Freedom of opinion and expression including the right of access to information are important rights and freedoms for us all. The fulfillment of other rights depends upon the fulfillment of these rights. They are essential to human existence in a free society because they enable people as social beings to relate and to communicate with one another. They are also critical to keep necessary watch on the instruments of governance and make the government more accountable.8 In a democracy like Samoa, the protection and promotion of such freedoms and rights by the State as guaranteed to every Samoan citizen under our Constitution9, is strongly encouraged. It is also well established in international law under the Universal Declaration on Human Rights10 and the ICCPR in which Samoa is a party.11 Freedom of opinion Freedom of opinion guarantees the right to every person to hold opinions without interference and is not to be subject to exceptions or restrictions.12 The right to express opinions, on the other hand, is not absolute.13 Freedom of opinion encompasses the right to change an opinion whenever and for whatever reason a person so freely chooses. No person may be subject to the impairment of any rights on the basis of his or her actual, perceived or supposed opinions. All forms of opinion are protected, including opinions of a political, scientific, historic, moral or religious nature.14 The harassment, intimidation or stigmatization of a person, including arrest, detention, trial or imprisonment for reasons of the opinions they may hold is a violation of such right and any effort to coerce the holding or not holding of any opinion is prohibited. 15 Freedom of opinion also includes the freedom not to express one’s opinion.16 8 See Ban Ki-Moon, “Freedom of Expression, a Fundamental Human Right”, UN Chronicle, https://www.un.org/en/chronicle/article/freedom-expression-fundamental-human-right. See also UNESCO, “About Freedom of Information”, http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/freedom-of-expression/freedom-of-information/about/. 9 Constitution of Samoa, Article 13(1). 10 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 19. 11 Samoa became a party to the ICCPR in 2008. 12 UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), General comment no. 34, Article 19, Freedoms of opinion and expression, 12 September 2011, CCPR/C/GC/34, https://www.refworld.org/docid/4ed34b562.html. 13 Centre for Law and Democracy & International Media Support, “Briefing Note Series: Freedom of Expression”, (July 2014), p. 3, https://www.mediasupport.org/publication/briefing-note-series-freedom-expression/. See also UN HRC, General comment no. 34, Article 19, para 11. 14 UN HRC, General comment no. 34, Article 19, para 9. 15 UN HRC, General comment no. 34, Article 19, para 9. 16 UN HRC, General comment no. 34, Article 19, para 10. State of Human Rights Report 2021 | 11