Apisai Ielemia
Apisai Ielemia was a Tuvaluan politician. He served as the tenth Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2006 to 2010, was returned as a member of parliament in the Tuvaluan general election, 2010, he was re-elected to parliament in the Tuvaluan general election, 2015. On 5 October 2016 Chief Justice Sweeney of the High Court of Tuvalu declared that Ielemia’s parliamentary seat was vacant as he was not qualified to be a member of parliament, as the consequence of the short time the opposition MP served time in jail following his conviction on 6 May 2016 in the Magistrate’s Court of charges of abuse of office during the final year of his term as Prime Minister; the abuse of office charges related to payments deposited into a National Bank of Tuvalu personal account. The 5 October 2016 decision of the Chief Justice was controversial as it appeared to contradict the June 2016 decision of Justice Norman Franzi of the High Court of Tuvalu that had quashed Ielemia’s conviction and acquitted him of the abuse of office charges.
The appeal to the High Court held that the conviction was “manifestly unsafe,” with the court quashing the 12-month jail term. In an application for leave to appeal his ruling, Chief Justice Charles Sweeney found: "When The Hon. Apisai Ielemia commenced to serve his sentence on 6 May 2016, he became a person, disqualified from being elected as a member of Parliament"; the judge specified that if Ielemia had, in the context of his appeal, sought "an order staying his sentence of imprisonment he had commenced to serve it" his seat would not have become vacant, as he would not have been imprisoned. Ielemia was elected to serve in the Parliament of Tuvalu by the constituency of Vaitupu on a non-partisan basis: his lack of alignment is not unusual in the politics of Tuvalu, since political parties have not emerged in the country. In general elections held on 3 August 2006 prime minister Maatia Toafa's government was defeated and Ielemia was elected by the new parliament on 14 August to become the new prime minister.
He became foreign minister. Ielemia continued Tuvalu's pursuit of close relations with the Republic of China, in December 2007 visited that country, where various bilateral issues were addressed, he gained a higher international profile during the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen by highlighting the dangers of rising sea levels. In September 2008 Ielemia and the President of Kiribati, Anote Tong, attended a conference to improve relations with Cuba. In a country which had in recent years seen frequent changes of government through the use of the parliamentary no confidence device, Ielemia's government, in office since 2006, seemed at the beginning of 2009 to offer somewhat of a rarity: the prospect of a government of Tuvalu running its full course. Prior to Ielemia's appointment as Prime Minister, the average length of Prime Ministerial terms of office had been shorter. Ielemia was one of 10 MPs; as of September 2006, the government of Prime Minister Apisai Ielemia consisted of the following members: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources: Hon. Tavau Teii – represented Niutao House Speaker: Hon.
Sir Kamuta Latasi – represented Funafuti Minister of Home Affairs: Hon. Willy Telavi – represented Nanumea Minister of Finance & Economic Planning: Hon. Lotoala Metia – represented Nukufetau Minister of Public Works, Water & Energy: Hon. Kausea Natano – represented Funafuti Minister of Communications, Transportation & Tourism: Hon. Taukelina Finikaso – represented Vaitupu Minister of Education, Youth & Sports: Hon Falesa Pitoi – represented Nanumaga Minister of Health: Hon. Iakoba Italeli – represented Nui Chairman of the Caucus: Hon. Sir Tomu Sione – represented Niutao Following the general election held on 16 September 2010 Maatia Toafa was elected as prime minister with the support of five new members of parliament and three members that had supported Prime Minister Apisai Ielemia, this resulted in an 8:7 majority in the parliament. However, on 15 December 2010 Prime Minister Maatia Toafa's government was ousted in a vote of no confidence and Willy Telavi was elected to the premiership by a slender majority in Parliament.
