19 Oct 2006

American Samoa deplores bad publicity

2:31 pm on 19 October 2006

American Samoa's governor, Togiola Tulafono, says he is saddened by the alleged prostitution case which has again put American Samoa in the international news.

His comments come as two Chinese citizens, Shengji Wang and Fu Sheng Kuo, have been charged with two counts age of sex trafficking in the US federal district court in Honolulu in connection with the operation.

Togiola says American Samoa's image has to suffer for hosting businesses that are engaged in illegal behaviour like human trafficking or slave labour.

The governor says America Samoan is a Christian country yet these things happen in the middle of a village and nobody even raises a finger to inform police.

He has asked village councils to report any suspicious business to the police, the immigration authorities or the FBI.