There is an abundance of fish in the waters of the group which provides a staple fish diet for the inhabitants. Livestock numbers in 1968 were as follows: horses 8,035, cattle 2,217; goats 4,039; pigs 32,018; poultry 141,891. Limited areas of forest land are found in the islands of ’Eua and Vava'u, but timber is not exported. The manufacturing industries in Tonga are the production of desiccated coconut, coir and tobacco goods, which only began quite recently. PRINCIPAL EXPORTS BY QUANTITY AND VALUE 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 Copra tons 10,823 6,931 12,441 10,650 8,089 T$ 1,614,162 1,151,718 1,984,434 1,709,944 1,430,880 Bananas cases 146,523 315,686 455,468 609,888 535,898 T$ 371,308 941,222 1,337,554 1,612,458 1,738,679 The chief imports are textiles, flour, preserved meats, sugar, hardware, soap, petrol, kerosene, spirits, beer and wines, tobacco and cigarettes. The Tonga Copra Board and the Tonga Produce Board, established under the provisions of the Agriculture Organisation Act, 1940, both of which are non-profit-making concerns, are charged with purchase, sale and marketing in the interests of the producers. In 1968 traces of oil were found off 'Eua, but it will be some time before it can be established whether any deposit of commercial value exists. Revenue and expenditure during the years 1963-68 were: Revenue Expenditure TS 1,676,460 1,540,720 1964-65 1,742,520 1,616,640 1965-66 1,968,180 1,872,356 1966-67 2,125,751 1,798,064 1967-68 2,618,200 1,930,935 About 50 per cent of revenue accrues from customs duty. The main heads of expenditure are public works, medical services, education and agriculture. The financial year begins on 1st July. There is no Public Debt and the surplus funds account stood at T$2,080,900 on the 30th June 1968. An annual rent of 8s, a year is payable in respect of the allotments of land to which all male Tongans are entitled (see below: Land Policy). In addition there is an annual tax of 32 shillings, for which free education, medical, hospital and dental treatment are provided. Indirect taxation includes import duties (general tariff 33} per cent ad valorem, British preferential tariff 15 per cent ad valorem) and a port and customs service tax on imports of 5 per cent. There is also an export duty on copra of 10 per cent of the f.o.b. value at date of export. HISTORY During the first half of the nineteenth century civil wars were rife in the islands. They were finally checked during the reign of King George Tupou I (1845–93) who had by conquest gathered all power in his own hands. Wesleyan missionaries landed on Tonga in 1826 and by the middle of the century practically all the chiefs and people had been converted to Christianity. Not until the last decade of the century, however, were questions regarding freedom of worship and the relationship of Church and State peaceably settled. In 1900, by a Treaty of Friendship and Protection, Tonga became a British Protected State. There have been three subsequent revisions of the Treaty reflecting the changes which have occurred during the 20th century. Under the latest, by an exchange of letters on the 19th May 1970, it was agreed that the United Kingdom Government should, as from the 4th June 1970, cease to have any responsibility for the external relations of the Kingdom of Tonga. The provisions of Articles II, III, IV and V of the 1968 Revised Treaty accordingly ceased to have effect. At the same time Tonga became a full member of the Commonwealth and accepted The Queen as a symbol of the free association of independent member nations and as such The Head of the Commonwealth. The British High Commissioner in New Zealand was appointed concurrently United Kingdom High Commi oner (non-resident) in Tonga, while the former resident post of Commissioner and Consul became Deputy High Commissioner, CONSTITUTION The present constitution is based, with relatively little amendment, on that granted in 1875 by King George Tupou I. It provides for a Government consisting of the Sovereign (at present King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, GCVO, KCMG, KBE) a Privy Council and Cabinet, a Legislative Assembly and a Judiciary. The Legislative Assembly consists of the Premier and Ministers of the Crown (including the Governors of Vava'u and Ha’apai), seven representatives of the nobles elected by their peers, and seven representatives of the people elected by popular franchise, every male Tongan of 21 years of age who pays taxes and can read and write and every female Tongan of 21 years of age who can read and write, being qualified to vote. In 1960 for the first time women were included, and held a vote, in the election of Legislative Assembly members. Several women also stood for election but were defeated at the polls. Elections are held every three years. The President of the Legislative Assembly is the Speaker, appointed by the Sovereign. The courts consist of a Supreme Court, a Magistrate's Court and a Land Court. LAND POLICY Every male Tongan on reaching the taxable age of 16 years is entitled to 81 acres of land for cultivation in addition to a small village allotment for his dwelling. Land may not be leased to non-Tongans without the consent of the Government. Immigrant settlement is not encouraged owing to the increasing shortage of land available. GOVERNMENT H.R.H. Prince Fatafehi Tu'ipelehake, CBE Minister of Lands: Hon. Laufilitonga Tuita Minister of Police: Hon. 