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Samoa's sex offenders’ register assessed

Issues surrounding a sex offenders’ register will be carefully considered say Samoa’s Law Commission.Law Commission Executive Director, Leilani Warren–Tuala said the Commission is looking into the call for sex register and “what purpose it would serve and if we need one”.Mrs Tuala was asked for a comment when Attorney General, Aumua Ming Leung Wai referred the call for a sex offender’s register to the Law Commission.Aumua said other countries have sex offender registries but whether it is appropriate for Samoa is something that needs to be assessed.The call from Supreme Court Judge, Justice Vui Clarence Nelson for a sex registry has received widespread support from the community.Speaking to the Sunday Samoan Mrs. Tuala said the commission is studying other countries that have a sex register and how they handle it.“We are looking into what type of register it would be like and the criteria,” she explained.“There are a whole lot of things we have to consider like how the register will look and who will have access to it because in some countries, the Police have access to it.“We also need to know how long it would be for whether it’s for life or if it has a certain period when it will end.“Looking within Samoa, we have to consider other mechanisms that currently exist to deter sex offences like in the area of sentencing; whether to impose higher sentencing rather than smaller periods.