§1801. Approval of Covenant to Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
The Covenant to Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States of America, the text of which is as follows, is hereby approved.
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Editorial Notes
References in Text
The Covenant to Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States of America, referred to in text, which was contained in this section (section 1 of
Codification
Section was formerly set out as a note under section 1681 of this title.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Short Title of 2019 Amendment
Short Title of 2018 Amendment
Short Title of 2017 Amendment
Applicability of Requirement of United States Citizenship or Nationality as Prerequisite of Any Benefit, Right, Etc., to Citizens of Northern Mariana Islands
Authorization of Appropriations for Transition of Mariana Islands District to Commonwealth Status
Recital Clauses
"Whereas the United States is the administering authority of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands under the terms of the trusteeship agreement for the former Japanese-mandated islands entered into by the United States with the Security Council of the United Nations on April 2, 1947, and approved by the United States on July 18, 1947; and
"Whereas the United States, in accordance with the trusteeship agreement and the Charter of the United Nations, has assumed the obligation to promote the development of the peoples of the trust territory toward self-government or independence as may be appropriate to the particular circumstances of the trust territory and its peoples and the freely expressed wishes of the peoples concerned; and
"Whereas the United States, in response to the desires of the people of the Northern Mariana Islands clearly expressed over the past twenty years through public petition and referendum, and in response to its own obligations under the trusteeship agreement to promote self-determination, entered into political status negotiations with representatives of the people of the Northern Mariana Islands; and
"Whereas, on February 15, 1975, a 'Covenant to Establish A Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States of America' [set out below] was signed by the Marianas Political Status Commission for the people of the Northern Mariana Islands and by the President's Personal Representative, Ambassador F. Haydn Williams for the United States of America, following which the covenant was approved by the unanimous vote of the Mariana Islands District Legislature on February 20, 1975 and by 78.8 per centum of the people of the Northern Mariana Islands voting in a plebiscite held on June 17, 1975".
Text of Covenant
"Covenant To Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union With the United States of America
"Whereas, the Charter of the United Nations and the Trusteeship Agreement between the Security Council of the United Nations and the United States of America guarantee to the people of the Northern Mariana Islands the right freely to express their wishes for self-government or independence; and
"Whereas, the United States supports the desire of the people of the Northern Mariana Islands to exercise their inalienable right of self-determination; and
"Whereas, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands and the people of the United States share the goals and values found in the American system of government based upon the principles of government by the consent of the governed, individual freedom and democracy; and
"Whereas, for over twenty years, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands, through public petition and referendum, have clearly expressed their desire for political union with the United States;
"Now, therefore, the Marianas Political Status Commission, being the duly appointed representative of the people of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Personal Representative of the President of the United States have entered into this Covenant in order to establish a self-governing commonwealth for the Northern Mariana Islands within the American political system and to define the future relationship between the Northern Mariana Islands and the United States. This Covenant will be mutually binding when it is approved by the United States, by the Mariana Islands District Legislature and by the people of the Northern Mariana Islands in a plebiscite, constituting on their part a sovereign act of self-determination.
"Article I
"political relationship
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"Article II
"constitution of the northern mariana islands
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"(b) The executive power of the Northern Mariana Islands will be vested in a popularly elected Governor and such other officials as the Constitution or laws of the Northern Mariana Islands may provide.
"(c) The legislative power of the Northern Mariana Islands will be vested in a popularly elected legislature and will extend to all rightful subjects of legislation. The Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands will provide for equal representation for each of the chartered municipalities of the Northern Mariana Islands in one house of a bicameral legislature, notwithstanding other provisions of this Covenant or those provisions of the Constitution or laws of the United States applicable to the Northern Mariana Islands.
"(d) The judicial power of the Northern Mariana Islands will be vested in such courts as the Constitution or laws of the Northern Mariana Islands may provide. The Constitution or laws of the Northern Mariana Islands may vest in such courts jurisdiction over all causes in the Northern Mariana Islands over which any court established by the Constitution or laws of the United States does not have exclusive jurisdiction.
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"Article III
"citizenship and nationality
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"(a) all persons born in the Northern Mariana Islands who are citizens of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands on the day preceding the effective date of this Section, and who on that date are domiciled in the Northern Mariana Islands or in the United States or any territory or possession thereof;
"(b) all persons who are citizens of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands on the day preceding the effective date of this Section, who have been domiciled continuously in the Northern Mariana Islands for at least five years immediately prior to that date, and who, unless under age, registered to vote in elections for the Marianas Islands District Legislature or for any municipal election in the Northern Mariana Islands prior to January 1, 1975; and
"(c) all persons domiciled in the Northern Mariana Islands on the day preceding the effective date of this Section, who, although not citizens of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, on that date have been domiciled continuously in the Northern Mariana Islands beginning prior to January 1, 1974.
