Clipperton Island
This isolated island was named for John
CLIPPERTON, a pirate who made it his hideout early in the 18th
century. Annexed by France in 1855, it was seized by Mexico in 1897.
Arbitration eventually awarded the island to France, which took
possession in 1935.
Cocos (Keeling) Islands
There are 27 coral islands in the group.
Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they
remained uninhabited until the 19th century. From the 1820s to 1978,
members of the CLUNIE-ROSS family controlled the islands and the
copra produced from local coconuts. Annexed by the UK in 1857, the
Cocos Islands were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955.
The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split
between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on
Home Island.
Colombia
Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from
the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others are Ecuador and
Venezuela). A four-decade long conflict between government forces
and anti-government insurgent groups, principally the Revolutionary
Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) heavily funded by the drug trade,
escalated during the 1990s. The insurgents lack the military or
popular support necessary to overthrow the government and violence
has been decreasing since about 2002, but insurgents continue
attacks against civilians and large areas of the countryside are
under guerrilla influence or are contested by security forces. More
than 31,000 former paramilitaries had demobilized by the end of 2006
and the United Self Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) as a formal
organization had ceased to function. In the wake of the paramilitary
demobilization, emerging criminal groups arose, whose members
include some former paramilitaries. The Colombian Government has
stepped up efforts to reassert government control throughout the
country, and now has a presence in every one of its administrative
departments. However, neighboring countries worry about the violence
spilling over their borders. In January 2011, Colombia assumed a
nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2011-12 term.
Comoros
Comoros has endured more than 20 coups or attempted coups
since gaining independence from France in 1975. In 1997, the islands
of Anjouan and Moheli declared independence from Comoros. In 1999,
military chief Col. AZALI seized power in a bloodless coup, and
helped negotiate the 2000 Fomboni Accords power-sharing agreement in
which the federal presidency rotates among the three islands, and
each island maintains its own local government. AZALI won the 2002
presidential election, and each island in the archipelago elected
its own president. AZALI stepped down in 2006 and President SAMBI
was elected to office. In 2007, Mohamed BACAR effected Anjouan's
de-facto secession from the Union, refusing to step down in favor of
fresh Anjouanais elections when Comoros' other islands held
legitimate elections in July. The African Union (AU) initially
attempted to resolve the political crisis by applying sanctions and
a naval blockade on Anjouan, but in March 2008, AU and Comoran
soldiers seized the island. The move was generally welcomed by the
island's inhabitants.
Congo, Democratic Republic of the Established as a Belgian colony in 1908, the Republic of the Congo gained its independence in 1960, but its early years were marred by political and social instability. Col. Joseph MOBUTU seized power and declared himself president in a November 1965 coup. He subsequently changed his name - to MOBUTU Sese Seko - as well as that of the country - to Zaire. MOBUTU retained his position for 32 years through several sham elections, as well as through brutal force. Ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by a massive inflow of refugees in 1994 from fighting in Rwanda and Burundi, led in May 1997 to the toppling of the MOBUTU regime by a rebellion backed by Rwanda and Uganda and fronted by Laurent KABILA. He renamed the country the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), but in August 1998 his regime was itself challenged by a second insurrection again backed by Rwanda and Uganda. Troops from Angola, Chad, Namibia, Sudan, and Zimbabwe intervened to support KABILA's regime. A cease-fire was signed in July 1999 by the DRC, Congolese armed rebel groups, Angola, Namibia, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zimbabwe but sporadic fighting continued. Laurent KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and his son, Joseph KABILA, was named head of state. In October 2002, the new president was successful in negotiating the withdrawal of Rwandan forces occupying eastern Congo; two months later, the Pretoria Accord was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and establish a government of national unity. A transitional government was set up in July 2003. Joseph KABILA as president and four vice presidents represented the former government, former rebel groups, the political opposition, and civil society. The transitional government held a successful constitutional referendum in December 2005 and elections for the presidency, National Assembly, and provincial legislatures in 2006. The National Assembly was installed in September 2006 and KABILA was inaugurated president in December 2006. Provincial assemblies were constituted in early 2007, and elected governors and national senators in January 2007.
Congo, Republic of the
Upon independence in 1960, the former French
region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter
century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a
democratically elected government took office in 1992. A brief civil
war in 1997 restored former Marxist President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO,
and ushered in a period of ethnic and political unrest.
Southern-based rebel groups agreed to a final peace accord in March
2003, but the calm is tenuous and refugees continue to present a
humanitarian crisis. The Republic of Congo was once one of Africa's
largest petroleum producers, but with declining production it will
need new offshore oil finds to sustain its oil earnings over the
long term.
Cook Islands
Named after Captain COOK, who sighted them in 1770, the
islands became a British protectorate in 1888. By 1900,
administrative control was transferred to New Zealand; in 1965,
residents chose self-government in free association with New
Zealand. The emigration of skilled workers to New Zealand and
government deficits are continuing problems.
Coral Sea Islands
Scattered over more than three-quarters of a
million square kilometers of ocean, the Coral Sea Islands were
declared a territory of Australia in 1969. They are uninhabited
except for a small meteorological staff on the Willis Islets.
Automated weather stations, beacons, and a lighthouse occupy many
other islands and reefs.
Costa Rica
Although explored by the Spanish early in the 16th
century, initial attempts at colonizing Costa Rica proved
unsuccessful due to a combination of factors, including: disease
from mosquito-infested swamps, brutal heat, resistance by natives,
and pirate raids. It was not until 1563 that a permanent settlement
of Cartago was established in the cooler, fertile central highlands.
The area remained a colony for some two and a half centuries. In
1821, Costa Rica became one of several Central American provinces
that jointly declared their independence from Spain. Two years later
it joined the United Provinces of Central America, but this
federation disintegrated in 1838, at which time Costa Rica
proclaimed its sovereignty and independence. Since the late 19th
century, only two brief periods of violence have marred the
country's democratic development. Although it still maintains a
large agricultural sector, Costa Rica has expanded its economy to
include strong technology and tourism industries. The standard of
living is relatively high. Land ownership is widespread.
Cote d'Ivoire
Close ties to France since independence in 1960, the
development of cocoa production for export, and foreign investment
made Cote d'Ivoire one of the most prosperous of the West African
states, but did not protect it from political turmoil. In December
1999, a military coup - the first ever in Cote d'Ivoire's history -
overthrew the government. Junta leader Robert GUEI blatantly rigged
elections held in late 2000 and declared himself the winner. Popular
protest forced him to step aside and brought Laurent GBAGBO into
power. Ivorian dissidents and disaffected members of the military
launched a failed coup attempt in September 2002. Rebel forces
claimed the northern half of the country, and in January 2003 were
granted ministerial positions in a unity government under the
auspices of the Linas-Marcoussis Peace Accord. President GBAGBO and
rebel forces resumed implementation of the peace accord in December
2003 after a three-month stalemate, but issues that sparked the
civil war, such as land reform and grounds for citizenship, remained
unresolved. In March 2007 President GBAGBO and former New Force
rebel leader Guillaume SORO signed the Ouagadougou Political
Agreement. As a result of the agreement, SORO joined GBAGBO's
government as Prime Minister and the two agreed to reunite the
country by dismantling the zone of confidence separating North from
South, integrate rebel forces into the national armed forces, and
hold elections. Disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration of
rebel forces have been problematic as rebels seek to enter the armed
forces. Citizen identification and voter registration pose election
difficulties, and balloting planned for November 2009 was postponed
with no future date set. Several thousand UN troops and several
hundred French remain in Cote d'Ivoire to help the parties implement
their commitments and to support the peace process.