[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 108 (Monday, July 28, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8204-S8205]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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          TRIBUTE TO THE LATE SEUVA'AI MERE TUIASOSOPO-BETHAM

 Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, it was a sad day in our Nation's 
history, and more significantly, to its southernmost territory in the 
South Pacific, the islands of Tutuila and Manu'a known also as American 
Samoa, when a grand lady, a woman of great courage, a long-time 
educator, passed away peacefully in Honolulu, HI, on June 13, 1997. She 
was the late Hon. Seuva'ai Mere Tuiasosopo-Betham, former associate 
judge of the high court of American Samoa and former director of the 
American Samoa Department of Education. She was 65 years of age.
  ``Mere'' as she was popularly known, was born to the late High Chief 
Orator Mariota Tiumalu Tuiasosopo I of Vatia who was one of the 
signatories of the Deed of Cession between the islands of Tutuila and 
Manu'a and the United States of America in 1900. Her mother was the 
late Venise Pulefa'asisina-Tuiasosopo of the village of Amanave. During 
the islands' naval administration in 1950, Mere graduated as the only 
female out of 16 students in the first graduating class of the Amerika 
Samoa High School. High Chief Orator Tuiasosopo, a staunch educator and 
an influential person in Mere's life, who firmly believed in the vast 
opportunities offered by the new mother country, encouraged his 
daughter to study abroad. She attended Geneva College in Pennsylvania 
and experienced the lessons of life to persevere and be disciplined 
while thousands of miles away from her home in the South Pacific.
  After becoming one of the first Samoans ever to successfully complete 
college in 1954 and earning her teaching credentials, Mere returned to 
Samoa upon her parents wishes and delved into education, becoming one 
of the first teachers in the American Samoan educational system. Over 
four decades, Mere dedicated her life to the teaching of Samoan 
students. She began as a classroom teacher, then an adviser, a vice 
principal, a principal, and eventually rose to the prestigious position 
of assistant director of the Department of Education at a time when 
very few Samoans held administrative positions in government and the 
territory's chief executive was still appointed by the Secretary of 
Interior. In 1978, when American Samoa elected its first Samoan 
Governor, Mere was appointed as the first Samoan female to hold a 
cabinet office serving as director of the Education Department.
  Since the inception of formal education in American Samoa, Mere's 
name has been synonymous with its development. She initiated the local 
capacity building concept that involved efforts for staff development 
and the bilingual/bicultural education which consolidated the best in 
both Samoan and Western curricula. Her local capacity building grew out 
of the need to upgrade the total teaching force in American Samoa which 
was nearly 90 percent Samoan. She once said, that,

       . . . for every child to be able to learn well, he must be 
     taught well . . . our people are our greatest and only 
     valuable natural resource, it is imperative that we invest 
     heavily in their development at all levels. In doing so, we 
     invest in our country's future stability, growth, health and 
     security.

  Inherent in Mere's insistence on local capacity building was her 
conviction that the only way citizens in a developing country like 
Samoa can ensure their survival amidst the influxes of the Western 
world, was to remain the masters of their land and development, and 
continue to reaffirm confidence in their ability to determine their own 
destiny. It is also the mechanism, she believed, the Samoan culture and 
American democracy could merge enabling Samoans to continue to live in 
peace and harmony.
  Mere's conceptualization, development, and materialization of the 
bilingual/bicultural educational system of American Samoa was an 
innovative approach to reconcile the fervent desire of Samoans to 
maintain their identity as a cultural entity while educating their 
people to meet the demands of the Western world. She held this notion 
for nearly 40 years and firmly ingrained it in all of her students, 
many of whom attest to the immense influence this great Samoan lady has 
had in their lives.
  Mrs. Betham received numerous awards as a leading educator in the 
Pacific. She received the Samoan Educator of the Year award presented 
to her by former U.S. Secretary of Education, Dr. Terrell H. Bell. He 
thanked her for her efforts to improve educational opportunities in the 
Pacific Basin saying, ``Progress in education (reform) depends most of 
all on the activities of leaders in each of our states and territories, 
and your example to the people of American Samoa has been bright * * 
*''
  In 1991, Mere was appointed to the all-male high court of American 
Samoa which included seven Samoan associate judges who dealt mainly 
with land and ``matai'' [chieftain] title laws. Her wisdom and 
knowledge of the ``fa'a-Samoa'' [Samoan culture] was fiercely sought by 
many of the territory's leaders to help preserve the integrity and 
uniqueness of their Samoan heritage at the same time dispensing 
American justice. As part of the criteria of being an associate judge, 
Mere was initiated into her village's ``Nu'u o Ali'i,'' the council of 
chiefs, traditionally all-male in most Samoan villages. She was 
bestowed the Talking Chief title ``Seuva'ai,'' descriptive of one 
surging

[[Page S8205]]

forward with determination but cognizant of her native surroundings and 
what the benefits will be to everyone.
  Mere epitomized the true legacy of an educator, who throughout her 
lifetime set precedents for Samoan people and especially for Pacific 
island women, teaching by example. As her island home developed under 
the guidance of the United States of America for almost a century now, 
she never forgot her role as an educated Samoan to maintain her 
indigenous culture.
  Judge Betham is survived by her husband of over 40 years, James 
``Rusty'' M. Betham, five of her six children, five grandchildren, her 
83-year-old mother-in-law, a number of brothers and sisters, and a 
large extended family in her native Samoa and the world over. She will 
be missed by all those who knew and loved her.

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