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" 'I ________________ being duly sworn, hereby declare my intention to be a national but not a citizen of the United States.'
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"Article IV
"judicial authority
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"(b) The District Court will have original jurisdiction in all causes in the Northern Mariana Islands not described in Subsection (a) jurisdiction over which is not vested by the Constitution or laws of the Northern Mariana Islands in a court or courts of the Northern Mariana Islands. In causes brought in the District Court solely on the basis of this subsection, the District Court will be considered a court of the Northern Mariana Islands for the purposes of determining the requirements of indictment by grand jury or trial by jury.
"(c) The District Court will have such appellate jurisdiction as the Constitution or laws of the Northern Mariana Islands may provide. When it sits as an appellate court, the District Court will consist of three judges, at least one of whom will be a judge of a court of record of the Northern Mariana Islands.
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"(b) Those portions of Title 28 of the United States Code which apply to Guam or the District Court of Guam will be applicable to the Northern Mariana Islands or the District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands, respectively, except as otherwise provided in this Article.
"Article V
"applicability of laws
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"(b) The applicability of certain provisions of the Constitution of the United States to the Northern Mariana Islands will be without prejudice to the validity of and the power of the Congress of the United States to consent to Sections 203, 506 and 805 and the proviso in Subsection (a) of this Section.
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"(1) those laws which provide federal services and financial assistance programs and the federal banking laws as they apply to Guam; Section 228 of Title II and Title XVI of the Social Security Act as it applies to the several States; the Public Health Service Act as it applies to the Virgin Islands; and the Micronesian Claims Act as it applies to the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands;
"(2) those laws not described in paragraph (1) which are applicable to Guam and which are of general application to the several States as they are applicable to the several States; and
"(3) those laws not described in paragraph (1) or (2) which are applicable to the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, but not their subsequent amendments unless specifically made applicable to the Northern Mariana Islands, as they apply to the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands until termination of the Trusteeship Agreement, and will thereafter be inapplicable.
"(b) The laws of the United States regarding coastal shipments and the conditions of employment, including the wages and hours of employees, will apply to the activities of the United States Government and its contractors in the Northern Mariana Islands.
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"(a) except as otherwise provided in Subsection (b) of Section 502, the coastwise laws of the United States and any prohibition in the laws of the United States against foreign vessels landing fish or unfinished fish products in the United States; and
"(b) the minimum wage provisions of Section 6, Act of June 25, 1938,
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"Article VI
"revenue and taxation
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"(b) Any individual who is a citizen or a resident of the United States, of Guam, or of the Northern Mariana Islands (including a national of the United States who is not a citizen), will file only one income tax return with respect to his income, in a manner similar to the provisions of Section 935 of Title 26, United States Code.
"(c) References in the Internal Revenue Code to Guam will be deemed also to refer to the Northern Mariana Islands, where not otherwise distinctly expressed or manifestly incompatible with the intent thereof or of this Covenant.
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"(b) The Government of the Northern Mariana Islands may, in a manner consistent with the international obligations of the United States, levy duties on goods imported into its territory from any area outside the customs territory of the United States and impose duties on exports from its territory.
"(c) Imports from the Northern Mariana Islands into the customs territory of the United States will be subject to the same treatment as imports from Guam into the customs territory of the United States.
"(d) The Government of the United States will seek to obtain from foreign countries favorable treatment for exports from the Northern Mariana Islands and will encourage other countries to consider the Northern Mariana Islands a developing territory.
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"(b) The Government of the Northern Mariana Islands will have the authority to impose excise taxes upon goods manufactured, sold or used or services rendered within its territory or upon goods imported into its territory, provided that such excise taxes imposed on goods imported into its territory will be consistent with the international obligations of the United States.
