The Marshall Islands has been elected to serve on the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) beginning next year, with a focus on climate change and nuclear justice as its primary objectives. Currently, there are no representatives from Pacific island nations on the 47-member UN human rights body.
This election was supported by the Pacific Islands Forum, comprising 18 presidents and prime ministers from the region. The mission of the HRC is to promote and safeguard human rights, oversee UN processes, and provide guidance to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
During her address to the General Assembly in September, President Hilda Heine of the Marshall Islands expressed concern that “common multilateral progress is failing us in the hour of greatest need,” emphasizing that the potential erosion of human rights poses a significant risk. She called for accountability from all nations “without exception or double standard.”
Heine highlighted the unique challenges faced by the Marshall Islands, including the impacts of nuclear testing and climate change, arguing that the voices of the most vulnerable should never be silenced. At the 57th session of the HRC, she urged the council to acknowledge the enduring effects of the nuclear legacy left by US atomic tests in her country, noting, “Despite these wrongs, for almost 80 years, we have not received an official apology. There has been no meaningful reconciliation, and we continue to seek redress.”
Between 1946 and 1958, the Marshall Islands were subjected to 67 nuclear weapon tests while under US administration. Heine condemned the actions of the past, stating that the Marshallese people were misled, forcibly displaced, and subjected to scientific experimentation without their consent.
The Marshall Islands is particularly vulnerable to climate change, facing rising sea levels and extreme weather events. A rise of just 2 degrees Celsius in global temperatures could threaten the survival of the low-lying atoll nation. In 2011, the Marshall Islands and Palau sought an opinion from the International Court of Justice regarding the obligations of industrialized nations to reduce carbon emissions. This effort laid the groundwork for a resolution adopted in 2023, with public hearings set to commence in December.
Heine has been vocal in her criticism of wealthy nations that fail to uphold their climate commitments, stating, “This failure of leadership must stop. No new coal mines, no new gas fields, no new oil wells.”
Beginning next year, the Marshall Islands will join Indonesia and France on the HRC. Heine has previously addressed human rights and self-determination issues affecting indigenous populations in both nations.
Indonesia has consistently denied requests for an independent fact-finding mission regarding human rights in Papua, while Heine noted the violence in New Caledonia over proposals to dilute the Kanak vote, which could hinder future independence referendums.
Countries elected to the HRC must commit to upholding human rights standards set by the UN. An analysis of the Marshall Islands’ votes during its previous term with the council in 2021 indicated that it generally supported most resolutions, with exceptions concerning human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
As part of its bid for the HRC seat, the Marshall Islands pledged to review UN treaties it has not yet signed, including those related to civil and political rights, the death penalty, torture, and children’s rights.