'Akau'ola Minister of Health: Hon. Dr S. Tapa Governor of Ha’apai: Ve'chala READING LIST LEDYARD, Patricia. Friendly Island. Peter Davies, 1956. Press. T TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO (He islands of Trinidad and Tobago lie between latitudes 10° and 11° N. and longitudes 61° and 62° W. The area of the two islands is 1,980 square miles (Trinidad 1,864 and Tobago 116). Trinidad is traversed by two mountain ranges, the northern and southern ranges, running roughly east and west, and a third, the central range, running diagonally across the island. Between the northern and central ranges the land is flat and well-watered; south of the central range it is undulating and the water supply poor. Apart from small areas in the northern range, of which the main peaks are Cerro del Aripo (3,083 feet) and El Tucuche (3,072 feet), and in the central range, of which Mount Tamana (1,009 feet) is the principal peak, all the land is below 1,000 feet. The rivers though numerous are unimportant. A main ridge of hills, eighteen miles in length, extends nearly two-thirds of the length of Tobago from its northeastern extremity. The highest point is 1,890 feet. About 300,000 acres or 22 per cent of the two islands is forest. The climate is tropical. The temperature varies between 64°F and 92°F with mean night and day temperatures of 74°F and 82°F respectively. The coolest months are from December to April. Rainfall is heaviest in June (11.4 inches). There is a dry season from January to mid-May and a wet season from June to December, with a short break in September. The population of Trinidad and Tobago at the census of April 1960 was 827,957. The populations of the principal towns were: Port of Spain, the capital, 93,954; San Fernando 38,830; Arima 10,982. The main population divisions were: Negro 358,588 (43.5 per cent); East Indian 301,946 (36-5 per cent); Mixed and Others 143,344 (13 per cent); White 15,718 (1.9 per cent); Chinese 8,361 (1.2 per cent). The estimated population at mid-1966 was 980,000. The birth rate, based on 1962 figures, is 38.1 per 1,000 and the death rate 7.5 per 1,000. The main religions are Roman Catholicism 36 per cent; Hinduism 23 per cent; Protestantism 21 per cent and Islam 6 per cent. Primary education is free and universal, while free secondary education is available by competitive examination at the age of 11 years. The literacy percentage, at the 1960 census, was 89. The principal seaports are: Port of Spain, the main seaport; Scarborough in Tobago, a deep water harbour; Chaguaramas, transfer stations for handling the transhipment of bauxite from the Guianas for Canada and the United States of America; Pointe-à-Pierre and Point Fortin, oil terminals; Brighton, an asphalt and oil loading point; and Point Lisas, a fertiliser wharf, which also provides bulk loading facilities for sugar. The principal shipping line is West Indies Shipping Service, jointly owned by Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Barbados and the Windward and Leeward Islands. The customs airport of Trinidad is Piarco (runway length 9,500 feet), which is located sixteen miles south-east of Port of Spain. The airline is British West Indian Airways Ltd. The Trinidad Government Railway has been phased out. Road passenger services, which serve all parts of the country are operated by the Public Transport Service Corporation. Total road mileage is approximately 1,440 miles. Trinidad and Tobago has three radio broadcasting companies, viz. Radio Trinidad, owned and operated by the Trinidad Broadcasting Co. Ltd; Radio Guardian, owned and operated by the Trinidad Publishing Co. Ltd; Rediffusion (Trinidad) Ltd., owned by Rediffusion (W.I.) Ltd. The first two cover the whole area of Trinidad and Tobago; the third provides an exclusive wire service to subscribers in Port of Spain and its environs and in Arima and San Fernando. There is also a commercial television company, Trinidad and Tobago Television, which provides a service covering Trinidad and parts of Tobago and Grenada. Trinidad's economy is based mainly on oil and sugar and more recently on a growth of a range of manufacturing industries, including the manufacture of cement, chemicals, fertilisers, motor vehicle