Jackson vs. Attorney General, 2009 WSSC 122 (Samoa)

The case involved the then impending "Road Switch Day" in Samoa when the country made the switch to driving from the right-hand side to the left-hand side of the road pursuant to the Road Transport Reform Act. The switch was opposed by certain groups because it will allegedly increase the risk of road accidents because of deeply-ingrained riding habits of the people. The increased risk allegedly violates Article 5(1) of the Constitution which provides that "[n]o person shall be deprived of his life intentionally, except in execution of a sentence of a court following his conviction of an offence for which this penalty is provided by the Act."

The words of Article 5(1) of the Samoan constitution are clear enough. The article was designed to cover an intentional deprivation of life, hence its use of the word "intentionally." The importance of what was under discussion was not lost on the framers, the passage cited at the beginning of this judgment from the Constitutional Convention Debates indicates they well understood its significance. The choice of the word "intentionally" was deliberate. It does not include an implied right to be free from unintended deprivation of life. Neither does it impose a positive duty on the state to protect life.