1.
Tonga
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Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is a Polynesian sovereign state and archipelago comprising 169 islands of which 36 are inhabited. The total surface area is about 750 square kilometres scattered over 700,000 square kilometres of the southern Pacific Ocean and it has a population of 103,000 people of whom 70% reside on the main island of Tongatapu. Tonga stretches across approximately 800 kilometres in a north-south line and it is surrounded by Fiji and Wallis and Futuna to the northwest, Samoa to the northeast, Niue to the east, Kermadec to the southwest, and New Caledonia and Vanuatu to the farther west. Tonga became known in the West as the Friendly Islands because of the reception accorded to Captain James Cook on his first visit in 1773. He arrived at the time of the festival, the yearly donation of the First Fruits to the Tuʻi Tonga. According to the writer William Mariner, the wanted to kill Cook during the gathering. From 1900 to 1970, Tonga had British protected state status, the country never relinquished its sovereignty to any foreign power. In many Polynesian languages including Tongan, the word tonga means south, the name of Tonga is cognate to the Hawaiian region of Kona. In Malay, the name of Tonga is also cognate to the word Tenggara, an Austronesian-speaking group linked to the archaeological construct known as the Lapita cultural complex reached and inhabited Tonga around 1500–1000 BCE. Scholars have much debated the exact dates of the settlement of Tonga. Not much is known before European contact because of the lack of a writing system, in the 15th century and again in the 17th, civil war erupted. The Tongan people first encountered Europeans in 1616 when the Dutch vessel Eendracht, captained by Willem Schouten, later came other Dutch explorers, including Jacob Le Maire, and in 1643 Abel Tasman. In 1845, the young warrior, strategist, and orator Tāufaʻāhau united Tonga into a kingdom. He held the title of Tuʻi Kanokupolu, but had been baptised by Methodist missionaries with the name Siaosi in 1831. Tonga became a state under a Treaty of Friendship with Britain on 18 May 1900. The treaty posted no higher permanent representative on Tonga than a British Consul, under the protection of Britain, Tonga maintained its sovereignty, and remained the only Pacific nation to retain its monarchical government. The Tongan monarchy follows a succession of hereditary rulers from one family. The 1918 flu pandemic, brought to Tonga by a ship from New Zealand, killed 1,800 Tongans, the Treaty of Friendship and Tongas protection status ended in 1970 under arrangements established by Queen Salote Tupou III prior to her death in 1965
2.
Tupou VI
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Thumb Ahoeitu Tupou VI is the King of Tonga. He is the brother and successor of the late King George Tupou V. He was officially confirmed by his brother on 27 September 2006 as the heir presumptive to the Throne of Tonga and he was born in Nukuʻalofa, Tonga, the third son and youngest child of King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV. He was educated at The Leys School, Cambridge, from 1973–77 and he then attended the University of East Anglia, where he read Development Studies, from 1977 to 1980. He started his career in the military, joining the naval arm of the Tonga Defence Services in 1982 and he graduated from the US Naval War College as part of Class 33 in 1988. From 1990 to 1995 he commanded the Pacific-class patrol boat VOEA Pangai and he graduated with a masters in Defence Studies from the University of New South Wales in 1997 and with a MA in International Relations from Bond University in 1999. In 1998 he ended his career to become part of the government, first as the defence minister. He took over these posts from his elder brother Tupoutoʻa, at that time still the crown prince, soon he was appointed as Prime Minister on 3 January 2000, a function he kept until his sudden resignation on 11 February 2006. Its reason has never made clear, but was probably due to the unrest from a series of pro-democracy protests calling since mid-2005 for a lesser role for the royal family in government. His appointed successor, Feleti Sevele, was Tongas first prime minister who was not an estate holder or a member of the 33 noble families that make up the Tongan aristocracy. In 2008 ʻAhoʻeitu was appointed Tongas first High Commissioner to Australia, in 2013 he was appointed as Chancellor of the University of the South Pacific. HRH Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala – Siaosi Manumataongo