and reinforcing the message that the behaviour is acceptable. The very purpose of the ifoga is different to that of the formal legal system – it is to ensure the collective peace and harmony within the community. This is an extremely important aim but one which differs from the legal system which aims to punish the offender and provide justice where possible to the victim. Most countries globally do not have the traditional cultural system which aims to maintain community harmony, and Samoa is fortunate in this regard. It does not mean that the two systems could or should interfere with each other. This view appears to be widely accepted within Samoa. “An overwhelming majority of people consulted were of the view that customary reconciliation such as ifoga or penalties imposed by the village should not be taken into account as a mitigation factor to reduce sentences in cases of violence against women, especially cases of sexual violence, and that this should be removed from the Village Fono Act 1990.” Samoa Law Reform Commission, CEDAW Legislative Compliance Review, Inquiry document 89 INQUIRY FINDING 37: The justice system has made commendable progress in relation to family violence but issues remain around access to justice, community awareness and use of customary practices in sentencing. 9.2.5 Village Fono Lack of clarity of respective roles between the Village Fono and the justice system is problematic and may be one of the reasons for the lack of village led action to date. It does not help that family violence is not explicitly mentioned in the Village Fono Act 1990 as an area of concern for the Village Fono. “What we are hearing from the Village Fonos is that the (police) ‘no drop policy’ means that they are implementing a ‘drop it’ policy because they think that someone else now has responsibility for the issue and they can almost wash their hands of the violence that is happening in their village.” Leasiolagi Dr. Malama Meleisea, Inquiry Commissioner, Inquiry public hearings However, this is simply an excuse being used by some Village Fonos to continue with the patriarchal system that serves their interests so well and which they have no inclination to disturb. It is one of a range of reasons brought to the Inquiry as to why some Village Fonos are overwhelmingly inactive when it comes to the protection of family violence victims within their jurisdictions. Two ways in which Village Fonos commonly influence the protection of family violence victims is through general punishments handed out and the role they play in facilitating family violence matters to be reported to the Police. Unfortunately both are negative influences. The first is that punishments inflicted can further the environment in which family violence thrives, and in deciding on punishments for family violence (in the rare cases where Village Fonos do get involved) the