Ielemia was among Telavi's supporters, was appointed to Telavi's Cabinet as Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Environment, Trade and Tourism. Following Prime Minister Telavi's removal by Governor General Sir Iakoba Italeli on 1 August 2013 in the context of a political crisis and the rest of Cabinet were voted out of office a day following the no confidence motion. Ielemia died on 19 November 2018 at his home on Funafuti. On 22 November 2018 Tuvalu's patrol vessel, the HMTSS Te Mataili, carried Ielemia's body to his home island, Vaitupu. Ielemia Ministry Politics of Tuvalu "A threat to our human rights: Tuvalu's perspective on climate change", Apisai Ielemia, UN Chronicle, June 2007 East West Center: Article regarding Ielemia's Taiwan visit, December 2007
Foreign relations of Tuvalu
This article is about the foreign relations of Tuvalu. On 1 September 2000, Tuvalu became a full member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Since its independence in 1978, Tuvalu had been a special member of the Commonwealth, but without having any voting rights in the organisation that brings together 54 countries that are former colonies of Great Britain. Tuvalu's admission as a full member was approved by the members of the Commonwealth unanimously earlier in the year. Tuvalu became the 189th member of the United Nations on 17 September 2000. At present, the country's Permanent Representative to the United Nations is Ambassador Aunese Makoi Simati. Tuvalu notably played an active role in the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, attracting media and public attention with a proposed protocol which would have imposed deeper binding emission cuts, including on developing nations. Following Tuvaluan delegate Ian Fry's "tear-jerking that prompted wild applause among the crowded Copenhagen conference floor", The Australian’s political editor commented that Tuvalu was "no longer small fry on the world stage".
The United Nations designates Tuvalu as a least developed country because of its limited potential for economic development, absence of exploitable resources and its small size and vulnerability to external economic and environmental shocks. Tuvalu participates in the Enhanced Integrated Framework for Trade-Related Technical Assistance to Least Developed Countries, established in October 1997 under the auspices of the World Trade Organisation. In 2013 Tuvalu deferred its graduation from least developed country status to a Developing country to 2015. Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga said that this deferral was necessary to maintain access by Tuvalu to the funds provided by the United Nations's National Adaptation Programme of Action, as "Once Tuvalu graduates to a developed country, it will not be considered for funding assistance for climate change adaptation programmes like NAPA, which only goes to LDCs". Tuvalu had met targets. Prime minister, Enele Sopoaga wants the United Nations to reconsider its criteria for graduation from LDC status as not enough weight is given to the environmental plight of small island states like Tuvalu in the application of the Environmental Vulnerability Index.
Tuvalu is a full member of the Pacific Islands Forum, the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission, the South Pacific Tourism Organisation, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme and the Pacific Community. Tuvalu participates in the operations of the Pacific Island Forum Fisheries Agency and the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission; the Tuvaluan government, the US government, the governments of other Pacific islands, are parties to the South Pacific Tuna Treaty, entered into force in 1988. The current SPTT agreement expires on June 14, 2013. Tuvalu is one of the eight signatories of the Nauru Agreement Concerning Cooperation In The Management Of Fisheries Of Common Interest which collectively controls 25-30% of the world's tuna supply and 60% of the western and central Pacific tuna supply. In May 2013 representatives from the United States and the Pacific Islands countries agreed to sign interim arrangement documents to extend the Multilateral Fisheries Treaty to confirm access to the fisheries in the Western and Central Pacific for US tuna boats for 18 months.
In 1993, Tuvalu became a member of the Asian Development Bank. Tuvalu endorsed the Treaty of Rarotonga joining itself to the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty in 1985. In 2004 Tuvalu provided police officers to the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands. Tuvaluan Police officers served as part of RAMSI's Participating Police Force. In November 2011, Tuvalu was one of the eight founding members of Polynesian Leaders Group, a regional grouping intended to cooperate on a variety of issues including culture and language, responses to climate change, trade and investment. Tuvalu participates in the Alliance of Small Island States, a coalition of small island and low-lying coastal countries that have concerns about their vulnerability to the adverse effects of global climate change. Under the Majuro Declaration, signed on 5 September 2013, Tuvalu has commitment to implement power generation of 100% renewable energy, proposed to be implemented using Solar PV and biodiesel; the feasibility of wind power generation will be considered.