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"(b) Those laws of the United States which impose excise and self-employment taxes to support or which provide benefits from the United States Social Security System will on January 1 of the first calendar year following the termination of the Trusteeship Agreement or upon such earlier date as may be agreed to by the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands and the Government of the United States become applicable to the Northern Mariana Islands as they apply to Guam. (As amended
"(c) At such time as the laws described in Subsection (b) become applicable to the Northern Mariana Islands:
"(1) the Northern Mariana Islands Social Security Retirement Fund will be transferred into the appropriate Federal Social Security Trust Funds;
"(2) prior contributions by or on behalf of persons domiciled in the Northern Mariana Islands to the Trust Territory Social Security Retirement Fund or the Northern Mariana Islands Social Security Retirement Fund will be considered to have been made to the appropriate Federal Social Security Trust Funds for the purpose of determining eligibility of those persons in the Northern Mariana Islands for benefits under those laws; and
"(3) persons domiciled in the Northern Mariana Islands who are eligible for or entitled to social security benefits under the laws of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands or of the Northern Mariana Islands will not lose their entitlement and will be eligible for or entitled to benefits under the laws described in Subsection (b).
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"(b) During the initial seven year period of financial assistance provided for in Section 702, and during such subsequent periods of financial assistance as may be agreed, the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands will authorize no public indebtedness (other than bonds or other obligations of the Government payable solely from revenues derived from any public improvement or undertaking) in excess of ten percentum of the aggregate assessed valuation of the property within the Northern Mariana Islands.
"Article VII
"united states financial assistance
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"(a) $8.25 million for budgetary support for government operations, of which $250,000 each year will be reserved for a special education training fund connected with the change in the political status of the Northern Mariana Islands;
"(b) $4 million for capital improvement projects, of which $500,000 each year will be reserved for such projects on the Island of Tinian and $500,000 each year will be reserved for such projects on the Island of Rota; and
"(c) $1.75 million for an economic development loan fund, of which $500,000 each year will be reserved for small loans to farmers and fishermen and to agricultural and marine cooperatives, and of which $250,000 each year will be reserved for a special program of low interest housing loans for low income families.
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"(b) There will be paid into the Treasury of the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands, to be expended to the benefit of the people thereof as that Government may by law prescribe, the proceeds of all customs duties and federal income taxes derived from the Northern Mariana Islands, the proceeds of all taxes collected under the internal revenue laws of the United States on articles produced in the Northern Mariana Islands and transported to the United States, its territories or possessions, or consumed in the Northern Mariana Islands, the proceeds of any other taxes which may be levied by the Congress on the inhabitants of the Northern Mariana Islands, and all quarantine and passport fees collected in the Northern Mariana Islands, except that nothing in this Section shall be construed to apply to any tax imposed by Chapters 2 or 21 of Title 26, United States Code. (As amended
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"(b) Approval of this Covenant by the United States will constitute an authorization for the appropriation of a pro-rata share of the funds provided under Section 702 for the period between the effective date of this Section and the beginning of the next succeeding fiscal year.
"(c) The amounts stated in Section 702 will be adjusted for each fiscal year by a percentage which will be the same as the percentage change in the United States Department of Commerce composite price index using the beginning of Fiscal Year 1975 as the base.
"(d) Upon expiration of the seven year period of guaranteed annual direct grant assistance provided by Section 702, the annual level of payments in each category listed in Section 702 will continue until Congress appropriates a different amount or otherwise provides by law.
"Article VIII
"property
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"(1) on Tinian Island, approximately 17,799 acres (7,203 hectares) and the waters immediately adjacent thereto;
"(2) on Saipan Island, approximately 177 acres (72 hectares) at Tanapag Harbor; and
"(3) on Farallon de Medinilla Island, approximately 206 acres (83 hectares) encompassing the entire island, and the waters immediately adjacent thereto.
"(b) The United States affirms that it has no present need for or present intention to acquire any greater interest in property listed above than that which is granted to it under Subsection 803(a), or to acquire any property in addition to that listed in Subsection (a), above, in order to carry out its defense responsibilities.
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"(b) The Government of the United States will pay to the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands in full settlement of this lease, including the second fifty year term of the lease if extended under the renewal option, the total sum of $19,520,600, determined as follows:
"(1) for that property on Tinian Island, $17.5 million;
"(2) for that property at Tanapag Harbor on Saipan Island, $2 million; and
"(3) for that property known as Farallon de Medinilla, $20,600.
The sum stated in this Subsection will be adjusted by a percentage which will be the same as the percentage change in the United States Department of Commerce composite price index from the date of signing the Covenant.
