[2] Key human rights concerns in FSM include judicial delays, government corruption, discrimination against women, domestic violence and child neglect.
Additionally Art 4 section 4 provides that equal protection of the laws may not be denied or impaired on account of sex, race, ancestry, national origin, language, or social status.
"[9] Article 10 of the UDHR states that "Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.
"[14] The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)[15] is a legally binding international human rights treaty in the FSM.
These include:[26] Similarly the Universal Periodic Review in 2010 have made comments regarding recommendations on women's rights in Micronesia.
[27] Brazil, Slovakia, and Spain made recommendations which ranged from putting into law a minimal period of maternity leave for women employees, to advising more thorough legislation on marriage issues.
The Vision of this plan states "We seek a Pacific region that is respected for the quality of its governance, the sustainable management of its resources, the observation of democratic values and for its defense and promotion of human rights."
The Preamble to the Constitution of the Federated States of Micronesia further highlights a desire to protect human rights by stating in the preamble that "(The FSM)...affirm our common wish to live together in peace and harmony; to preserve the heritage of the past, and to protect the promise of the future"[35] The FSM has been described as a "a source country for women subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution in the US and the US territory of Guam, and has reportedly been a destination country for women from China forced into commercial sexual exploitation.
[36] Responding to the concerns about trafficking, the FSM issued a national task-force to deal with the situation and offer solutions.
[43] Despite high levels of protection in the domestic legal framework, the FSM is not a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction,[44] which provides for an expeditious method to return a child internationally abducted by a parent from one member country to another.