On 18 February 2016 Tuvalu signed the Pacific Islands Development Forum Charter and formally joined the Pacific Islands Development Forum. In June 2017, Tuvalu signed the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations. In addition to its membership in the UN and the Commonwealth of Nations, outside the region, Tuvalu is a member or participant of the ACP, the Alliance of Small Island States, Asian Development Bank and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the G-77, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Civil Aviation Organization, the International Development Association, the International Finance Corporation, the IMF, the International Maritime Organization, the International Olympic Committee, the ITU and the Universal Postal Union. While Tuvalu is not a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, it has observer status with admission and recognition still pending. In July 2013 Tuvalu signed the Memorand
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II is Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms. Elizabeth was born in London as the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, she was educated at home, her father acceded to the throne on the abdication of his brother King Edward VIII in 1936, from which time she was the heir presumptive. She began to undertake public duties during the Second World War, serving in the Auxiliary Territorial Service. In 1947, she married Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, a former prince of Greece and Denmark, with whom she has four children: Charles, Prince of Wales; when her father died in February 1952, she became head of the Commonwealth and queen regnant of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Ceylon. She has reigned as a constitutional monarch through major political changes, such as devolution in the United Kingdom, Canadian patriation, the decolonisation of Africa. Between 1956 and 1992, the number of her realms varied as territories gained independence and realms, including South Africa and Ceylon, became republics.
Her many historic visits and meetings include a state visit to the Republic of Ireland and visits to or from five popes. Significant events have included her coronation in 1953 and the celebrations of her Silver and Diamond Jubilees in 1977, 2002, 2012 respectively. In 2017, she became the first British monarch to reach a Sapphire Jubilee, she is the longest-lived and longest-reigning British monarch as well as the world's longest-reigning queen regnant and female head of state, the oldest and longest-reigning current monarch and the longest-serving current head of state. Elizabeth has faced republican sentiments and press criticism of the royal family, in particular after the breakdown of her children's marriages, her annus horribilis in 1992 and the death in 1997 of her former daughter-in-law Diana, Princess of Wales. However, support for the monarchy has been and remains high, as does her personal popularity. Elizabeth was born at 02:40 on 21 April 1926, during the reign of her paternal grandfather, King George V.
Her father, the Duke of York, was the second son of the King. Her mother, the Duchess of York, was the youngest daughter of Scottish aristocrat the Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, she was delivered by Caesarean section at her maternal grandfather's London house: 17 Bruton Street, Mayfair. She was baptised by the Anglican Archbishop of York, Cosmo Gordon Lang, in the private chapel of Buckingham Palace on 29 May, named Elizabeth after her mother, Alexandra after George V's mother, who had died six months earlier, Mary after her paternal grandmother. Called "Lilibet" by her close family, based on what she called herself at first, she was cherished by her grandfather George V, during his serious illness in 1929 her regular visits were credited in the popular press and by biographers with raising his spirits and aiding his recovery. Elizabeth's only sibling, Princess Margaret, was born in 1930; the two princesses were educated at home under the supervision of their mother and their governess, Marion Crawford.
Lessons concentrated on history, language and music. Crawford published a biography of Elizabeth and Margaret's childhood years entitled The Little Princesses in 1950, much to the dismay of the royal family; the book describes Elizabeth's love of horses and dogs, her orderliness, her attitude of responsibility. Others echoed such observations: Winston Churchill described Elizabeth when she was two as "a character, she has an air of authority and reflectiveness astonishing in an infant." Her cousin Margaret Rhodes described her as "a jolly little girl, but fundamentally sensible and well-behaved". During her grandfather's reign, Elizabeth was third in the line of succession to the throne, behind her uncle Edward and her father. Although her birth generated public interest, she was not expected to become queen, as Edward was still young. Many people believed he would have children of his own; when her grandfather died in 1936 and her uncle succeeded as Edward VIII, she became second-in-line to the throne, after her father.
