Leilua Lino is a Samoan human rights activist, who works to raise awareness of gender-based violence and violence against children in Samoa, through her own personal experience. She was a finalist in 2018 for the International Children's Peace Prize. In 2019, she was the first recipient of a Commonwealth Innovation for Sustainable Development Award (Peace).
Lino comes from AsauinSavaii.[1] At the age of nine years old, Lino was raped by her father, who she took to court seven years later, leading to his imprisonment in 2018 for twenty-nine years.[2][1] In order to support her after the rape, from 2011 she attended Samoa Victim Support Group (SVSG), a non-governmental organisation that offers help and advocacy to survivors.[3] They supported Lino to file her police report against her father.[2] She came into contact with SVSG through her church.[4] Lino is an ambassador for Samoa Victim Support Group (SVSG) and raises awareness about abuse through schools and community programmes.[2] In 2017 she created the first of a number of peace gardens, in order to help young people process trauma.[5][2]
In 2018, she was nominated for and became a finalist in the International Children’s Peace Prize, coordinated by the KidsRights Foundation.[3][6] She was also nominated by the Samoa Observer as a 'Person of the Year' for 2018.[3][1][4] In 2019 she was presented with a Commonwealth Innovation for Sustainable Development AwardbyPrince Harry.[5][7] She won in the Peace category.[3] The award recognised her contributions to supporting survivors of child sexual abuse.[5]
