Wallis and Futuna, officially the Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands (/ˈwÉ'lɪs/ and /fuËˈtuË="'n' in 'nigh'">nÉ™/; French: Wallis et Futuna or Territoire des îles Wallis et Futuna, Fakauvea and Fakafutuna: Uvea mo Futuna), is a French island collectivity in the South Pacific between Tuvalu to the northwest, Rotuma of Fiji to the west, the main part of Fiji to the southwest, Tonga to the southeast, Samoa to the east, the New Zealand territory of Tokelau to the northeast and to a more distant north the Phoenix Islands (Kiribati). Wallis and Futuna is not part of French Polynesia, nor even contiguous with it, as the former are located at the very opposite western end of Polynesia.
Its land area is 142.42 km2 (54.99 sq mi) with a population of about 12,000. Mata-Utu is the capital and biggest city. The territory is made up of three main volcanic tropical islands along with a number of tiny islets, and is split into two island groups that lie about 260 km (160 mi) apart, namely Wallis Islands (Uvea) in the northeast, and Hoorn Islands (also called the Futuna Islands) in the southwest, including Futuna Island proper and the mostly uninhabited Alofi Island.
Since 2003 Wallis and Futuna has been a French overseas collectivity (collectivité d'outre-mer, or COM). Between 1961 and 2003, it had the status of a French overseas territory (territoire d'outre-mer, or TOM), though its official name did not change when the status changed.
History
Polynesians settled the islands that would later be called Wallis and Futuna around the year 1000, when the Tongan empire expanded into the area. The original inhabitants built forts and other identifiable ruins on the islands, some of which are still partially intact.
Dutch and British forces came upon the islands in the 17th and 18th centuries, but it was the French who were the first Europeans to settle in the territory, with the arrival of French missionaries in 1837, who converted the population to Roman Catholicism. Pierre Chanel, canonized as a saint in 1954, is a major patron of the island of Futuna and the region. The Wallis Islands are named after the British explorer, Samuel Wallis.
On 5 April 1842, the missionaries asked for the protection of France after the rebellion of a part of the local population. On 5 April 1887, the queen of Uvea (on the island of Wallis) signed a treaty officially establishing a French protectorate. The kings of Sigave and Alo on the islands of Futuna and Alofi also signed a treaty establishing a French protectorate on 16 February 1888. The islands were put under the authority of the French colony of New Caledonia.
In 1917, the three traditional kingdoms were annexed to France and turned into the Colony of Wallis and Futuna, which was still under the authority of the Colony of New Caledonia.
During World War II the island's administration was pro-Vichy until a Free French corvette from New Caledonia deposed the regime on 26 May 1942. Units of the US Marine Corps landed on Wallis on 29 May 1942.
In 1959, the inhabitants of the islands voted to become a French overseas territory, effective in 1961, thus ending their subordination to New Caledonia.
In 2005, the 50th king, Tomasi Kulimoetoke II, faced being deposed after giving sanctuary to his grandson who was convicted of manslaughter. The king claimed his grandson should be judged by tribal law rather than by the French penal system. There were riots in the streets involving the king's supporters, who were victorious over attempts to replace the king. Two years later, Tomasi Kulimoetoke died on 7 May 2007. The state was in a six-month period of mourning. During this period, mentioning a successor was forbidden. On 25 July 2008, Kapiliele Faupala was installed as king despite protests from some of the royal clans.
Politics
The territory is divided into three traditional kingdoms (royaumes coutumiers): Uvea, on the island of Wallis, Sigave, on the western part of the island of Futuna, and Alo, on the island of Alofi and on the eastern part of the island of Futuna (only Uvea is further subdivided, into three districts):
- (1)Â referred to the villages with municipal status
- (2)Â formerly called Mua
The capital of the collectivity is MatÄÊ»utu on the island of Uvéa, the most populous of the Wallis Islands. As an overseas collectivity of France, it is governed under the French constitution of 28 September 1958, and has universal suffrage for those over 18 years of age. The French president is elected by popular vote for a five-year term; the high administrator is appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the Territorial Government and the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly.
The head of state is President François Hollande of France as represented by the Administrator-Superior Michel Jeanjean (since July 2010). The President of the Territorial Assembly is Petelo Hanisi since 11 December 2013. The Council of the Territory consists of three kings (monarchs of the three pre-colonial kingdoms) and three members appointed by the high administrator on the advice of the Territorial Assembly.
The legislative branch consists of the unicameral Territorial Assembly or Assemblée territoriale of 20 seats; the members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms. Wallis and Futuna elects one senator to the French Senate and one deputy to the French National Assembly.
Justice is generally administered under French law by a tribunal of first instance in Mata-Utu, but the three traditional kingdoms administer justice according to customary law (only for non-criminal cases). The court of appeal is in Nouméa, New Caledonia.
The territory participates in the Franc Zone, and as a permanent member of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community and as an observer of the Pacific Islands Forum.
Geography
Wallis and Futuna is located about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand, at 13°18′S 176°12′W, (225 mi west of Samoa and 300 mi (480 km) north-east of Fiji).