That year, Edward abdicated, after his proposed marriage to divorced socialite Wallis Simpson provoked a constitutional crisis. Elizabeth's father became king, she became heir presumptive. If her parents had had a son, she would have lost her position as first-in-line, as her brother would have been heir apparent and above her in the line of succession. Elizabeth received private tuition in constitutional history from Henry Marten, Vice-Provost of Eton College, learned French from a succession of native-speaking governesses. A Girl Guides company, the 1st Buckingham Palace Company, was formed so she could socialise with girls her own age, she was enrolled as a Sea Ranger. In 1939, Elizabeth's parents toured the United States; as in 1927, when her parents had toured Australia and New Zealand, Elizabeth remained in Britain, since her father thought her too young to undertake public tours. Elizabeth "looked tearful", they corresponded and she and her parents made the first royal transatlantic telephone call on 18 May.
In September 1939, Britain entered the Second World War. Lord Hailsham suggested that the two princesses should be evacuated to Canada to avoid the frequent aerial bombing; this was rejected by Elizabeth's mother. I won't leave wit
Tuvalu
Tuvalu known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island country located in the Pacific Ocean, situated in Oceania, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands, southeast of Nauru, south of Kiribati, west of Tokelau, northwest of Samoa and Wallis and Futuna, north of Fiji, it comprises three reef islands and six true atolls spread out between the latitude of 5° to 10° south and longitude of 176° to 180°, west of the International Date Line. Tuvalu has a population of 10,640; the total land area of the islands of Tuvalu is 26 square kilometres. The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesians; the origins of the people of Tuvalu are addressed in the theories regarding migration into the Pacific that began about 3000 years ago. During pre-European-contact times there was frequent canoe voyaging between the islands as Polynesian navigation skills are recognised to have allowed deliberate journeys on double-hull sailing canoes or outrigger canoes.
The pattern of settlement, believed to have occurred is that the Polynesians spread out from Samoa and Tonga into the Tuvaluan atolls, with Tuvalu providing a stepping stone to further migration into the Polynesian outliers in Melanesia and Micronesia. In 1568, Spanish navigator Álvaro de Mendaña was the first European to sail through the archipelago, sighting the island of Nui during his expedition in search of Terra Australis; the island of Funafuti was named Ellice's Island in 1819. The Ellice Islands came into Great Britain's sphere of influence in the late 19th century, as the result of a treaty between Great Britain and Germany relating to the demarcation of the spheres of influence in the Pacific Ocean; each of the Ellice Islands was declared a British Protectorate by Captain Gibson of HMS Curacoa between 9 and 16 October 1892. The Ellice Islands were administered as a British protectorate by a Resident Commissioner from 1892 to 1916, as part of the British Western Pacific Territories, as part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony from 1916 to 1976.
A referendum was held in December 1974 to determine whether the Gilbert Islands and Ellice Islands should each have their own administration. As a consequence of the referendum, the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony ceased to exist on 1 January 1976, the separate British colonies of Kiribati and Tuvalu came into existence. Tuvalu became independent within the Commonwealth on 1 October 1978. On 5 September 2000, Tuvalu became the 189th member of the United Nations; the origins of the people of Tuvalu are addressed in the theories regarding migration into the Pacific that began about 3000 years ago. During pre-European-contact times there was frequent canoe voyaging between the nearer islands including Samoa and Tonga. Eight of the nine islands of Tuvalu were inhabited. Possible evidence of fire in the Caves of Nanumanga may indicate human occupation for thousands of years. An important creation myth of the islands of Tuvalu is the story of the te Pusi mo te Ali who created the islands of Tuvalu.
