US Department of State Country Reports on Human Rights Practices The Marshall Islands Human Rights Practices 1995

The Republic of the Marshall Islands, a self-governing nation under the Compact of Free Association with the United States, is composed of a number of small islands in the central Pacific, with a total land area of about 70 square miles. The approximately 56,000 inhabitants are of Micronesian origin and concentrated primarily on Majuro and Kwajalein atolls.

The Constitution provides for free and fair elections, executive and legislative branches, and an independent judiciary. The legislature consists of the Nitijela, a 33-member Parliament, and a Council of Chiefs (Iroij), which serves a largely consultative function dealing with custom and traditional practice. The President is elected by majority Nitijela vote, and he appoints his Cabinet from its membership.

Under the Compact of Free Association, the United States is responsible for defense and national security, and the Marshall Islands has no external security force of its own. The national and local police forces, supervised by the Ministry of Justice, have responsibility for internal security. These agencies honor constitutional and legal civil rights protections in executing their responsibilities.

The economy depends mainly on transfer payments from the United States. Coconut oil and copra exports, a small amount of tourism, and the expanding fishing industry generate limited revenues.

The Government fully respects the human rights of its citizens, but its influence leads to occasional instances of self-censorship in sensitive political or cultural areas.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:

a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing

There were no reports of political or other extrajudicial killings.

There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.

The Constitution expressly forbids such practices, and there were no reports that officials employed them. Prison conditions, while Spartan, meet minimal international standards. The Government permits visits by human rights monitors.

The Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrest, detention, or exile, and the Government observes this prohibition.

The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, and the Government respects this in practice.

The Constitution provides for the right to a fair trial, and the Government generally enforces this right. Government interest in a 1995 land-lease dispute between the country's largest private sector employer and two traditional chiefs contributed to the failure of local police to enforce a high court injunction against the chiefs. This unwillingness to act resulted in the company's land-lease termination and closing of its store, one of the country's largest, despite a valid 7-year lease. The dispute was later settled out of court.

There were no reports of political prisoners.

The Constitution provides for freedom from such practices, government authorities respect these prohibitions, and violations are subject to effective legal sanction.

a. Freedom of Speech and Press

The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and the press, and the Government generally honors these rights in practice. However, government influence leads to occasional self-censorship by the media in areas of political or cultural sensitivity. There are four operating radio stations, one government owned and three privately owned, including one owned by a prominent member of the opposition. There is a cable television company which normally shows U.S. programming but occasionally covers local events. The cable company is owned and operated by members of the political opposition.

A U.S. citizen and longtime resident operates the country's sole privately owned newspaper. The editor and two reporters are U.S. citizens as well.

The Government publishes a monthly gazette containing official news and notices only.

The Constitution provides for freedom of peaceful assembly and association, and this is observed in practice.

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government respects this right in practice.

The Constitution provides for these rights, and the Government respects them in practice.

There are no refugees, and the Government has no formal policy about them.

The Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully, and citizens exercise this right through periodic, free, and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage. The Government is chosen by secret ballot in free and open elections every 4 years. Suffrage is universal for citizens 18 years of age and older. There are no restrictions on the formation of political parties, although political activity by foreigners is prohibited. The Marshall Islands has had the same President since 1979 due primarily to traditional loyalties and concentrated political influence. In January 1996, the President was reelected by the Nitijela to a 4-year term.

There are no legal impediments to women's participation in government and politics. A woman serves as the Minister of Education, and two hold deputy minister positions. The mayor of Majuro, the country's capital and principal urban center, also is a woman. Although women have an increasing role in government, they remain underrepresented in Parliament and other government positions.

Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigations of Alleged Violations of Human Rights

While there are no official restrictions, no local nongovernmental human rights organizations have been formed.

No international human rights organization has expressed interest or concern or visited the country.

Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability, Language, or Social Status

The Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, place of birth, family status or descent, and the Government respects these provisions.

Women

There are allegations of violence against women, mainly related to domestic abuse. However, this is not considered to be a serious or a widespread problem. The Government's health office advises that few such cases are reported to the authorities, but many more are believed to go unreported. Assault is a criminal offense, but women are reluctant to prosecute spouses. Women's groups have been formed to publicize women's issues and to create a greater awareness of the rights of women.

Inheritance of property and of traditional rank is matrilineal, with women occupying positions of importance within the traditional system. No instances of unequal pay for equal work or sex-related job discrimination were reported.

The Government is committed to children's welfare through its programs of health care and education, but these have not been adequate to meet the needs of the country's sharply increasing population. Marshall Islands is working to incorporate the provisions of the Convention of the Rights of the Child into law. The Domestic Relations Amendment of 1993 defines child abuse and neglect and makes them criminal offenses. Other legislation requires teachers, caregivers, and other persons to report instances of child abuse and exempts them from civil or criminal liability as a consequence of making such a report. Because the Attorney General's Office considers the Child Abuse Law vague and difficult to apply, ways to improve it are being explored. Child abuse is thought to be relatively uncommon, and there have been few child abuse prosecutions. The Government investigated two child sexual abuse cases in 1995, both involving foreign offenders. The first case resulted in a conviction on the lesser charge of assault; the second remained under investigation at year's end.

There is no discrimination against disabled persons in employment, education, or in the provision of other state services. Until 1994 there were no building codes, and there is still no legislation mandating access for the disabled. There have been no reported instances of discrimination against the disabled.

a. The Right of Association

The Constitution provides for the right of free association in general, and the Government interprets this right as allowing the existence of labor unions, although none have been formed to date. The Constitution does not provide for the right to strike, and the Government has not addressed this issue.

There is no legislation concerning collective bargaining or trade union organization. However, there are no impediments to the organization of trade unions or to collective bargaining. Wages in the cash economy are determined by market factors in accordance with the minimum wage and other laws.

The Constitution prohibits involuntary servitude, and there is no evidence of its practice.

The law does not prohibit the employment of children. Children are not typically employed in the wage economy, but some assist their families with fishing, agriculture, and other small-scale domestic enterprises. The law requires compulsory education for children 6 to 14; but the Government does not enforce this law due to a lack of classrooms and teachers. There is no law or regulation setting a minimum age for employment of children.

There is a government-specified minimum wage established by law, and it is adequate to maintain a decent standard of living in this subsistence economy where extended families are expected to help less fortunate family members. The minimum wage for all government and private sector employees is $2.00 per hour. (The U.S. dollar is the local currency.) The Ministry of Resources and Development oversees minimum wage regulations, and its oversight has been deemed adequate. Foreign employees and Marshallese trainees of private employers who have invested in or established a business in the country are exempt from minimum wage requirements. This exemption does not affect a significant segment of the work force.

There is no legislation concerning maximum hours of work or occupational safety and health. Most businesses are closed and people generally refrain from work on Sunday. Although legislation was adopted in 1994 that shortened the workweek of most government employees in an attempt to cut official spending, no changes have been implemented.

A government labor office makes recommendations to the Nitijela on working conditions, i.e., minimum wage, legal working hours and overtime payments, and occupational health and safety standards in accordance with International Labor Organization conventions. The office periodically convenes board meetings that are open to the public. There is no legislation specifically giving workers the right to remove themselves from situations which endanger their health or safety without jeopardy to their continued employment, and there is no legislation protecting workers who file complaints about such conditions.