Statement by United Nations Watch, delivered by intern Lauren Kelley before the 61st session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, 19 March, 2026. Agenda Item 6, Universal Periodic Review of the Marshall Islands.
Full Speech:
Thank you, Mr. President.
United Nations Watch welcomes the delegation of the Marshall Islands and commends its continued engagement with the Universal Periodic Review process.
We welcome the country’s initiatives to strengthen governance, including plans to establish an independent ombudsman, and efforts to improve transparency and institutional accountability.
At the same time, important challenges remain.
We are concerned by gaps in the protection of fundamental rights, including conditions of detention, and the need to ensure full respect for due process.
We also underscore serious concerns regarding human trafficking. While legislative frameworks exist, enforcement remains limited. Reports indicate that women and girls are vulnerable to sexual exploitation, and that authorities face capacity constraints in
identifying victims and prosecuting perpetrators.
The government has reportedly not secured a trafficking conviction since 2011. Although new cases were investigated and prosecutions were initiated, impunity remains a major concern, including where official complicity may have enabled
suspects to evade justice.
United Nations Watch is further concerned that victim protection remains inadequate in practice. Despite the identification of victims, none were referred to protection services during the reporting period, and no victims received assistance. Victims should not be required, in law or in practice, to cooperate with law enforcement in order to access protection. Assistance must be victim-centered, timely, and unconditional.
We note in particular gaps in regulating labor recruitment practices, including the continued charging of recruitment fees to vulnerable migrant workers. Particular attention should be paid to women and girls, foreign workers in high-risk sectors, and residents of outer islands.
Mr. President, we call on the Marshall Islands to strengthen investigations, prosecutions, and victim protection, and to fully implement its national action plan on trafficking.
Thank you.