The stories as to the ancestors of the Tuvaluans vary from island to island. On Niutao and Vaitupu, the founding ancestor is described as being from Samoa, whereas on Nanumea, the founding ancestor is described as being from Tonga. Tuvalu was first sighted by Europeans on 16 January 1568, during the voyage of Álvaro de Mendaña from Spain, who sailed past Nui and charted it as Isla de Jesús because the previous day was the feast of the Holy Name. Mendaña was unable to land. During Mendaña's second voyage across the Pacific he passed Niulakita on 29 August 1595, which he named La Solitaria. Captain John Byron passed through the islands of Tuvalu in 1764, during his circumnavigation of the globe as captain of the Dolphin, he charted the atolls as Lagoon Islands. Keith S. Chambers and Doug Munro identified Niutao as the island that Francisco Mourelle de la Rúa sailed past on 5 May 1781, thus solving what Europeans had called The Mystery of Gran Cocal. Mourelle's map and journal named the island El Gran Cocal.
Longitude could only be reckoned crudely at the time, as accurate chronometers only became available in the late 18th century. The next European to visit was Arent Schuyler de Peyster, of New York, captain of the armed brigantine or privateer Rebecca, sailing under British colours, which passed through the southern Tuvaluan waters in May 1819; the name Ellice was applied to all nine islands after the work of English hydrographer Alexander George Findlay. In 1820, the Russian explorer Mikhail Lazarev visited Nukufetau as commander of the Mirny. Louis Isidore Duperrey, captain of La Coquille, sailed past Nanumanga in May 1824 during a circumnavigation of the earth. A Dutch expedition found Nui on the morning of 14 June 1825, named the main island as Nederlandsch Eiland. Whalers began roving the Pacific, although they visited Tuvalu only in
Willy Telavi
Willy Telavi is a Tuvaluan politician, Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2010 to 2013. Telavi was first elected to parliament in 2006 and was re-elected in 2010, he became prime minister on 24 December 2010 and the Telavi Ministry retained government until August 2013. The refusal of prime minister Telavi to recall the Parliament of Tuvalu after the Nukufetau by-election, 2013 resulted in a constitutional crisis when he adopted the position that, under the Constitution of Tuvalu, he was only required to convene parliament once a year, was thus under no obligation to summon it until December 2013; the opposition requested the Governor-General of Tuvalu, Sir Iakoba Italeli, to intervene against the Telavi’s decision. On 3 July, Governor-General Italeli exercised his reserve powers in ordering parliament to convene, against the prime minister Telavi's wishes, on 30 July. On 1 August 2013 Governor-General Italeli again exercised his reserve powers and dismissed Telavi as Prime Minister of Tuvalu and appointed the opposition leader Enele Sopoaga as Tuvalu’s caretaker prime minister.
A day on 2 August 2013, Telavi's government was brought down through a vote of no confidence in parliament. He resigned from parliament in August 2014, he was absent for much of the parliamentary year tending to his sick wife in Hawaii, he resigned in order to remain at his wife's side. Telavi is from Nanumea, his career in the Tuvalu police force culminated in his appointment as police commissioner in 1993, a position he held for thirteen years. He earned a degree in legal studies from the University of the South Pacific in 1999 and a master's degree in international management from Northern Territory University in 2000. Willy Telavi was appointed to his current position in May 1993, he has served more than 16 years in various positions with the Tuvalu police force. Telavi stood for the Parliament of Tuvalu in 2006 and was elected to serve the constituency of Nanumea; the government of prime minister Apisai Ielemia came to office following the election. Telavi was appointed minister for home affairs in the Ielemia administration.
He retained his seat in parliament in the 2010 general election, was appointed minister for home affairs in the cabinet of the new prime minister, Maatia Toafa. In December, just four months after the new government took office, Telavi crossed the floor, joined the opposition and enabled it to bring down the government through a motion of no confidence, carrying it by eight votes to seven; the motion was initiated due to MPs' concerns over certain aspects of the budget, in particular the prospect that the government may no longer fund patients' medical costs abroad. On 24 December Telavi was elected as the prime minister, defeating foreign affairs and environment minister Enele Sopoaga by another 8–7 vote. Appointing his cabinet on the same day, he appointed himself to continue as minister for home affairs, it was under Telavi's premiership that Tuvalu became, in November 2011, a founding member of the Polynesian Leaders Group, a regional grouping intended to co-operate on a variety of issues including culture and language, responses to climate change, trade and investment.
