ICAAD submitted this joint stakeholder report with the Banaban Human Rights Defenders Network (BHRDN) ahead of Kiribati’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in the 49th session.
Our joint submission draws on firsthand experiences from the Banaban Human Rights Defenders Network, as well as primary sources and State reports. Although the focus is on the Banaban people, the issues highlighted reflect broader human rights challenges faced by ethnic minorities and human rights defenders across Kiribati. These persistent challenges, including those related to displacement, underscore the need for international attention.
Background
Banabans, a distinct cultural and ethnic group, have faced systemic neglect and discrimination in Kiribati, despite constitutional and international obligations to protect their rights. Phosphate mining has devastated Banaba, and the island can no longer support adequate subsistence farming. Banaba relies on imported food and water, and the impacts of climate change have exacerbated the crisis through prolonged droughts. Irregular shipping often leaves the island without food for months, resulting in famine, a situation that could be addressed by the Kiribati government.
Banaba (Ocean Island) is an island in Kiribati with a small population. Most Banaban people reside on Rabi Island in Fiji. In 1945, the British Phosphate Commission displaced the Banaban people to Rabi, a semi-autonomous jurisdiction within Fiji due to phosphate mining. The forced relocation from Banaba (in present-day Kiribati) to Rabi (Fiji) has resulted in legal frameworks that transverse both jurisdictions. The Banaban Settlement Act of 1970 (Fiji) and Chapter 9 of the Kiribati Constitution give the Rabi Council of Leaders responsibilities and rights in Banaba and allocates a representative member of the Banaban community to the Maneaba ni Maungatabu.
