“The SCA notes that the Ombudsman has never received any human rights violations complaints from individuals, even if provided for under Section 38 of the Act. The SCA acknowledges that the Ombudsman has received individual complaints relating to matters of good governance and special investigations, which often have human rights dimensions.

The SCA encourages the Ombudsman to strengthen its efforts to raise public awareness on its mandate to protect human rights and address human rights violations. The SCA further encourages the Ombudsman to ensure that its positions on these issues are made publicly available, as this will contribute to strengthening the credibility and accessibility of the institution for all people in Samoa.

The SCA emphasizes protection functions may be understood as those that address and seek to prevent actual human rights violations. Such functions include monitoring, inquiring, investigating, and reporting on human rights violations, and may include individual complaint handling.”