Tonga

Tonga (tŏng`gə), officially Kingdom of Tonga, island kingdom (2005 est. pop. 112,000), 270 sq mi (699 sq km), South Pacific, c.2000 mi (3,220 km) NE of Sydney, Australia. Tonga is the only surviving independent kingdom in the South Pacific. Nukualofa is the capital.

Land, People, and Economy

The more than 150 islands constitute three main groups: Tongatapu (seat of the capital) in the south, Vavau in the north, and Haapai in the center. Several of the islands are volcanic, with active craters, but most are coral atolls. The climate is tropical. The native Polynesians speak Tongan, a Polynesian language, and the majority are Christian (mainly Methodist). They grow subsistence crops and export copra and bananas. Because of compulsory primary education, the literacy rate is relatively high. Every male Tongan over the age of 16 is entitled to an allotment of land; but the shortage of land precludes a holding for many.

History

Archaeological evidence indicates that the islands of Tonga were settled as early as 900 B.C. Dutch navigators discovered the northern islands in 1616 and the rest of the group in 1643. Capt. James Cook visited the islands in 1773 and 1777 and named them the Friendly Islands. English missionaries arrived in 1797 and helped to strengthen British political influence. Internal wars in the early 19th cent. ended with the accession of King George Tupou I (1845–93), who unified the nation and gave it a constitution (1862), a legal code, and an administrative system. His successor, King George Tupou II (1893–1918) concluded a treaty making Tonga a British protectorate in 1900. Tonga remained self-governing, with the British responsible for foreign and defense affairs. Queen Salote Tupou III ruled from 1918 to 1965, when she was succeed by her son, King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, who ruled until 2006. A new treaty in 1968 reduced British controls, and complete independence was attained on June 4, 1970.

Since the late 1980s, Tongans have agitated for democratic reforms, but the king has generally opposed any change that would dilute the monarchy's power. In 2001 it was revealed that as much as $37 million in government funds had disappeared as a result of investment in a Nevada asset management company, and corruption within the royal family and government remains a problem. Amendments in 2003 to the constitution permit the restriction of freedom of speech, a move that was used to silence publications critical of the government, but parts of the amendments (and restrictive media laws passed in 2003) were subsequently declared void.

In 2005 two commoners were selected to join the cabinet for the first time, and in 2006 one (Fred Sevele) was appointed prime minister, also a first. In July–Sept., 2005, the nation experienced a civil service strike that turned into a call for democratic reform, but the strike was settled without any addressing of the broader political issues. Frustration over the failure of the legislature to enact reforms led to rioting in the capital in Nov., 2006; many government offices and businesses were destroyed. Following the rioting, the government announced that there would be new legislative elections in 2008, and that a majority of the members of the legislature would be popularly elected. Subsequently, the government also arrested a number of prodemocracy legislators on charges relating to the riots.

Tonga is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The king is the head of state and also dominates the partially elected 30-member national legislature, which consists of the king's cabinet headed by a prime minister, nine noble members, and nine commoners. The current king, George Tupou V, succeeded to the office upon his father's death in 2006.

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Tonga

 officially Kingdom of Tonga

Island country, South Pacific Ocean. Area: 290 sq mi (750 sq km). Population (2005 est.): 98,600. Capital: Nuku'alofa. The people are of Polynesian ancestry. Languages: Tongan, English (both official). Religions: Christianity (mostly Protestant; also Roman Catholic, other Christians); also Baha'i. Currency: pa'anga. Tonga comprises an archipelago of some 170 islands that extends north-south in two parallel chains for roughly 500 mi (800 km). The eastern islands are low and formed of coral limestone; those in the west are mountainous and of volcanic origin, and four of the western islands are active volcanoes. The country has a developing free-market economy based mainly on agriculture. Chief products include fish, coconuts, sweet potatoes, and bananas. Tourism also is important. Tonga is a constitutional monarchy with one legislative house; the head of state and government is the king, assisted by the privy council. Tonga was inhabited at least 3,000 years ago by people of the Lapita culture. The Tongans developed a stratified social system headed by a paramount ruler whose dominion by the 13th century extended as far as the Hawaiian Islands. The Dutch visited in the 17th century, but effective European contact dates from 1773, when Capt. James Cook arrived and named the archipelago the Friendly Islands. The modern kingdom was established during the reign (1845–93) of King George Tupou I. It became a British protectorate in 1900. This was dissolved in 1970 when Tonga, the only ancient kingdom surviving from the pre-European period in Polynesia, achieved complete independence within the Commonwealth. Tonga was at the centre of a financial scandal in the early 21st century when money in a government trust fund was lost while under the management of an American investor. This added to the country's ongoing financial problems.