ʻAlaivahamamaʻo ʻAhoʻeitu Konstantin Tukuʻaho and he married on 12 July 2012 the Hon. Sinaitakala Fakafanua, daughter of late High Chief Kinikinilau Fakafanua and HRH Princess Ofeina, Lady Fakafanua, both King Tupou VIs first cousins. HRH Prince Taufaʻahau Manumataongo – Taufaʻahau Manumataongo Tukuʻaho, HRH Prince Ata – Viliami ʻUnuaki-ʻo-Tonga Mumui Lalaka-Mo-e-ʻEiki Tukuʻaho. It is customary in Tongan culture that princes get a traditional chiefly title and these titles may be used in any order. Nevertheless, the sequences Lavaka Ata ʻUlukālala and ʻUlukālala Lavaka Ata were most common, as such he was until his accession to the throne known as Tupoutoʻa Lavaka. His elder son, Siaosi, is to be addressed by the title of ʻUlukālala of Fangatongo, while his second son. He was assisted by Reverend Dr ‘Ahio and Reverend Dr Tevita Havea, the president, the celebrations included many international invited guests, and an estimated 15,000 people, mostly expatriate Tongans, flew in to join the celebrations. During the ceremony, Tupou VI was anointed with oil, adorned with a ring
3.
Responsible government
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Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Responsible government of parliamentary accountability manifests itself in several ways, ministers account to Parliament for their decisions and for the performance of their departments. When the lower house has passed a motion of no confidence in the government, lastly, the head of state is in turn required to effectuate his executive power only through these responsible ministers. They must never attempt to set up a government of executives or advisors and attempt to use them as instruments of government. The British colonies that formed the Dominion of Canada in 1867 evolved gradually into responsible government rather than achieving it through a revolution as in the United States, early Canadian governors and administrators were answerable only to British authorities. Even after the formation of elected assemblies, governors and their executive councils did not require the consent of elected legislators in order to govern. Responsible government was an element of the gradual development of Canada towards independence. It did not regain responsible government until it became a province of Canada in 1948, in the aftermath of the American Revolution in 1776, the British government became more sensitive to unrest in its remaining colonies with large populations of British colonists. In his report, one of his recommendations was that colonies which were developed enough should be granted responsible government and this term specifically meant the policy that British-appointed governors should bow to the will of elected colonial assemblies. The plaque in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly erected by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada reads, the first Executive Council chosen exclusively from the party having a majority in the representative branch of a colonial legislature was formed in Nova Scotia on 2 February 1848. Following a vote of want of confidence in the preceding Council, James Boyle Uniacke, joseph Howe, the long-time campaigner for this Peaceable Revolution, became Provincial Secretary. Other members of the Council were Hugh Bell, Wm. F. Desbarres, doyle, Herbert Huntingdon, James McNab, Michael Tobin, and George R. Young. This was a law that provided compensation to French-Canadians who suffered losses during the Rebellions of 1837–1838 in Lower-Canada, the Governor General, Lord Elgin, had serious misgivings about the bill but nonetheless assented to it despite demands from the Tories that he refuse to do so. Elgin was physically assaulted by an English-speaking mob for this, nonetheless, the Rebellion Losses Bill helped entrench responsible government into Canadian politics. In time, the granting of responsible government became the first step on the road to complete independence, initially, this took the form of appointed or partially elected Legislative Councils. Then, during the 1850s, all Australian colonies except Western Australia, along with New Zealand, the Cape Colony, in Southern Africa, was under responsible self-government from 1872 until 1910 when it became the Cape Province of the new Union of South Africa. A popular political movement for responsible government soon emerged, under local leader John Molteno, not everyone favoured responsible government though, and pro-imperial press outlets even accused the movement of constituting crafts and assaults of the devil. The ensuing period saw a recovery, a massive growth in exports
4.
