Tag Archives: Study in Tonga

(Pule’anga Tonga). State of Oceania (748 km²). Capital: Nuku’alofa. Population: 102,000 (2008 estimate). Language: English and Tongan (official). Religion: Protestants 64.9%, Catholics 15.6%, others 19.5%. Monetary unit: paanga (100 senites). Human Development Index: 0.774 (85th place). Borders: Pacific Ocean. Member of: Commonwealth, UN and CP, EU associate. According to COUNTRYAAH, Tonga is a nation in Polynesia, the capital city of which is Nuku’alofa. The latest population of Tonga is 105,706.
History
Austronesians settled the Tonga Islands about 3,400 years ago. The Tu’i Tonga dynasty ruled the islands from the 10th century to around 1470, replaced by the Tu’i Ha’a Takalaua line and by the Tu’i Kanokupolu line around 1600. In 1616 the Dutch J. Le Maire and W. C. Schouten discovered the Tonga Islands, that of A. Tasman in 1643 and of J. Cook in 1773 and 1777 have been explored; The latter gave them the name “Friendly Islands”. After the first failed attempts (1797, 1822), the successful missionary work by English Methodists began in 1826; in the 19th century the majority of the native Polynesian population was Christianized. With a revolt in 1799 civil war-like turmoil broke out, which was only ended by the chief Taufa’ahau, who as King Georg Tupou I (1845-93) united the Tongans and established a Christian kingdom. In 1862 he abolished serfdom and in 1875 he introduced a constitution. In 1876, Tonga signed a “perpetual friendship treaty” with the German Reich (renewed with the Federal Republic of Germany in 1977). Under King George Tupou II. (1893-1918) Tonga became a de facto British protectorate on the basis of a German-British treaty of 1899 and a formal British-Tongan treaty in 1900. With Tonga, the last independent oceanic empire came under European rule. After the king’s death, his daughter was Salote Tupou III. Queen (1918-65). On December 15, 1965, her son Tupouto’a Tungi (* 1918, † 2006), who had been Prime Minister since 1949, ascended the throne as Taufa’ahau Tupou IV. With effect from June 4, 1970 Great Britain granted the kingdom independence, it became a member of the Commonwealth and went as one of the ACP states a close relationship with the EU. In 1999 Tonga became a member of the UN. – In 1992 the reform-oriented Pro-Democracy Movement was founded, from which the People’s Party emerged in 1994 and the Human Rights and Democracy Movement (HRDM) in 1999; from 1993 (most recently in 2005) the reform movement won the majority of the nine parliamentary mandates to be determined by popular elections. King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV, who refused economic and political reforms, came under increasing pressure due to the increasing importance of the democracy movement and the growing number of its supporters. In 2005, for the first time, the monarch felt compelled to appoint parliamentarians elected by the people to the cabinet. After Taufa’ahau Tupou IV’s death, his son took over on September 11, 2006 George Tupou V. (* 1948, † 2012) takes over the affairs of state. In November 2006 demonstrations and protests broke out because of the stalled democratic reform process, some of which escalated into serious unrest. At the government’s request, Australia and New Zealand dispatched soldiers and police officers to restore public order. In 2007 Tonga became a member of the WTO. In the parliamentary elections in April 2008, the population strengthened the progressive forces. The official coronation of George Tupou V. held, which was postponed in 2006 because of the unrest. By 2009, a commission drafted a constitutional reform that reduced the monarch’s powers. On the basis of this reform, parliamentary elections were held in 2010, in which for the first time the majority of MPs was determined by the population. After King George Tupou V’s death in March 2012, his younger brother took over as Tupou VI. the reign. In the parliamentary elections on November 27, 2014, the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands (DPFI) won nine seats (2010: 12). The remaining eight seats went to independent candidates. With Samiuela ‘Akilisi Pōhiva (* 1941, † 2019) became a non-aristocratic prime minister for the first time in December 2014. In February 2017, a motion of no confidence tabled against him by the aristocratic faction failed to find a majority in parliament. Against the background of disputes over a transfer of power from the monarch and Privy Council to the government, the King prematurely dissolved the Legislative Assembly on August 24, 2017 and scheduled new elections for November 16, 2017. The DPFI was able to win 14 of 17 mandates.