Overview:
Palau’s House of Delegates has formally honored Villaney “Lany” Remengesau, celebrating her historic election to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities — the first time a Palauan has ever served on a committee under the U.N. human rights treaty system.
By: L.N. Reklai
KOROR, Palau (July 7, 2026) — The Twelfth Olbiil Era Kelulau’s House of Delegates has honored Villaney “Lany” Remengesau for her election to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), a historic milestone that makes her the first Palauan ever elected to serve on a committee established under the U.N. human rights treaty system.
House Joint Resolution No. 12-20-6S, adopted with a technical amendment during the House’s Sixth Special Session in June, commends Remengesau for more than two decades of leadership advancing the rights, dignity and inclusion of persons with disabilities in Palau, across the Pacific and around the world.
Remengesau was elected to the committee for the 2027-2030 term during the Nineteenth Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York in June.
“As I reflect on the past few weeks since the election … my heart is filled with gratitude,” Remengesau wrote in a message to colleagues and supporters following the vote. “This election is not a personal victory alone. It is a shared accomplishment that reflects the collective efforts of so many people who have worked tirelessly to advance the rights, dignity, and inclusion of persons with disabilities.”
Remengesau’s resume in disability advocacy spans national and international arenas. She served as president of OMEKESANG, Palau’s national organization of persons with disabilities, and later as president of the Belau Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (BANGO). According to the resolution, she played a pivotal role in advocating for Palau’s ratification and implementation of the CRPD and helped shape the country’s National Disability Policy.
She also helped advance the Palau Severely Disabled Assistance Fund Program, which provides financial support to persons with severe disabilities, and contributed to the development of Republic of Palau Public Law No. 11-36, the Disability Act of 2024.
Internationally, Remengesau served as female co-chair of the Pacific Disability Forum and as a board member of the International Disability Alliance, and worked as Disability Constituency Focal Point within the Asia Pacific Regional Civil Society Engagement Mechanism on Sustainable Development. Her work has connected her with organizations including the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, UNICEF, the International Labour Organization, the Pacific Community and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.
She has represented Palau at international forums including the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, the Commission on the Status of Women, and Palau’s own review before the CRPD committee she will now join.
“I am especially grateful to those who believed in me, supported my candidature, and walked this journey with me,” Remengesau wrote. “I carry this responsibility with great pride and a strong commitment to serve with integrity, dedication, and purpose.”
The resolution, introduced by Speaker Gibson Kanai, directs that certified copies be transmitted to Remengesau, Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr., Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Senate President Hokkons Baules and Speaker Kanai.