George Tupou I
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George Tupou I, King of Tonga, was originally known as Tāufaʻāhau I, or Tupou Maeakafa Ngininginiofolanga in modern spelling. He adopted the name Siaosi, the Tongan version of George, after King George III of the United Kingdom and his nickname was Lopa-ukamea, meaning iron cable. George Tupou I was born around 1797 in Tonga,4 December is often-quoted as his birthday and is a public holiday in Tonga, however, it was the date of his coronation in 1845 as Tuʻi Kanokupolu, when he took the name Tupou. Tongoleleka and the Niuʻui hospital there are often stated as his birthplace, however, no evidence supporting this is available, and Lifuka and Tongatapu are also often stated as the birthplace. His father was Tupoutoaʻ, who aspired to be the 17th Tuʻi Kanokupolu and his mother, Hoamofaleono, felt her life was at risk on Tongatapu, so she fled with her son to Haʻapai, probably within the year of his birth. Her history, as well as her son Maeakafas history, is more reliably tracked to Haʻapai Island, the pregnant Hoamo fale ono felt insecure in Tongatapu as she was about to give birth to a child whose father, Tupoutoa, was the primary adversary of her clan. Tupoutoa was in Haapai to kill Tupounia and Ulukalala in order to avenge the assassination of his father, Tukuaho was cruel and feared by all, including Haa Havea Lahi chiefs, given such acts as the burning of Fangaleounga, a Vaini colony of Maafutukuiaulahi. Niukapu, a chief, fled to Haapai under the protection of the Haatalafale Tuipelehake and these chiefs supported Tupou Moheofo, installed as Tui Kanokupolu, instead of Tukuahos father, Mumui. The retribution by Tukuaho on Haa Havea was regarded, despite the fact Niukapu was not part of the clan, as a demotion in power, since then, Tukuahos siblings and descendants have had antagonistic feelings towards those from Haa Havea. George Tupou was established as the Tuʻi Haʻapai before the death of his father in 1820, the culmination of this struggle was the Battle of Velata in 1826, in which Laufilitonga was defeated. An important ally at that battle was the chief of Haʻafeva and it was now clear that Tāufaʻāhau was very ambitious and wanted more than only Haʻapai. In spite of this, at his baptism in 1831, Tāufa declared himself King George of Tonga and his next conquest resulted from his relationships with Fīnau ʻUlukālala III, the ruler of Vavaʻu. He became the Tuʻi Vavaʻu after Finaus death in 1833 and he dedicated Tonga to God in 1839, assuring support from the missionaries. During the 1830s, he resided in Vavaʻu, in Veitatalo, Vavaʻu was at peace and it prospered. Tongatapu, on the hand, suffered from a cruel civil war with the local chiefs fighting each other. Tāufaʻāhau launched raids on Tongatapu with his warriors from Haʻapai and Vavaʻu. However, it was not until Aleamotuʻas death that year, that he had an excuse to conquer Tongatapu, the chiefs were forced to obey him, and he was installed as Tuʻi Kanokupolu in Kolovai on 4 December. Niuafoʻou and Niuatoputapu would follow later, eua was never actually conquered by Tāufaʻāhau
5.