"(c) A separate Technical Agreement Regarding Use of Land To Be Leased by the United States in the Northern Mariana Islands will be executed simultaneously with this Covenant. The terms of the lease to the United States will be in accordance with this Section and with the terms of the Technical Agreement. The Technical Agreement will also contain terms relating to the leaseback of property, to the joint use arrangements for San Jose Harbor and West Field on Tinian Island, and to the principles which will govern the social structure relations between the United States military and the Northern Mariana Islands civil authorities.
"(d) From the property to be leased to it in accordance with this Covenant the Government of the United States will lease back to the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands, in accordance with the Technical Agreement, for the sum of one dollar per acre per year, approximately 6,458 acres (2,614 hectares) on Tinian Island and approximately 44 acres (18 hectares) at Tanapag Harbor on Saipan Island, which will be used for purposes compatible with their intended military use.
"(e) From the property to be leased to it at Tanapag Harbor on Saipan Island the Government of the United States will make available to the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands 133 acres (54 hectares) at no cost. This property will be set aside for public use as an American memorial park to honor the American and Marianas dead in the World War II Marianas Campaign. The $2 million received from the Government of the United States for the lease of this property will be placed into a trust fund, and used for the development and maintenance of the park in accordance with the Technical Agreement.
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"(b) All facilities at Isely Field developed with federal aid and all facilities at that field usable for the landing and take-off of aircraft will be available to the United States for use by military and naval aircraft, in common with other aircraft, at all times without charge, except, if the use by military and naval aircraft shall be substantial, a reasonable share, proportional to such use, of the cost of operating and maintaining the facilities so used may be charged at a rate established by agreement between the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands and the Government of the United States.
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"(a) will until twenty-five years after the termination of the Trusteeship Agreement, and may thereafter, regulate the alienation of permanent and long-term interests in real property so as to restrict the acquisition of such interests to persons of Northern Mariana Islands descent; and
"(b) may regulate the extent to which a person may own or hold land which is now public land.
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"(b) The United States may, upon prior written notice to the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands, acquire for public purposes in accordance with federal laws and procedures any interest in real property in the Northern Mariana Islands by purchase, lease, exchange, gift or otherwise under such terms and conditions as may be negotiated by the parties. The United States will in all cases attempt to acquire any interest in real property for public purposes by voluntary means under this Subsection before exercising the power of eminent domain. No interest in real property will be acquired unless duly authorized by the Congress of the United States and appropriations are available therefor.
"(c) In the event it is not possible for the United States to obtain an interest in real property for public purposes by voluntary means, it may exercise within the Commonwealth the power of eminent domain to the same extent and in the same manner as it has and can exercise the power of eminent domain in a State of the Union. The power of eminent domain will be exercised within the Commonwealth only to the extent necessary and in compliance with applicable United States laws, and with full recognition of the due process required by the United States Constitution.
"Article IX
"northern mariana islands representative and consultation
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"(b) The United States will assist and facilitate the establishment by the Northern Mariana Islands of offices in the United States and abroad to promote local tourism and other economic or cultural interests of the Northern Mariana Islands.
"(c) On its request the Northern Mariana Islands may participate in regional and other international organizations concerned with social, economic, educational, scientific, technical and cultural matters when similar participation is authorized for any other territory or possession of the United States under comparable circumstances.
"Article X
"approval, effective dates, and definitions
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"(b) This Covenant will be approved by the United States in accordance with its constitutional processes and will thereupon become law.
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"(a) Sections 105, 201–203, 503, 504, 606, 801, 903 and Article X will become effective on approval of this Covenant;
"(b) Sections 102, 103, 204, 304, Article IV, Sections 501, 502, 505, 601–605, 607, Article VII, Sections 802–805, 901 and 902 will become effective on a date to be determined and proclaimed by the President of the United States which will be not more than 180 days after this Covenant and the Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands have both been approved; and
"(c) The remainder of this Covenant will become effective upon the termination of the Trusteeship Agreement and the establishment of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
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"(b) The Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands will become effective in accordance with its terms on the same day that the provisions of this Covenant specified in Subsection 1003(b) become effective, provided that if the President finds and declares that the effectiveness of any provision of the Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands prior to termination of the Trusteeship Agreement would be inconsistent with the Trusteeship Agreement such provision will be ineffective until termination of the Trusteeship Agreement. Upon the establishment of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands the Constitution will become effective in its entirety in accordance with its terms as the Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
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"(a) 'Trusteeship Agreement' means the Trusteeship Agreement for the former Japanese Mandated Islands concluded between the Security Council of the United Nations and the United States of America, which entered into force on July 18, 1947;
"(b) 'Northern Mariana Islands' means the area now known as the Mariana Islands District of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, which lies within the area north of 14° north latitude, south of 21° north latitude, west of 150° east longitude and east of 144° east longitude;
"(c) 'Government of the Northern Mariana Islands' includes, as appropriate, the Government of the Mariana Islands District of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands at the time this Covenant is signed, its agencies and instrumentalities, and its successors, including the Government of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands;
"(d) 'Territory or possession' with respect to the United States includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam and American Samoa;
"(e) 'Domicile' means that place where a person maintains a residence with the intention of continuing such residence for an unlimited or indefinite period, and to which such person has the intention of returning whenever he is absent, even for an extended period.
