Transcript
The men were moved to the island state of Pohnpei at the end of June last year after arriving with a boat load of others from Nepal and India on neighbouring Yap.
They were detained on Yap for 18 months and were the only ones among the 34 men determined to be refugees.
An American living on Pohnpei Mark Dvorak has been visiting the men and he says they're now confined to Pohnpei's dock on a boat that needs constant pumping to stay afloat.
He's concerned for their welfare.
"You know you see what looks like sadness and loneliness in their expressions. You could see that this is their third new years that they've spent in captivity, that they're not seeing the light at the end of the tunnel."
Mr Dvorak says the police raided the boat and confiscated electronics the men had been given to keep them occupied and in touch.
He says the International Organization for Migration has been giving them food and other care but he says they should be allowed to leave the port while they wait for a third country to accept them.
"Go to the island, go to the library, go to the campus, to the university, or just hiking in this beautiful land too. Just give them some exposure to the area outside of that."
Lawyer Marstella Jack who's a former Attorney General for the FSM says she has met with the men and will likely start taking legal action.
"It's arbitrary detention. Number one they have not been charged with anything. FSM is not a party to the refugee convention but we are a member of the United Nations and we subscribe to the principles under the UN Declaration on Human Rights."
Ms Jack says it's inhumane to keep people in such conditions for so long.
She says the boat's rat infested, the men are sleeping on the boat's hard boards, with just a stove and a few pots and pans to cook food.
She says she's unsure why the refugees had been waiting so long to be found a new home.
"Nevertheless you should not subject people to those kind of conditions. They're being treated worse than the prisoners. Our jails here are pretty fair, much better than the vessel these guys are stuck on."
Ms Jack says she'll meet with the authorities this week about the men.
RNZ International has contacted the FSM government for comment.