The Secretary-General of the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa says physical punishment has become a norm and accepted as part of culture. In a country where the saying - 'Father is the Head of the Family' - is taken as self-evident truth, women and children will always be vulnerable to the whims of the father.
A Commission of Inquiry has started hearing witness statements on domestic violence in Samoa. In the first week of hearings, a woman testified that she was a victim of physical abuse from her husband for many years, and every time she lodged a complaint with the Police, she was turned away and the assaults were never investigated. Members of the clergy have questioned their own ministries and Samoan culture in entrenching domestic violence.
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