"Signed at Saipan, Mariana Islands on the fifteenth day of February, 1975.
"For the people of the Northern Mariana Islands:
Edward DLG. Pangelinan,
Chairman, Marianas
Political Status Commission.
Vicente N. Santos.
Vice Chairman, Marianas
Political Status Commission.
"For the United States of America:
Ambassador F. Haydn Williams,
Personal Representative of the
President of the United States.
"Members of the Marianas Political Status Commission:
Dr.
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Executive Documents
Termination of Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands
For termination of Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, see note set out preceding section 1681 of this title.
Proc. No. 4534. Constitution of Northern Mariana Islands
Proc. No. 4534, Oct. 24, 1977, 42 F.R. 56593, provided:
On February 15, 1975, the Marianas Political Status Commission, the duly appointed representative of the people of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Personal Representative of the President of the United States signed a Covenant, the purpose of which is to provide for the eventual establishment of a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in political union with the United States of America [set out above]. This Covenant was subsequently approved by the Mariana Islands District Legislature and by the people of the Northern Mariana Islands voting in a plebiscite. The Covenant was approved by the Congress of the United States by joint resolution approved March 24, 1976 (
In accordance with the provisions of Article II of the Covenant, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands have formulated and approved a Constitution which was submitted to me on behalf of the Government of the United States on April 21, 1977, for approval on the basis of its consistency with the Covenant and those provisions of the Constitution, treaties and laws of the United States to be applicable to the Northern Mariana Islands. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 202 of the Covenant, the Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands will be deemed to have been approved by the Government of the United States six months after the date of submission to the President unless sooner approved or disapproved.
The six-month period of Section 202 of the Covenant having expired on October 22, 1977, I am pleased to announce that the Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands is hereby deemed approved.
I am satisfied that the Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands complies with the requirements of Article II of the Covenant. I have also received advice from the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the Subcommittee on National Parks and Insular Affairs of the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs that the Constitution complies with those requirements.
Sections 1003(b) and 1004(b) of the Covenant provide that the Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands and the provisions specified in Section 1003(b) of the Covenant shall become effective on a date proclaimed by the President which will be not more than 180 days after the Covenant and the Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands have both been approved.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JIMMY CARTER, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim as follows:
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred seventy-seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and second.
Jimmy Carter.
Proclamation No. 4568
Proc. No. 4568, May 9, 1978, 43 F.R. 19999, related to application of certain United States laws to the Northern Mariana Islands until termination of Trusteeship Agreement.
Proclamation No. 4726
Proc. No. 4726, Feb. 21, 1980, 45 F.R. 12369, related to application of certain United States laws to the Northern Mariana Islands until termination of Trusteeship Agreement.
Proclamation No. 4938
Proc. No. 4938, May 3, 1982, 47 F.R. 19307, related to application of certain United States laws to the Northern Mariana Islands until termination of Trusteeship Agreement.
Proclamation No. 5207
Proc. No. 5207, June 7, 1984, 49 F.R. 24365, related to application of certain laws of the United States to citizens of the Northern Mariana Islands until establishment of Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands.
Proc. No. 5564. Covenant With Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Compacts of Free Association With Federated States of Micronesia and Republic of the Marshall Islands; Effective Dates
Proc. No. 5564, Nov. 3, 1986, 51 F.R. 40399, provided:
Since July 18, 1947, the United States has administered the United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands ("Trust Territory"), which includes the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau.
