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Military veteran decries loss of communal land

Former Territorial Registrar Salote Star Schuster told a town hall meeting hosted by Congresswoman Aumua Amata that communal lands cannot be sold or converted to individually owned land without the consent of the family including the family sa’o (or head of the family clan) and approval of the sitting governor.

 

Schuster was responding to a concern raised by military veteran Morgan Suapilimai, who claimed that his family’s communal land has been converted to individually owned land and he wanted to know if the Congresswoman can bring the issue before the U.S. Congress to address.

 

Suapilimai of Ili’ili told the meeting, held earlier this month at the Fono Guest Fale that communal lands have been transferred to individual ownership and some communal lands are encumbered with long-term commercial leases causing divisions in many families.

 

“I see [communal] land slipping away,” he said, adding that one ASG office that “I can’t stand, [is] the Office of the Territorial Registrar” - which handles, among other things the registration of land leases and land ownership.

 

He further claimed that there are 99-year leases of communal land and “I don’t even know who to trust anymore when it come to our traditional leaders.” He said he left the territory to serve his country in the U.S. military but “when I came back, most of my communal land was gone”  — sold and converted to individually owned land.

 

“I’m very very upset at this point,” he said, adding that “I was out serving our country and I was under the impression that our leaders will be protecting our communal lands. And I don’t even know who to turn to for help.”

 

It was noted during the meeting that this is a local issues for the local government and the Fono to address and not the federal level.

 

In response to the communal land matter, Schuster said that she does not recall during her tenure as Territorial Registrar communal land being sold or transferred to individually owned land.

 

She also explained that before communal land turns into individually owned, it needs approval of the family, including the sa’o — or chief of the family — and final approval is needed from the sitting governor.

 

“The sa’o of the family is the key person in changing of communal land to individually owned land,” she said. “That’s when the family comes in and opposes and has a say to the sa’o, that ‘no you can’t do that, this is communal land, and we want to hang on to our communal land’.”

 

Suapilimai said that he has consulted local attorneys in this matter. He also declined to reveal any names of people allegedly involved in the transfer or selling of communal land to individual ownership.