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A Samoan exploration of violence, identity, balance and healing

Advocate Ipu Avegalio Lefiti offering keynote remarks during closing ceremonies of the 15th Hawai’i International Summit: Preventing, Assessing and Treating Trauma Across the Lifespan, held Mar. 30, 2017 in Honolulu, Hawai’i.  [courtesy photo]
Source: Media release from the summit

Advocate Ipu Avegalio Lefiti offered a keynote presentation at the closing ceremonies of the 15th Hawai’i International Summit: Preventing, Assessing and Treating Trauma Across the Lifespan last Thursday, in Honolulu, Hawai’i.

Her workshop exploring violence and healing for victims of sexual assault and domestic violence through the cultural lens of the taualuga was recognized by clinicians, advocates, front-line professionals and research partners as a powerful and evocative experience. 

As one of the leaders of the new non-profit organization, Pae ma Le Auli, and a long-time leader of the local MDT, Lefiti has championed the rights of victims and the marginalized in our communities in American Samoa. 

Left said, “As a woman of faith, this workshop was conceived through my prayer group Women in New Dimensions. It coalesced and evolved as we explored the nature of our identity as women and girls and the experience and healing. Faith, though, is the core of this presentation.” 

Her niece, 17-year-old Salamasina Te’i, the daughter of Dr. Papali’i Failautusi and Linda Avegalio, performed the ceremonial taualuga during closing ceremonies.

“Our Samoan speakers and presenters this year have made an incredible contribution to our Summit,” acknowledged Ho’omaluhia Director Suzanna Tiapula, one of the Summit organizers. “Leuga Turner, another leader of Pae ma le Auli, served as a panelist for one of the plenary sessions in 2015, but this is the first time we’ve had a speaker from American Samoa as part of our closing ceremonies.”

The pre-Summit Trauma, Mental Health and the Pacific Church conference, March 27th  and 28th, included presentations by Alliance for Strengthening Families Executive Director Fa’aalu Faletoese Iuli, Rev. Dr. Joan Filimoni-Tofaeono, Rev. Brenda Reed (from the Samoan community of Auckland) and Executive Director of the Guam Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence Cynthia Cabot. 

Daniel Pouesi’s ground-breaking film, Tagaloa, served as the backdrop for this conference exploring the intersections of Christian faith, traditional Samoan beliefs and both systems and community responses to violence.

In a parallel training designed for the American Samoa Department of Human and Social Services, Mr. Fotu Soliai, MSW, LCSW, led a team of 20 social workers from both American Samoa and Hawai’i through intensive experiential training. Assisting Soliai in delivering the training were Michael Tui II and Jordan Siegel.

In a meeting of the Global Peace Action team, American Samoa Coalition Against Domestic Violence Executive Director Liliu Mailo expressed the need to ensure that opportunities be provided for local front line professionals and the community leaders of American Samoa to also benefit from these trainings. 

As part of this discussion, the teams from American Samoa, Guam, NMI and Hawai’i met to discuss the implementation of victim service academies in each community so that local trainings can be delivered monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly basis to reinforce the more intensive trainings received from off-island venues. 

“Many of our local professionals have the experience and expertise to lead local trainings. We will be hosting a Train the Trainer course for these professionals and will support the design and delivery of local trainings via the Pacific Victim Assistance Academy (based on the State and Territorial Victim Assistance Academy model offered by the Office of Victims of Crime)” noted Ho’omaluhia Director Tiapula. 

“I’d hoped to recognize Celestine Faumuina-Nix, Mitzie Jessup Ta’ase and the many other local leaders who worked tirelessly to ensure that local frontline professionals receive needed training both off-island while focusing on the design of a local academy. 

“We appreciate the need for affordable, effective training and technical assistance to support trauma-informed, culturally sensitive and victim centered service provision for our partners throughout the Pacific,” she said.