SHAME ON YOU 60 MINUTES!
Last night I watched 60 Minutes and saw a report on a deeply
traumatic event that happened to a couple who had visited Samoa. I am sincerely saddened by the disgusting
behaviour of a single man who committed this crime and I wish to apologise for
the horrible ordeal that they had to face at his hands. No one should ever have to go through such
pain anywhere in the world.
I would however, like to state that I am appalled by the
sensationalist reporting of 60 Minutes for this particular segment. The advertisements for the segment refer to
Samoa as an “idyllic paradise or hell on earth.” The commercial voice over stated “This island
paradise is every holiday makers dream...the catch? You might pay for it with your life.”
If we were to label every country that has had an escaped
convict commit a repulsive crime then we would all be living in hell. Bad things happen to everyone everywhere. To bring about fear of visiting a country
based on the putrid acts of single person is to knowingly set out to sabotage a
tiny island’s tourism sector.
Even with state of the art prisons, Australia has had many
prisoners escape from the confines of the facility they resided in. Stephen Jamieson escaped Goulbourn Prison,
one of Australia’s most secure penal complexes in broad daylight using sheets
and a pillow case. While on leave at the
prison farm Bernd Neumann simply walked to freedom with a dog on a leash and is
yet to be recaptured. My point here is
that no matter how secure the facility there is always a possibility that a
prisoner can escape. Should we then
instil fear in all Australians because of this fact?
I moved back to Melbourne two years ago and have never felt
as unsafe in my own home as I have in this time. In the two years that I have been back I have
had a drive by shooting in the street behind where I lived, a murder in the
next suburb, several brutal home invasions in nearby suburbs not to mention a
man threatened at gunpoint at my local petrol station. I run around locking all my doors and panic
if someone I don’t know rings the doorbell.
I am nervous when I drive down the street as I don’t want to be
carjacked or hit by a drunk driver. I
often lay awake at night wondering if the noise I just heard was an ice addict
trying to come in a kill my whole family.
Unfortunately fear is an everyday event here in Australia and around the
world, even if just a little bit.
60 Minutes’ aggrandizement of the crimes of a single person induced
fear to many who know nothing about Samoa as a country, including the people. The article did not present the many projects
that are in place to make changes so that such horrendous incidents no longer
occur. Instead they chose to feed on the
fear that people in Australia are already living in so that they can make more
money.
I am in no way negating the fact that Samoa needs to make
changes to their prison system or that this was a disgusting attack on an
innocent couple. They are both valid
issues that need to be addressed, but not by making people feel fearful of
their lives unnecessarily and without reporting the complete story.
60 minutes stated in the segment that Samoa relies heavily
on tourism, yet they blatantly threw the Samoan tourism under a bus to get
ratings. I just hope Australians are
smarter than that and can see through the obvious yellow journalism.
ARE YOU SERIOUS STUI?
I am utterly embarrassed that the PM of Samoa could be so
arrogant about such an important issue.
I have stated it many times in regards to the PM; you have to think
about what you want to say and how you will go about saying it, because you have
no control on what or how the interviewer will use your words. What works in Samoa does not always work
outside of Samoa. Am I saying that you
should lie down and kiss the feet of every foreigner in the world? No I am not, I am simply saying be
prepared.
- Ask for the questions ahead of time, so you are not left babbling or making comments that are completely inappropriate
- Research the topics that are pertinent to the interview so you are not left babbling or making comments that are completely inappropriate
- Stop being so arrogant. You can get a point across without sounding like you are letting the other team “win” and without babbling or making comments that are completely inappropriate
All you had to do was answer the questions like this:
I am deeply saddened that this happened to them and my heart
goes out to the couple. Samoa has
invested the money received by Australian Aid into the separation of the prison
system and the police force so that equal attention can be made toward both areas
of our country’s security system. Samoa
has also used these funds for the building of a new prison, the development of a
stronger police force, a domestic violence unit, a K-9 unit as well as many
other areas relating to the safety and security of Samoa and tourists.
Samoa is much like any other place in the world, including
Australia, we can never be certain of what can happen. We are working on ensuring the safety of the
Samoan people and visitors to our wonderful islands. While we build the new prison we want the
public to know that we are committed to the safety of all who visit Samoa and
hope that the actions of one individual does not deter them from experiencing
beautiful Samoa.
Remember Stui you don’t need to answer all the questions
they ask, you can give them hundreds of reports for them to do their own
research which backs up what you have just stated and remember that what you
say affects Samoa and the way Samoa is viewed by the world.
