Tonga Islands History Infoplease
Tonga
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 (1845Ò93), who unified the nation and gave it a constitution (1862), a legal code, and an administrative system. His successor, King George Tupou II (1893Ò1918) 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 JulyÒSept., 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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