Forty-five years ago one man believed in the noble cause of reporting the truth and holding the powerful to account and went about his work with the help of a loyal friend to create the first edition of this newspaper in a cookhouse in Vaimoso.

The Samoa Observer, as we know it today, initially began as a weekly newspaper and the growth in its readership gradually saw it expand to twice a week, three times a week, four times a week, and today a seven-day newspaper publication.

The quest for the truth by the newspaper’s founder and Editor-in-Chief, Gatoaitele Savea Sano has been a journey of over a thousand inks and newspaper rolls, amid numerous challenges along the way punctuated by costly defamation lawsuits, threats and even assaults not to mention the loss of assets, such as the burning of a Samoa Observer-owned two-storey building in April 1994 that was home to the office and the press commercial printing factory. 

Even a governing administration back in the day enacted legislation that directly targeted this newspaper, with the law evolving over the years to give birth to the Criminal Libel legislation. It was later repealed but then reinstated to Samoa’s legal statute to silence government critics and to become a deterrence to those who dared to speak out.

But the journey of reporting the truth all these years hasn’t been easy for everyone who’s had the chance to work for this masthead and you only have to read the address that the Editor-in-Chief gave at the World Association of Press Councils' Oceania regional conference in Brisbane on 21-23 June 1999 to realise that the business of running a daily newspaper in Samoa is not for the fainthearted.

Gatoaitele spoke poignantly about his newspaper’s work at that address in Brisbane 24 years ago and how those values he stood for promoting human rights and freedoms were the foundation upon which the success of the Samoa Observer was built.

“Something must be done about threats to press freedom. I believe it is imperative for organisations such as the World Association of Press Councils, to continue to strongly urge its member governments, to respect press freedom above all else,” said the Editor-in-Chief in his Brisbane address. “I say this for the simple reason that this freedom is the soul of a nation, without which, that nation withers and dies. 

“We see this happening around the world, where press freedom is denied. There are wars there, bloodshed, famine, poverty and suffering. Needless to say, therefore, press freedom and basic human rights, must be protected at any cost.

“This freedom is even more needed in small countries in the Pacific because their governments are young, their economies are often very fragile, and that some of them are run by unprincipled men with one-track visions, who succumb easily to the temptation to get rich quickly at the expense of others.”

Today 45 years later the goalposts haven’t changed in terms of the values that the Samoa Observer stands for and continues to strive to uphold as we go about our business of informing, educating, entertaining and empowering our readers with our news content. 

But the inspiration behind the Samoa Observer taking on these responsibilities is the people who are our readers, our advertisers and generally our supporters who have stood by us through thick and thin.

Your expectations of us as an independent newspaper, which swore an oath as members of the Samoa Observer newsroom to continue to report without fear or favour, is what keeps us going day by day and pushes us to give our best to the product.

And for the record, it hasn’t been easy over the last 2-3 years with the measles epidemic followed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which literally decimated our small economy and left many businesses including this one vulnerable.

But the resilience of our community of readership, advertisers and supporters and their determination to get back on track through their unwavering support for this newspaper confirms that there are better days ahead for everyone.

Therefore, on behalf of the management and staff of the Samoa Observer, we take this opportunity to say fa’afetai tele lava for your support for the last 45 years and we look forward to continuing to serve you for the benefit of this great nation.