Samoa
Politics, Press Freedom
Prime Minister Laaulialemalietoa Leuatea Schmidt has axed the government's long-running weekly press conferences for all media, further reducing opportunities for direct questioning of the government following last year's ban on the Samoa Observer from official media briefings.
The Prime Minister announced the decision during a lengthy address in Parliament on Thursday evening, saying the government would change how it communicates with the public. Using a Samoan metaphor, he said the new approach would "calm the seas."
He thanked the Government Press Secretariat and members of the state media for their work before confirming the weekly press conferences would come to an end.
