Western Sahara:
Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of
Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of
the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A
guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's
sovereignty ended in a 1991 cease-fire; a referendum on final status
has been repeatedly postponed and is not expected to occur until at
least 2002.

World:
Globally, the 20th century was marked by: (a) two devastating
world wars; (b) the Great Depression of the 1930s; (c) the end of
vast colonial empires; (d) rapid advances in science and technology,
from the first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina (US) to
the landing on the moon; (e) the Cold War between the Western
alliance and the Warsaw Pact nations; (f) a sharp rise in living
standards in North America, Europe, and Japan; (g) increased
concerns about the environment, including loss of forests, shortages
of energy and water, the drop in biological diversity, and air
pollution; (h) the onset of the AIDS epidemic; and (i) the ultimate
emergence of the US as the only world superpower. The planet's
population continues to explode: from 1 billion in 1820, to 2
billion in 1930, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion in 1974, 5 billion in
1988, and 6 billion in 2000. For the 21st century, the continued
exponential growth in science and technology raises both hopes
(e.g., advances in medicine) and fears (e.g., development of even
more lethal weapons of war).

Yemen:
North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918.
The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern
port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became
South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a
Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of
Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of
hostility between the states. The two countries were formally
unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist
movement in 1994 was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and
Yemen agreed to a delimitation of their border.

Yugoslavia:
The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was formed in
1918; its name was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929. Occupation by Nazi
Germany in 1941 was resisted by various partisan bands that fought
themselves as well as the invaders. The group headed by Marshal TITO
took full control upon German expulsion in 1945. Although communist
in name, his new government successfully steered its own path
between the Warsaw Pact nations and the West for the next four and a
half decades. In the early 1990s, post-TITO Yugoslavia began to
unravel along ethnic lines: Slovenia, Croatia, and The Former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia all declared their independence in
1991; Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992. The remaining republics of
Serbia and Montenegro declared a new "Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia" in 1992 and, under President Slobodan MILOSEVIC, Serbia
led various military intervention efforts to unite Serbs in
neighboring republics into a "Greater Serbia." All of these efforts
were ultimately unsuccessful. In 1999, massive expulsions by Serbs
of ethnic Albanians living in the autonomous republic of Kosovo
provoked an international response, including the NATO bombing of
Serbia and the stationing of NATO and Russian peacekeepers in
Kosovo. Blatant attempts to manipulate presidential balloting in
October of 2000 were followed by massive nationwide demonstrations
and strikes that saw the election winner, Vojislav KOSTUNICA,
replace MILOSEVIC.

Zambia:
The territory of Northern Rhodesia was administered by the
South Africa Company from 1891 until takeover by the UK in 1923.
During the 1920s and 1930s, advances in mining spurred development
and immigration. The name was changed to Zambia upon independence in
1964. In the 1980s and 1990s, declining copper prices and a
prolonged drought hurt the economy. Elections in 1991 brought an end
to one-party rule, but the subsequent vote in 1996 saw blatant
harassment of opposition parties.

Zimbabwe:
The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the South Africa
Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated to keep whites
in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its
independence, but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded
voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then
called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led
to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980.
Robert MUGABE, the nation's first prime minister, has been the
country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the
country's political system since independence.

Taiwan:
In 1895, military defeat forced China to cede Taiwan to
Japan, however it reverted to Chinese control after World War II.
Following the communist victory on the mainland in 1949, 2 million
Nationalists fled to Taiwan and established a government using the
1947 constitution drawn up for all of China. Over the next five
decades, the ruling authorities gradually democratized and
incorporated the native population within its governing structure.
Throughout this period, the island has prospered to become one of
East Asia's economic "Tigers." The dominant political issue
continues to be the relationship between Taiwan and China and the
question of eventual reunification.

======================================================================

@Birth rate

Afghanistan:
41.42 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)