Phase 3 - Samoa

Promotion of a culture of peace, tolerance and coexistence among ethnic groups

The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Tiapata in Samoa organized a series of awareness raising events on tolerance amongst the various communities of Samoa. As many as 16 seminars were held in July and August 2002, involving hundreds of pre-school, primary and secondary school students. A symposium addressing the issue of women in the Samoan culture was organized for 50 people in July 2002, with the participation of the Ministry of Women Affairs. A 30-day radio campaign on tolerance and prevention of xenophobic acts was also designed and broadcast in May 2003, and many articles were published in various newspapers of the country.

The Samoa National Teachers Association conducted a “training of trainers” project. In July 2002, the recipient organized a training workshop on human rights and prevention of intolerance amongst communities for 43 teachers representing the 22 local branches of the Association. The trained teachers conducted similar sessions for colleagues in their respective villages in Samoa.