FSM Information Services
Press Release
President Panuelo Meets FSM Citizens in Utah & Answers Their Questions; Swears-In Consul General Joe Enlet
WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah—On October 8th 2019, His Excellency David W. Panuelo, President of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), met with citizens of the FSM and other Pacific Islands at the West Valley Cultural Celebration Center. The purpose of the meeting was for the President to address the citizens of the FSM living in the State of Utah, answer their questions and concerns on topics of interest, and to officially swear into office the Honorable Joe Enlet, Consul General of the FSM.
After initial remarks, including those by FSM citizen Kathy Joel Matthew and West Valley City Councilman Jake Fitisemanu—a friend of the FSM and a friend of the Pacific Island community—and demonstrations of culture and respect from the Native American, Hawaiian, Maori, Tongan, and Samoan and Micronesian communities, President Panuelo addressed the crowd.
President Panuelo spoke at length on his administration’s goals and recent successes, including the Pacific’s solidarity on tackling climate change as demonstrated through the 50th Pacific Islands Forum in Tuvalu and the 74th United Nations General Assembly; the FSM’s specific actions in addressing climate change, such as the recent Memorandum of Understanding with the Blue Prosperity Coalition to protect 30% of the Nation’s ocean by 2030; the August 2019 visit from the Honorable Michael Pompeo, Secretary of the U.S. Department of State, and the greenlight for the negotiations on the expiring provisions of the Compact of Free Association; the rectification of the REAL ID driver’s license issue formerly affecting many citizens of the FSM living in the U.S.; and the Nation’s emphasis on the rule of law and transparency, seen in part through the recent Presidential Order on reorganizing the Department of Justice including the development of a Division of Anti-Human Trafficking, and the Nation’s aggressive foreign policy to build, maintain, and strengthen the FSM’s relations with as many individuals, organizations, and Governments as possible.
The President also did not shy away from addressing topics citizens are keen to know more about, and/or have expressed significant concern about, such as the upcoming Constitutional Convention and the election of delegates on November 5th, and the recent proclamation by His Excellency Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, regarding the potential denial of immigrants into the U.S. if they are deemed a “public charge” i.e. a financial liability.
“Because of the special and enduring relationship we have with the United States,” President Panuelo said, “we believe that FSM citizens—and those from the Marshall Islands and Palau—are EXEMPT from the Public Charge issue. Our legal staff tell us that we are exempt because we are legal non-migrants. However, this is a topic I will bring up with the [U.S. Government] when I visit them in Washington D.C. later this week.”
Following the President’s remarks was a Q&A session.
One young man asked: “What does it feel like to be an island President?”
“It’s really a privilege to be a public servant for our country,” President Panuelo said. “It’s an honor…something I promised myself is that I will do my very best to take our country far, and that means waking up [inspired] every morning…to go to work. I know that the work we do is very important to our citizens—to you—and my success as President is also the success of our families, the success of our Congress, and more opportunities for our citizens’ success in the future. The President’s Office is your office.”
Another citizen expressed concerns regarding the procurement of passports. “We have to send our expired passports to Pohnpei…I am asking if it’s possible if your office could do something to expedite the processing of passports,” the citizen said, suggesting that perhaps the relevant Consulates or the Embassy could receive passports and prepare them.
“Thank you for that question,” President Panuelo said, “I served as a Foreign Service Officer before and…I really know that’s a concern out here.” The President noted that one of the purposes for opening the Consulate Office in Portland, Oregon was to better serve the Nation’s citizens abroad, and then advised “The Department of Justice has…budget for Fiscal Year 2020 for immigration staff to be placed in our Consulates so that they can process your passports with a quick turnaround.”
The FSM National Government is aware of citizens’ requests to improve the Nation’s capacity to receive, process, and return renewed passports.
One citizen described how, having lived in the United States since the 1980s, he’s been able to return home only a handful of times due to the high cost of air transportation. “Is there something that can help us make it cheaper [to fly home and back], because I was searching for airfares and I saw that…[going to] Tonga and back is cheaper than going to Pohnpei.”
The President advised the citizen that the FSM National Government is acutely aware of transportation costs as being a significant roadblock in the development of the Nation’s economy, including the development of opportunity. While there are not presently concrete and immediately visible solutions to these issues, the President described how—through exploring partnership with the Okeanos for the Sea Foundation, utilizing 60 million dollars of World Bank funding, and coordinating with friendly Governments such as Singapore, the Nation is attempting to increase its sea, land, and air transportation systems capacity.
After the meeting proper, President Panuelo conducted the swearing-in ceremony for the Honorable Joe Enlet to continue serving as the Consul General for the FSM’s Consulate Office in Portland, Oregon.
“Do you, Joe Enlet, solemnly swear that you will faithfully execute the duties and responsibilities of the office to which you have been appointed, and will, to the best of your ability, uphold, promote, and support the laws and Constitution of the Federated States of Micronesia, so help you God?” said President Panuelo.
“I do,” said Consul General Enlet. “It’s indeed an honor to be serving your administration and the country of the Federated States of Micronesia, and of course to serve all of you, FSM citizens scattered all over the Western U.S….I will humbly take this office and use it for serving all of you as a public servant, so please do call us and email us.”
Citizens of the FSM living in the Western United States (i.e. Oregon, California, Washington, Arizona, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, and New Mexico) can contact the FSM Consulate in Portland at +1-503-954-3710 or +1-503-954-3724, or write a letter addressed to FSM Consulate in Portland, 7391 NE Halsey Street Suite 201, Portland OR 97213, or send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Due to the number of requested photos with the President, not all can be included in this Press Release; all photos from the Utah Community Meeting can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3byeuunf98ojabx/AABf6pRjnTSUol94fvFRR2rRa?dl=0