The Marshall Islands are “two archipelagic island chains of 29 atolls, each made up of many small islets, and five single islands”. They lie halfway between Hawaii and Australia.
The country’s Constitution grants every person the right to “free exercise of religion” (Article II, 1, 1). “[R]easonable restrictions” on this right may be imposed by law, if they are “necessary to preserve public peace, order, health, or security or the rights or freedoms of others” (Article II, 2, 2a).
Pursuant to Article II (2, 2c), any such restrictions must achieve these aims by the least restrictive means possible and must not “penalise conduct on the basis of disagreement with the ideas or beliefs expressed.”
Religious groups are not required to register with the government. Under the Constitution, no executive or judicial act shall, either expressly or by practical application, discriminate on the basis of religion (Article II, 12, 2).
The Constitution also allows the government to fund “religiously supported institutions” (Article II, 1, 3) that offer educational, medical or other social services on the condition that it does not discriminate between groups when it provides this funding.
Islanders are predominantly Christian and Christianity has been the main cultural influence since Western missionaries first visited the islands in the nineteenth century. Although there is no official state religion, governmental functions and other formal, public meetings often start and end with a Christian prayer.
Major religious groups include the United Church of Christ, the Assemblies of God, and the Roman Catholic Church. Minority religions include Baha’is, Iglesia ni Cristo, Jews, Hindus, Ahmadi Muslims, Baptists; these and other minorities collectively constitute less than 5 percent of the population.
In 2012, the Ahmadiyya Muslim community opened its first mosque in the capital, Majuro. It remains the only mosque in the Marshall Islands.
The country is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Although some reports of social intolerance (related mainly to international media reports linking Islam to violence) were reported by the Ahmadiyya Muslim community in the period under review, the Ahmadis of the Marshall Islands are generally respected and free to practise their religion. James Matayoshi, the mayor of Rongelap Atoll, stated that “Christians here have been a little biased towards them (Ahmadiyya Muslims)” while Sajid Iqbal, the Majuro mosque’s prayer leader said, “Ahmadis of the Marshall Islands are aware of their privilege to practice their religion freely”.
The prospects for religious freedom are positive and there is nothing to suggest that the situation of religious freedom in the Marshall Islands will change in the near future.
Marshall Islands