In March 2012, Telavi paid a state visit to meeting president Alexander Ankvab. Under Telavi's leadership, in September 2011, Tuvalu had become one of only six countries to grant diplomatic recognition to Abkhazia as a sovereign state; the two countries, during Telavi's visit, agreed on free movement of each other's citizens between them, without the need for visas. In addition, Telavi was leading a Tuvaluan delegation of electoral monitors for that month's Abkhazian parliamentary election; as a response, Georgia cut off diplomatic relations with Tuvalu. Telavi delayed calling a by-election after the death of Lotoala Metia, an MP from Nukufetau, until ordered by the High Court to call the by-election. On 28 June 2013, the Telavi government lost a crucial by-election in Nukufetau, which gave the opposition a majority of one in parliament; the opposition called for the government to reconvene parliament. Prime Minister Telavi responded that, under the Constitution, he was only required to convene parliament once a year, was thus under no obligation to summon it until December 2013.
The opposition turned to Iakoba Italeli. On 3 July, Italeli exercised his reserve powers in ordering parliament to convene, against the prime minister's wishes, on 30 July. On that date, as the government was about to face a motion of no confidence, health minister Taom Tanukale unexpectedly resigned from parliament altogether, he was not the first government member to vacate or temporarily leave office: Lotoala Metia had died, education minister Falesa Pitoi had become ill and had been outside the country since December 2012. Tanukale's resignation therefore left Telavi with only three active government members other than himself: deputy prime minister Kausea Natano, foreign affairs minister Apisai Ielemia, home affairs minister Pelenike Isaia, he had the support of the Speaker. The following day, the reason for Tanukale's resignation became apparent; the speaker, Kamuta Latasi, rejected the opposition's attempt to table a motion of no confidence, on the grounds that there was now a vacant seat in parliament.
Latasi adjourned parliament, ruled that it would not reconvene until a by-election had been held – thus prolonging Telavi's minority government once more. However, a day on 1 August 2013, the governor-general sent out a proclamation removing Telavi as the prime minister of Tuv
Head of government
Head of government is a generic term used for either the highest or second highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, who presides over a cabinet, a group of ministers or secretaries who lead executive departments. The term "head of government" is differentiated from the term "head of state", as they may be separate positions, individuals, or roles depending on the country; the authority of a head of government, such as a president, chancellor, or prime minister and the relationship between that position and other state institutions, such as the relation between the head of state and of the legislature, varies among sovereign states, depending on the particular system of the government, chosen, won, or evolved over time. In parliamentary systems, including constitutional monarchies, the head of government is the de facto political leader of the government, is answerable to one chamber or the entire legislature. Although there is a formal reporting relationship to a head of state, the latter acts as a figurehead who may take the role of chief executive on limited occasions, either when receiving constitutional advice from the head of government or under specific provisions in a constitution.
In presidential republics or in absolute monarchies, the head of state is usually the head of government. The relationship between that leader and the government, can vary ranging from separation of powers to autocracy, according to the constitution of the particular state. In semi-presidential systems, the head of government may answer to both the head of state and the legislature, with the specifics provided by each country's constitution. A modern example is the present French government, which originated as the French Fifth Republic in 1958. In France, the president, the head of state, appoints the prime minister, the head of government. However, the president must choose someone who can act as an executive, but who enjoys the support of the France's legislature, the National Assembly, in order to be able to pass legislation. In some cases, the head of state may represent one political party but the majority in the National Assembly is of a different party. Given that the majority party has greater control over state funding and primary legislation, the president is in effect forced to choose a prime minister from the opposition party in order to ensure an effective, functioning legislature.
