Anapu Solofa (12 January 1903 – May 1963) was a Western Samoan chief and politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly and as Minister of Justice.

Biography

Born on 12 January 1903, in Sa’anapu,

Upolu Upolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is long and in area, making it the second largest of the Samoan Islands by area. With approximate ...

, the son of Anapu Tui’i (Sa’anapu) and Fa’ao Anae (Falelatai), Solofa was given the chiefly title Anapu in 1916 at the age of 13.Lauofo Meti (2002) ''Samoa: The Making of the Constitution'', p322 In 1924 he became the first head boy of the new Avele College. He was a member of the anti-colonial

Mau movement The Mau was a nonviolence, non-violent movement for Samoan independence from colony, colonial rule during the first half of the 20th century. ''Mau'' means 'resolute' or 'resolved' in the sense of 'opinion', 'unwavering', 'to be decided', o ...

and the Speaker of the

Fono of Faipule The Legislative Assembly (), also known as the Parliament of Samoa (), is the national legislature of Samoa, seated at Apia, where the country's central administration is situated. Samoan Parliament is composed of two parts: the O le Ao o le Ma ...

. In 1937 he became an assessor in the High Court. Solofa was elected to the Legislative Assembly in the 1951 elections, winning the Tuamasaga South constituency. He lost his seat in the

1954 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1954. Africa * French legislative by-election, 1954 (Guinea) * 1954 Southern Rhodesian general election * 1954 Gambian legislative election * 1954 Gold Coast legislative election Asia * 1954 Iranian le ...

, but later participated in the 1954 constitutional convention. He returned to the Legislative Assembly following the 1957 elections as the representative of Safata and became a member of the Executive Council. When cabinet government was introduced in 1959, he was appointed Minister of Justice. As a member of the Legislative Assembly, Solofa participated in the 1960 constitutional convention and was one of the signatories of the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

. Following the 1961 elections, he remained Minister of Justice in the government led by Fiame Mata'afa Faumuina Mulinu'u II. He died of a heart attack at a church conference in May 1963.Hon. Anapu Solofa
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', June 1963, p137

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solofa, Anapu 1903 births Samoan chiefs Members of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa Government ministers of Samoa 1963 deaths