ABSTRACT
The Constitutions of Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu and Vanuatu commence with a prefatory provision which describes some of the important events in the history of the country and/or the values upon which the constitution is based. Such a provision is usually called a preamble. A prefatory provision is not normally expressed to enact anything. It describes or declares, but is not usually expressed to enact or give the force of law to anything. For this reason, a prefatory provision or preamble cannot add to, or detract from, the words of the enacting sections. It can, however, be used as an aid to interpret ambiguous words in the enacting sections. The preamble shows the purpose of those who made the constitution, and that purpose can be taken into account when interpreting words in the enacting sections which are ambiguous or imprecise. Thus, the words in the preamble to the Constitution of Samoa, which referred to ‘Samoan custom and tradition’ were regarded as a significant factor by the Court of Appeal of Samoa in Attorney General v Saipa’ia (Olomalu)10 as indicating that the right to equality of treatment referred to in Art 15 of the Constitution was not to be interpreted as abolishing the traditional right of matai to speak for and represent their extended families, or aiga, in elections for the Legislative Assembly.
