United States Department of State, U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 1996 - Palau, 30 January 1997, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6aa1d30.html [accessed 6 June 2023]
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Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, January 30, 1997 Formerly a United Nations trusteeship administered by the United States, Palau became an independent nation in free association with the United States on October 1, 1994. Under the Compact of Free Association, the United States is responsible for Palau's defense. An archipelago of more than 300 islands in the Western Pacific, Palau has a total land area of 188 square miles and is politically divided into 16 states, more than two-thirds of its approximately 18,000 population resides in or near the capital, Koror. The democratically elected Government is modeled after that of the United States. The Constitution, which took effect on January 1, 1981, provides for free and fair elections, executive and legislative branches, and an independent judiciary. The legislature, the Olbil Era Kelulau, is composed of two equal houses, the 14-member Senate and the 16-member House of Delegates. Palau has no security forces of its own, aside from local police and other civilian law enforcement personnel, all of whom are under the firm control of civil authorities. With a household median income of $12,791, Palau is a medium income country with a small, market-based economy largely sustained by transfer payments from the United States. Nearly half the work force is employed by government entities. Tourism and other service sectors account for most other paid employment. Tuna, harvested by foreign operated fleets, is the dominant export. Several small-scale operations, employing foreign workers, assemble clothing for export from imported materials. Most of the population still work in traditional subsistence agriculture and fishing. Traditional customs sustain a value system that distinguishes between people on the basis of social status and sex. The weakening of those customs, including the breakdown of the extended family and the increasing abuse of alcohol and other drugs, has contributed to violence against women and instances of child neglect, the principal human rights problems. Societal discrimination against certain foreign workers, who account for nearly one-fifth of the population and one-half of the paid work force, is also a serious problem.
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.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution prohibits such practices, and there were no reports that officials employed them. Prison conditions meet minimum international standards, and the Government permits visits by human rights monitors.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrest, detention, or exile, and the Government observes this prohibition.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, and the Government respects this provision in practice. The Government includes an independent special prosecutor and an independent public defender system. The Constitution provides for the right to a fair trial, and an independent judiciary vigorously enforces this right. There were no reports of political prisoners.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
The Constitution prohibits such practices, government authorities generally respect these prohibitions, and violations are subject to effective legal sanction.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press, and the Government respects these rights in practice. An independent press, an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system combine to ensure freedom of speech and of the press, including academic freedom.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for these rights, and the Government respects them in practice.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government respects this right in practice.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The Constitution provides for these rights, and the Government respects them in practice. The Government has not formulated a policy regarding refugees, asylees, or first asylum and government practice remains undefined. However, there were no reports of forced expulsion of anyone having a valid claim to refugee status.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government
The Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully, and citizens exercise this right in practice through periodic, free, and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage. There are no legal impediments to women participating in government and politics. As a result of the October general elections, a women will take a seat in the Senate for the first time. Women hold office in 10 of the 16 state legislatures where they constitute 7 percent of the membership.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violation of Human Rights
Palau has a history of openness to a variety of human rights groups without government restriction. Government officials have met with representatives of these groups and foreign officials regarding the issues of civil rights of foreign minority workers. Government officials are generally cooperative and responsive to their views. The Palau Red Cross Society opened its office in April; the local society is seeking full membership in the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, race, place of origin, language, religion or belief, social status or clan affiliation, and the Government generally respects these provisions.
Women
There are occasional allegations of violence against women, mainly related to domestic abuse. Alcohol and other drug abuse increasingly contribute to this problem. According to the Attorney General's Office, the Government's Public Health Office, and women's groups, only a few such cases are reported to the authorities every year, but many more are believed to go unreported. Although assault is a criminal offense, women are reluctant to prosecute their spouses. Inheritance of property and of traditional rank is matrilineal, with women occupying positions of importance within the traditional system. Women are serving under presidential appointment as bureau directors for women's interests, human resources, and clinical services. No instances of unequal pay for equal work or sex-related job discrimination were reported to the Office of the Attorney General.
Children
The Government demonstrates its strong commitment to children's rights and welfare through its well-funded systems of public education and medical care. There is no societal pattern of abuse directed against children. Child prostitution and female genital mutilation are neither accepted within the culture nor practiced. There is no difference in the treatment of girls and boys in educational opportunities offered in Palau, nor in availability of scholarships to attend postsecondary education abroad. Girls and boys receive equal treatment in health care services. Child abuse is thought to be uncommon, and there have been few child abuse prosecutions. While children's rights are generally respected, there were reports of several instances of child neglect, a byproduct of the breakdown of the extended family.
People with Disabilities
The National Code includes a Disabled Persons Antidiscrimination Act and a Handicapped Children Act. There were no reported instances of discrimination against the disabled. There are no building codes or legislation requiring access for the disabled. The public schools have established special education programs to address problems encountered by those with disabilities.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Non-Palauans are prohibited from purchasing land or obtaining citizenship. The rapidly increasing numbers of foreign workers, who now represent nearly half the work force and over 20 percent of the population, are viewed negatively by a majority of the citizens. Foreign residents can be subject to some forms of discrimination and are targets of petty, and sometimes violent, crimes as well as other random acts against person and property. There have been credible complaints by foreign nationals that the authorities do not pursue crimes against non-Palauans with the same vigor as crimes against nationals. Certain nationalities are the focus of systemic discrimination in employment, pay, housing, education, and access to social services, although such discrimination is prohibited by law. Instances of abuse of workers' civil rights are predominately found perpetrated against domestic helpers, bar girls, construction laborers, and other lower skilled workers, the majority of whom are from the Philippines, China, and Bangladesh. Foreign workers are often reluctant to seek legal redress for fear of losing their employment and, thus, their right to remain in the country.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
The Constitution provides for the right of all persons to assemble peacefully or to associate with others for any lawful purpose, including the right to organize and to bargain collectively. There are no active employee organizations.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
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 organizations, although there are no legal impediments to either. Wages in the cash economy are determined by market factors. There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Constitution prohibits slavery or involuntary servitude except to punish crime. There were reported instances of foreign workers, especially domestic helpers and unskilled laborers, being forced to do jobs different from those for which they were recruited. Freedom of foreign workers to leave employment situations not to their liking may be hindered by physical barriers and/or the withholding of passports and return tickets to their country of recruitment.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The Constitution states that the Government shall protect children from exploitation. There is no minimum age for employment. Children are not typically employed in the wage economy, but some assist their families with fishing, agriculture, and other small-scale family enterprises. The law requires compulsory education for children between 6 to 14 years of age, and the Government generally enforces this law.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work.
There is no minimum wage law. However, the Foreign Investment Law (which is being revised) states that foreign companies must pay a minimum wage equivalent to the lowest wage paid a government worker $2.75 per hour. This amount appears to be sufficient, given the level of economic development, to provide a worker and his family with a decent standard of living. Anecdotal evidence indicates that unskilled workers for commercial firms are paid only $1.50 to $2.00 per hour. However, foreign workers are usually provided, in addition to their wages, basic accommodations and food at no or nominal cost. Although these wages are low, Palau continues to attract large numbers of foreign workers from the Philippines, China, and Bangladesh. There is no legislation concerning maximum hours of work, although most businesses are closed on either Saturday or Sunday. The Division of Labor has prepared some regulations regarding conditions of employment for nonresident workers. The Division may inspect the conditions of the workplace and employer-provided housing on specific complaint of the employees, but actual enforcement is sporadic; working conditions vary in practice. 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.