In this case, known as cohabitation, the prime minister, along with the cabinet, controls domestic policy, with the president's influence restricted to foreign affairs. In directorial systems, the executive responsibilities of the head of government are spread among a group of people. A prominent example is the Swiss Federal Council, where each member of the council heads a department and votes on proposals relating to all departments. A common title for many heads of government is prime minister; this is used as a formal title in many states, but informally a generic term to describe whichever office is considered the principal minister under an otherwise styled head of state, as minister — Latin for servants or subordinates — is a common title for members of a government. Formally the head of state can be the head of government as well but otherwise has formal precedence over the Head of Government and other ministers, whether he is their actual political superior or rather theoretical or ceremonial in character.
Various constitutions use different titles, the same title can have various multiple meanings, depending on the constitutional order and political system of the state in question. In addition to prime minister, titles used for the democratic model, where there is an elected legislative body checking the Head of government, include the following; some of these titles relate to governments below the national level. Chancellor Chairman of the Executive Council Chief Minister Chief Executive First Minister Minister-President Premier President of the Council of Ministers President of the Council of State President of the Executive Council President of the Government Prime Minister State Counsellor State President Albanian: Kryeministër Bengali: For the Prime Minister of Bangladesh Pradan Mantri.
Iakoba Italeli
Sir Iakoba Taeia Italeli, GCMG, is a Tuvaluan politician, the current Governor-General of Tuvalu, having served in this role since on 16 April 2010. He is a former Attorney General of Tuvalu who served from 2002 to 2006, he was the Chancellor of the University of the South Pacific from July 2014 to June 2015. Italeli is a graduate of International Maritime Law Institute at the University of Malta in 2001, he was appointed as acting Attorney General in 2002, a position kept until 2006. Italeli ran for public office for the first time in the Tuvaluan general election in 2006, he won the election, became the representative of the Nui district in the Parliament of Tuvalu, a position kept for 4 more years. He served as the Minister of Education and Health, in the government of the Prime Minister, Apisai Ielemia, he remained as minister until 2010. He was appointed to the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George as a Knight Grand Cross on 21 June 2010. Italeli was elected to represent Nui in the Parliament of Tuvalu on a non-partisan basis.
His younger brother, Isaia Italeli, was elected to Parliament as MP for Nui, in the September 2010 general election, subsequently became Speaker Minister for Works and Natural Resources. In 2013, Italeli faced a political crisis when Prime Minister Willy Telavi's government lost a crucial by-election on 28 June and thereby lost its majority in parliament; the opposition thereafter held a majority of seats and called for the Prime Minister to advise that parliament be reconvened. Telavi responded that, under the constitution, parliament was required to convene only once a year and he was thus under no obligation to advise the Governor-General to summon it until December 2013; the opposition turned to Italeli and, on 3 July, he exercised his reserve powers by summoning parliament, against the Prime Minister's wishes, on 30 July. With only five members of the governing party and eight members of the opposition party in the legislature, the Speaker of the Parliament, Kamuta Latasi, still refused to allow a vote of non-confidence and Taom Tanukale, a member of Telavi's party, resigned his seat in parliament, prompting Telavi to assert that no confidence vote should be held until a by-election was conducted in Tanukale's district, but without giving a date for such an election.
The opposition subsequently appealed again to the Governor-General, who on 1 August, replaced Telavi with the former opposition leader Enele Sopoaga as prime minister and ordered that parliament sit until 2 August to allow for the vote of non-confidence regarding Telavi's government to take place. On the same day, Telavi declared he had written to Elizabeth II, the Queen of Tuvalu, advising her to replace Italeli as governor general and that Italeli "had been fired"; the Queen gave no indication of her reaction to Telavi's letter. Politics of Tuvalu Tuvaluan constitutional crisis http://www.tuvalu-news.tv/archives/2006/08/apisai_ielemia_new_prime_minis.html http://www.rulers.org/rult.html#tuvalu
