Human Rights Protection Party
| Human Rights Protection Party Vaega Faaupufai e Puipuia Aia Tatau a Tagata |
|
|---|---|
| Party leader | Tuila'epa Sailele Malielegaoi |
| Fono |
25/51 |
| Website | http://hrpp.org.ws/ |
The Human Rights Protection Party ( HRPP , Samoan Vaega Faaupufai e Puipuia Aia Tatau a Tagata ) is a political party in the Parliament of Samoa . It has been the dominant party since 1982. The party leader has been Tuila'epa Sailele Malielegaoi since 1998 . In the parliamentary elections in April 2021, the HRPP remained the party with the strongest vote, but lost the majority of seats in parliament. The controversial election sparked a constitutional crisis as the election of opposition leader Naomi Mata'afa as the new Prime Minister was not recognized by the HRPP.
history
Va'ai Kolone and Tofilau Eti Alesana jointly founded the party in May 1979 in opposition to the government of Tufuga Efi (Tupuola Efi). Since 1982 it has always been the dominant force in parliament except for a brief interruption between 1986 and 1987, when internal differences forced a coalition.
The two founders, Kolone and Alesana, later each became Prime Ministers of Samoa.
Former Prime Minister Tuila'epa Sailele Malielegaoi has led the party since 1998.
elections
The Fono (Aoao Faitulafono o Samoa, German Parliament Samaos) is the legislative body of the State of Samoa.
| Election date | Number of votes | percentage | Number of seats | Government / opposition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 3,482 | 29.3% | 24/47 | government |
| 1985 | 4,698 | 34.5% | 32/47 | government |
| 1988 | 5,017 | 35.9% | 23/47 | government |
| 1991 | 34,262 | 44.8% | 27/47 | government |
| 1996 | 29,353 | 43.5% | 24/49 | government |
| 2001 | 34,262 | 44.8% | 23/49 | government |
| 2006 | Unpublished | Unpublished | 35/49 | government |
| 2011 | 48,771 | 55.6% | 29/49 | government |
| 2016 | 45,816 | 57.3% | 35/50 | government |
| 2021 | 49,237 | 55.4% | 25/51 | controversial |
Principles and program
In June 2017, parliament passed a law to anchor Christianity more firmly in the country's constitution, including with reference to the Trinity . Article 1 of the constitution reads: "Samoa is a Christian nation founded of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit" ("Samoa is a Christian nation founded on God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit").
Grant Wyeth wrote in The Diplomat : "Samoa has moved references to Christianity into the corpus of the constitution, giving the text much greater opportunity to be used in legal process." Even the preamble of the constitution describes the country as "an independent state based on Christian principles and Samoan custom and traditions", as "an independent state based on Christian principles and Samoan customs and traditions".
Individual evidence
- ↑ Samoa's first female PM locked out of parliament by losing opponent. In: BBC News . May 24, 2021, accessed May 26, 2021 .
- ↑ Asofou Soʻo, Roland Rich, Luke Hambly, Michael G. Morgan (Eds.): Political Parties in the Pacific Islands. Pandanus Books, Canberra, 2008, ISBN 978-1-921313-75-2 , p. 189 (chapter "The establishment and operation of Samoa's political party system").
- ^ J. Denis Derbyshire, Ian Derbyshire: Political Systems Of The World. Allied Publishers, New Delhi, 1989, ISBN 978-81-7023-307-7 , p. 123 .
- ^ Grant Wyeth: Samoa Officially Becomes a Christian State. In: The Diplomat. June 16, 2017, accessed on May 26, 2021 (English): "What Samoa has done is shift references to Christianity into the body of the constitution, giving the text far more potential to be used in legal processes."