Tuvalu

Executive Summary

Tuvalu is a constitutional parliamentary democracy. Observers judged parliamentary elections held in 2019 were free and fair, with seven new members elected to the 16-member parliament. There are no formal political parties. Following the elections, parliament selected Kausea Natano as prime minister.

The national police service, under the Ministry of Justice, Communications, and Foreign Affairs, maintains internal security. The country has no military force. Civilian authorities maintained effective control over the security forces. Members of the security forces were not reported to have committed abuses.

Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: the existence of laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual activities between men, although the law was not enforced.

The government took steps to investigate human rights abuses and corruption. Impunity was not a problem.