Tongatapu
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Tongatapu is the main island of the Kingdom of Tonga and the location of its capital Nukuʻalofa. Its maximum height is 65 metres, Tongatapu is Tongas centre of government and the seat of its monarchy. Tongatapu, as a commercial and transport hub, has experienced rapid economic development than, as well as attracting many internal migrants from. The island is 257.03 square kilometres and rather flat, the island is covered with thick fertile soil consisting of volcanic ash from neighboring volcanoes. At the steep coast of the south, heights reach an average of 35 metres gradually decreasing towards the north, Tongatapu is highest in elevation around the villages of Fuaamotu and Nakolo with a height of 65 metres. North of the island are small isolated islands and coral reefs which extend up to 7 kilometres from Tongatapus shores. The almost completely closed Fangauta and Fangakakau Lagoons are important breeding grounds for birds, the lagoons were declared a Natural Reserve in 1974 by the government. The island has only but a few sandy beaches because of its raised coastlines apart from the small islands in the north boasting some of the best beaches in Tongatapu. Tongatapu has a cooler climate than the rest of Tonga as it is the southernmost group of islands in the country. Because of this, fruit production is lower in Tongatapu than it is in the islands in the north. Tongatapu is known as having one of the highest concentration of remains in the Pacific. The earliest traces of Lapita pottery found in Tonga was from around 900–850 BCE,300 years after the first settlements in Tonga were established. Archaeologist David Burley discovered the pottery around the Fangauta Lagoon,2,000 kilometres away from the Lapita pottery found at Santa Cruz in the Solomon Islands. Although Tonga was always the seat of the Tongan Empire, but in an area of distances up to 1,000 kilometres, it was often only a symbolic rule. Tongatapu was discovered by Europeans on 20 January 1643 by Abel Janszoon Tasman commanding two ships, the Heemskerck and the Zeehaen commissioned by the Dutch East India Company of Batavia. The expeditions goals were to chart the southern and eastern seas and to find a possible passage through the South Pacific. The expedition set sail from Batavia on 14 August 1642, Tasman named the island t’ Eijlandt Amsterdam, because of its abundance of supplies. This name is no longer used except by historians, resolution, under British sea captain James Cook, stopped here in 1777 and left some cattle for breeding
6.
Tongan general election, 2010
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Early general elections under a new electoral law were held in Tonga on 25 November 2010. They determined the composition of the 2010 Tongan Legislative Assembly, the early elections were announced by the new King George Tupou V in July 2008 shortly before being crowned on 1 August 2008, and were preceded by a programme of constitutional reform. For the first time, a majority of the seats in the Tongan parliament were elected by universal suffrage and this marked a major progression away from the 165-year rule of the monarchy towards a fully representative democracy. The Taimi Media Network described it as Tonga’s first democratically elected Parliament, prior to these elections, members of Tongas Legislative Assembly were primarily appointed by the monarch, who also selected the prime minister and the cabinet. Only nine of the 30 seats were elected, and another nine were held by members of the aristocracy. All of the seats are single-seat constituencies, as opposed to the constituencies used before. These changes mean that now 17 of 26 representatives will be directly elected, the noble aristocracy will still select its nine representatives, while all remaining seats, which were previously appointed by the monarch, will be abolished. While the cabinet and the minister were previously selected by the monarch, this time. The changes have been supported by the king. One of the candidates, Sione Fonua, said, The king saw the signs that people wanted change and, to his credit, Tonga is a very traditional society, and the role of the monarchy is extremely important. In that case, I suppose we are different from other nominal monarchies which retain the trappings of monarchy, analysts, however, have said they are not yet certain what effective changes the political shift would bring. The king retains the power of veto over certain laws, as well as the power to dismiss the government, voter registration closed on 31 August, with approximately 42,000 voters registering. In November 2010, the Women’s and Children’s Crisis Centre expressed concern that up to 40% of eligible voters could have failed to register, candidates were registered on 21 and 22 October, with 147 candidates contesting the 17 constituencies. The Tongatapu 6 and 9 constituencies were the most heavily contested, with 15 candidates each, while Haapai 13, Eua 11, only three of the incumbent Cabinet contested the elections. Candidates were required to pay a P400 registration fee and present the signatures of 50 eligible voters in support of their candidacy, the suffering economy was seen as the most significant priority for the campaigners. According to the World Bank, up to 40% of Tongans live on or below the poverty line, in addition, the International Monetary Fund claims that Tongas national debt is substantial and that the island nation is at high risk of not being able to pay them. In an address to the nation before polling stations opened, the King described the vote as the greatest and most historic day for our kingdom. He went on to say, You will choose your representative to the parliament and, thus, elections to the nobles seats was reformed, through the Representatives Electoral Regulations Act 2010
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