assembly and household electrical appliances. Although the sugar industry remains the largest employer, oil in fact dominates the local scene. Refining capacity (which includes the largest refinery in the Commonwealth) is about 376,000 barrels a day, of which approximately one-third is refined from local crude oil production, crude being obtained from both land and off-shore deposits. Tobago is essentially agricultural with a small but growing tourist industry. Total exports in 1969 were TT $949 million, which included the following: Mineral fuels and petroleum products.. TT$ Millions 732 Total imports in 1969 were TT $965 million, of which the biggest single import was crude oil, TT $496 million. The balance of imports came from many countries the principal sources being Britain, the U.S.A. and Canada. The 1970 estimate of Government revenue was TT $346 million and of expenditure was TT $375 million. The third Five-Year Plan 1969–1973 envisages a total net investment of TT $907 million during the period. The following have their headquarters in Trinidad: Citrus Research Unit (shared by British Honduras, Jamaica, Dominica and Trinidad and Tobago); Regional Research Centre (Agricultural and Soils Research); Regional Virus Laboratory; Seismic Research Unit; Standing Advisory Committee for Medical Research in the Caribbean. The following Commonwealth Regional Organisations also exist in Trinidad: The Regional Shipping Council, West Indies Shipping Service; the Commonwealth Institute of Biological Control (see Part VIII, Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux); the Caribbean Meteorological Organisation. Trinidad joined 0.A.S. on 23rd February 1967 and C.A.R.I.F.T.A. on 1st May 1968. Trinidad and Tobago's National Day is Independence Day, 31st August, which commemorates the achievement of independence on 31st August 1962. TRINIDAD The aboriginal name for the island was Iere (Land of the Humming Bird). Columbus landed there on his third voyage in 1498 and, taking possession on behalf of the Crown of Spain, named the island Trinidad. No Governor was appointed by the King of Spain until 1532 and even then, and for many years afterwards, the Spanish colonists had the greatest difficulty in maintaining a footing on the island. In 1595 Sir Walter Raleigh destroyed the newly-founded town of St Joseph. In 1640 it was raided by the Dutch, and in 1677 and 1690 by the French. Towards the end of the seventeenth and the beginning of the eighteenth centuries, cocoa was largely and successfully cultivated, but in 1725 a blight fell upon the plantations. Thereafter Trinidad made scarcely any progress until 1783 when, in consequence of representations made to the Court of Madrid as to its exceptional fertility, a royal proclamation was issued by which extraordinary advantages were offered to Roman Catholics of all nations friendly with Spain to settle there. The consequence of the proclamation was a large influx of population, soon augmented by many French families driven from Santo Domingo and elsewhere by the events of the French Revolution and to this cause is to be traced the large French element in a colony which never belonged to France. In 1797, during the Revolutionary War, a British expedition sailed from Martinique for the reduction of Trinidad. The expedition resulted in the surrender of the island to His Majesty's Forces. In 1802 Trinidad was ceded to the British Crown by the Treaty of Amiens. Emancipation of slaves in 1834 and the adoption of free trade by Britain in 1846 resulted in far-reaching social and economic changes. To meet the labour shortage immigration was encouraged and between 1845 and 1917 there arrived over 150,000 immigrants from India, China and Madeira. The fall in the price of sugar and the general decline of the sugar industry, which dominated the island's history in the nineteenth century, stimulated the search for substitute crops; by the latter part of the century cocoa had been resuscitated and for a time replaced sugar as the most important industry. After its cession to Britain in 1802 Trinidad became a Crown Colony. By the terms of the capitulation, the Spanish constitution and laws were maintained and the Governor ruled with the help of a newly-created Council of Advice and the existing Cabildo, a corporate body elected annually by the taxpayers, which combined the functions of a parish vestry, a municipal council, an ecclesiastical council and a council of government. The Council of Advice evolved in 1831 into an Executive Council and a Council of Government, which later became the Legislative Council. In 1840 the Cabildo became the Port of Spain Town Council. By the middle of the nineteenth century English procedure and legislation had displaced Spanish law. TOBAGO Tobago was discovered by Columbus in 1498, at which time it was occupied |