A colorized image of a nuclear weapon being detonated at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands in 1946. Photo from the United States Government. Source: Flickr account of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. CC BY-NC 2.0

The Republic of Marshall Islands scored a diplomatic victory after being elected to represent the Pacific region on the United Nations Human Rights Council from 2025–2027. It vowed in an X (formerly Twitter) post to push the agenda of small island states grappling with the harsh impact of climate change.

As the Marshallese proverb goes, ‘An pilinlin koba komman lometo’ (The collection of individual droplets makes a mighty ocean), the Republic of Marshall Islands is committed to representing the Pacific region and advocating for the interests of Small Island Developing States within the Council.

It also reiterated its demand for nuclear justice as it called out the UN and the United States government for their role in conducting nuclear tests in the country from 1946 to 1958. During that period, the US military conducted at least 67 tests, in which an estimated 318 explosive devices into the Pacific, disrupting the marine ecosystems and causing permanent damage to the surrounding areas. The tests also released massive amounts of radiation, which caused devastating health impacts for the island inhabitants, including burns, birth defects, and cancer.

The total explosive power during these tests was several thousand times stronger than that of the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima in 1945.

An interactive dialogue sponsored by the UN Human Rights Council highlighted the destructive impact of the tests. UN Deputy High Commissioner Nada Al-Nashif summed up the findings of the office.

During consultations, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights heard harrowing accounts of the historical and ongoing impacts of nuclear testing: Stories of radiation exposure and the proliferation of cancers, of painful memories of miscarriages, stillbirths, and of what some Marshallese refer to as ‘jellyfish babies’ – infants born with translucent skin and no bones. A somber reminder of the gendered impacts of radiation exposure.

Last Friday, 4 Oct, #HRC57 held an Enhanced Interactive Dialogue on the #nuclearlegacy in the Marshall Islands with @nuclear_RMI & @MEInonprofit. #OHCHR presented a report highlighting the ongoing effects of the 67 known nuclear tests performed between 1946 and 1958. pic.twitter.com/DOZpvyFQq8

— Marshall Islands Permanent Mission in Geneva (@RMIGeneva) October 7, 2024

At the 79th General Assembly of the UN, Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine urged the UN to lead by example by apologizing for its decision to approve the nuclear tests in the 1950s.

We did not choose this nuclear fate — it was chosen for us…We can't undo the past. But as a United Nations, we owe it to ourselves to make amends through the adoption of a resolution which formally apologizes for the failure to heed the petition of the Marshallese people. By doing so, all of us will begin the process of healing, and to re-establish faith and trust in this institution.

The trust was violated when 67 known nuclear weapons were tested on our atolls, leading to perpetual displacement and depriving our people of their rights.

Heine also asserted that “without truth, there can be no justice,” referring to the refusal of the US government to declassify documents related to nuclear testing.

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.

The Marshallese people were misled, forcibly displaced and subjected to scientific experimentation without their consent.

Danity Laukon, a curriculum specialist for the Republic of the Marshall Islands Public School System, represented the youth at a UN side event in Geneva. She underscored the long-lasting consequences of nuclear testing in her country.

Unfortunately many of us in this generation are only starting to realize this history now. The younger generations are also impacted because of the nuclear testing and that's true.

My grandparents were survivors of World War II, and when the nuclear bombs were exploding it triggered the trauma again from the world war that they lived through.