Spanish philosopher George Santayana is credited with the aphorism, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,” while British statesman Winston Churchill wrote, “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”

It’s nigh on a hundred (100) years since Samoans born in then Western Samoa in 1924 were British subjects and therefore eligible to be New Zealand citizens. That certain destiny was quashed in 1982 by the Citizenship (Western Samoa) Act of the New Zealand Parliament with the full knowledge and concurrence of the then Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP).

In his memoir, PALEMIA, former prime minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, gives the background to how the New Zealand government of Robert Muldoon convinced (some say conned) the then government of Prime Minister Va’ai Kolone and his Cabinet to go along with the law change.

Va’ai was Prime Minister for five months. Then came August. He was heading. He was heading to the 1982 Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) to be held in Rotorua New Zealand.

Before Va’ai departed for New Zealand, he brought the issue of the proposed protocol with New Zealand to our caucus. The protocol would squash the legislation that allowed every Samoan born before 1948 to be a New Zealand citizen. I was against Samoa becoming a party to the proposal. The protocol was political dynamite.

I argued. “Let us tell the New Zealand government it is not our baby. If they decide to squash it, it is their own decision.

I did not want Va’ai to be dragged into being party to the squashing of the Privy Council decision by law. Let New Zealand do that under their own steam.

That was not to be the case. Va’ai went to New Zealand and succumbed to the pressure of Prime Minister Muldoon. He bent under pressure. When he came back to Samoa he feigned illness and gave Tofilau the job of organising a meeting of our caucus and relaying the decision. Tofilau was now acting leader of Cabinet and spoke on behalf of Va’ai, defending his actions.

With both Va’ai and Tofilau gone, R.I.P., we have no option but take the former prime minister’s words as accurate.

However, as the only reporter present at Rotorua, I interviewed Va’ai and he told me that he was coming back to Samoa with proposals by the New Zealand government and it would be up to his Cabinet to decide. He mentioned other proposals concerning economic development aid and immigration. Because of the wildly exaggerated numbers, for example, one hundred thousand Samoans, eligible under the Privy Council decision, the idea was to slow down the flow, not to block it altogether.  

For those present in 1982 when the Privy Council agreed with “Lesa” that she was a British subject and therefore was not an overstayer, all hell broke loose in the New Zealand media. I remember a cartoon in the Herald of a character jumping up and screaming: “They’re [the Samoans] coming through the windows.”

I remember also one commentator saying that only Hitler had taken away citizenship from German citizens before New Zealand.

But Muldoon was determined and went ahead and passed the Citizen (Western Samoa)

Act 1982 abolishing the Privy Council decision.

Now, with National, Muldoon’s old party, the only objector to the Hon. Tuiono’s Bill going through to a first reading, it is unclear how the present New Zealand population feels about thousands more Samoans coming to New Zealand. Will the pressure for more manpower finally overcome the fear of a flood of Samoans? Only time will tell. Have a relaxing Sunday everyone.