefertiti Matatia 18 November 2017, 12:00AM

Every village has laws and regulations that villagers must abide by.

While they are largely there to keep the peace and maintain harmony in different villages, they also prepare people to be better in terms of representing the villages in the wider community.

Siaosi Muliaga, from Leauva’a village, shared this view yesterday.

He believes the existence of the Village Council and the laws they provide and monitor is a critical part of Samoan life.

He is afraid to imagine what life in Samoa would be like without matai leadership.

 “In Leauva’a, anybody who does not follow the law that has been laid down by the village council will face the consequences,” he said. 

He added Leauva’a, like any other village, strongly maintains its culture and way of life.

The 23-year-old believes this is one way to prevent chaos.

“This has been a way to control the youths within our village,” he said.

“As we can see most of the youth nowadays, some of them are out of control and they lack respect for the elders and other people.”

Siaosi stated that laws are in place to guide behaviour. This includes measures to prohibit drunken  behaviour in public, making noise and dating a church minister’s daughter.

He said if the village was in order then everything they do will reflect a better society in the future.

Siaosi says it is vital that we listen to each other because if we don’t then there will be problems. 

Despite the high cost of living, he said he would rather live in a peaceful environment than in one where life was affordable but had problems in the community.

Siaosi said only two of his family members were working to support them.

By Nefertiti Matatia 18 November 2017, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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