On February 15, 1975, after extensive status negotiations, the United States and the Marianas Political Status Commission concluded a Covenant to establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States ("Covenant") [set out above]. Sections 101, 1002, and 1003(c) of the Covenant provide that the Northern Mariana Islands will become a self-governing Commonwealth in political union with and under the sovereignty of the United States. This Covenant was approved by the Congress by
On October 1, 1982, the Government of the United States and the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia concluded a Compact of Free Association, establishing a relationship of Free Association between the two Governments [see Compact of Free Association, 48 U.S.C. 1901 note]. On June 25, 1983, the Government of the United States and the Government of the Marshall Islands concluded a Compact of Free Association, establishing a relationship of Free Association between the two Governments [see Compact of Free Association, 48 U.S.C. 1901 note]. Pursuant to Sections 111 and 121 of the Compacts, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands become self-governing and have the right to conduct foreign affairs in their own name and right upon the effective date of their respective Compacts. Each Compact comes into effect upon (1) mutual agreement between the Government of the United States, acting in fulfillment of its responsibilities as Administering Authority of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and the other Government; (2) the approval of the Compact by the two Governments, in accordance with their constitutional processes; and (3) the conduct of a plebiscite in that jurisdiction. In the Federated States of Micronesia, the Compact has been approved by the Government in accordance with its constitutional processes, and in a United Nations-observed plebiscite on June 21, 1983, a sovereign act of self-determination. In the Marshall Islands, the Compact has been approved by the Government in accordance with its constitutional processes, and in a United Nations-observed plebiscite on September 7, 1983, a sovereign act of self-determination. In the United States the Compacts have been approved by
On January 10, 1986, the Government of the United States and the Government of the Republic of Palau concluded a Compact of Free Association, establishing a similar relationship of Free Association between the two Governments [48 U.S.C. 1931 note]. On October 16, 1986, the Congress of the United States approved the Compact of Free Association with the Republic of Palau. In the Republic of Palau, the Compact approval process has not yet been completed. Until the future political status of Palau is resolved, the United States will continue to discharge its responsibilities in Palau as Administering Authority under the Trusteeship Agreement.
On May 28, 1986, the Trusteeship Council of the United Nations concluded that the Government of the United States had satisfactorily discharged its obligations as the Administering Authority under the terms of the Trusteeship Agreement and that the people of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands had freely exercised their right to self-determination, and considered that it was appropriate for that Agreement to be terminated. The Council asked the United States to consult with the governments concerned to agree on a date for entry into force of their respective new status agreements.
On October 15, 1986, the Government of the United States and the Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands agreed, pursuant to Section 411 of the Compact of Free Association, that as between the United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the effective date of the Compact shall be October 21, 1986.
On October 24, 1986, the Government of the United States and the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia agreed, pursuant to Section 411 of the Compact of Free Association, that as between the United States and the Federated States of Micronesia, the effective date of the Compact shall be November 3, 1986.
On October 24, 1986, the United States advised the Secretary General of the United Nations that, as a consequence of consultations held between the United States Government and the Government of the Marshall Islands, agreement had been reached that the Compact of Free Association with the Marshall Islands entered fully into force on October 21, 1986. The United States further advised the Secretary General that, as a result of consultations with their governments, agreement had been reached that the Compact of Free Association with the Federated States of Micronesia and the Covenant with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands would enter into force on November 3, 1986.
As of this day, November 3, 1986, the United States has fulfilled its obligations under the Trusteeship Agreement with respect to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia, and they are self-governing and no longer subject to the Trusteeship. In taking these actions, the United States is implementing the freely expressed wishes of the peoples of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, RONALD REAGAN, by the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and laws of the United States of America, including Section 1002 of the Covenant to Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States of America, and Sections 101 and 102 of the Joint Resolution to approve the "Compact of Free Association", and for other purposes, approved on January 14, 1986 (
(b) The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in political union with and under the sovereignty of the United States of America is fully established on the date and at the time specified in Section 2(a) of this Proclamation.
(c) The domiciliaries of the Northern Mariana Islands are citizens of the United States to the extent provided for in Sections 301 through 303 of the Covenant on the date and at the time specified in this Proclamation.
(d) I welcome the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands into the American family and congratulate our new fellow citizens.
(b) I am gratified that the people of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, after nearly forty years of Trusteeship, have freely chosen to establish a relationship of Free Association with the United States.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this third day of November, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and eleventh.
Ronald Reagan.
Ex. Ord. No. 12572. Relations With Northern Mariana Islands
Ex. Ord. No. 12572, Nov. 3, 1986, 51 F.R. 40401, provided:
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered that, consistent with the Joint Resolution to approve the "Covenant To Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States of America," approved March 24, 1976 (
Ronald Reagan.