The territory includes the island of Uvéa (the most populous), the island of Futuna, the essentially uninhabited island of Alofi, and 20 uninhabited islets, totaling 274 square kilometres (106 sq mi) with 129 kilometres (80 mi) of coastline. The highest point in the territory is Mont Puke (on the island of Futuna) at 524 metres (1,719 ft).
The islands have a hot, rainy season from November to April with associated storms caused by the passage of tropical cyclones over the islands. There is a cool, dry season from May to October caused by the predominance of the south-east trade winds during this time. Average annual rainfall is 2,500 to 3,000 millimetres (98â€"118 in) with rainfall likely on at least 260 days each year. The average humidity is 80% and the average temperature is 26.6 °C (79.9 °F), rarely falling below 24.0 °C (75.2 °F) and ranging between 28.0 °C (82.4 °F) and 32.0 °C (89.6 °F) during the rainy season.
Only five percent of the islands' land area is arable land; permanent crops cover another 20%. Deforestation (only small portions of the original forests remain), largely as a result of the continued use of wood as the main fuel source, is a serious problem; as a consequence of cutting down the forests, the mountainous terrain of Futuna is particularly prone to erosion. There are no permanent settlements on Alofi because of the lack of natural fresh water resources.
Islands
Economy
The GDP of Wallis and Futuna in 2005 was 188 million US dollars at market exchange rates. The territory's economy is limited to traditional subsistence agriculture, with about 80% of the labor force earning its livelihood from agriculture (coconuts and vegetables), livestock (mostly pigs), and fishing. About 4% of the population is employed in government. Revenues come from French government subsidies, licensing of fishing rights to Japan and South Korea, import taxes, and remittances from expatriate workers in New Caledonia, French Polynesia and France. Industries include copra, handicrafts, fishing, and lumber. In 1991, BNP Nouvelle-Calédonie, a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, established a subsidiary, Banque de Wallis et Futuna, which currently is the only bank in the territory. Two years earlier Banque Indosuez had closed the branch at Mata-Utu that it had opened in 1977, leaving the territory without any bank.
Demographics
The total population of the territory at the July 2008 census was 13,484 (68.4% on the island of Wallis, 31.6% on the island of Futuna), down from 14,944 at the July 2003 census. The vast majority of the population are of Polynesian ethnicity, with a small minority of Metropolitan French descent and/or native-born whites of French descent. More than 16,000 Wallisians and Futunians live as expatriates in New Caledonia, which is more than the total population of Wallis and Futuna. The overwhelming majority of the people in Wallis and Futuna are Catholic.
Languages
At the 2008 census, among the population whose age was 14 and older, 60.2% of people reported that the language they speak the most at home is Wallisian, 29.9% reported that the language they speak the most at home is Futunan, and 9.7% reported that the language they speak the most at home is French. On Wallis Island, the languages most spoken at home were Wallisian (86.1%), French (12.1%), and Futunan (1.5%). On Futuna, the languages most spoken at home were Futunan (94.9%), French (4.2%), and Wallisian (0.8%).
At the same 2008 census, 88.5% of people whose age was 14 or older reported that they could speak, read and write either Wallisian or Futunan, whereas 7.2% reported that they had no knowledge of either Wallisian or Futunan. 78.2% of people whose age was 14 or older reported that they could speak, read and write French, whereas 17.3% reported that they had no knowledge of French. On Wallis Island, 81.1% of people whose age was 14 or older reported that they could speak, read and write French, whereas 14.3% reported that they had no knowledge of French. On Futuna, 71.6% of people whose age was 14 or older reported that they could speak, read and write French, whereas 24.3% reported that they had no knowledge of French.
Historical population
Culture
The culture of Wallis and Futuna is Polynesian, and is very similar to the cultures of its neighbouring nations Samoa and Tonga. The Wallisian and Futunan cultures share very similar components in language, dance, cuisine and modes of celebration.
Fishing and agriculture are the traditional practices and most people live in traditional fate houses in an oval shape made of thatch. Kava, as with many Polynesian islands, is a popular beverage brewed in the two islands, and is a traditional offering in rituals. Highly detailed tapa cloth art is a specialty of Wallis and Futuna.
Transport and communications
In 1994, the territory had 1,125 telephones in use, had one AM radio station, and two television broadcast stations. Communication costs are high, costing up to ten times as much as western countries. The island of Wallis has about 100 kilometres (62Â mi) of highway, of which 16 are paved, while the island of Futuna has only 20 kilometres (12Â mi), none paved. The territory has two main ports and harbours, Mata-Utu and Leava (on the island of Futuna), that support its merchant marine fleet consisting of three ships (two passenger ships and a petroleum tanker), totaling 92,060 GRT or 45,881 tonnes. There are two airports, one on Wallis with a paved runway of 2.1 kilometres (1.3Â mi), and one on Futuna with a 1 kilometre (0.62Â mi) unpaved strip. New Caledonia-based Aircalin operates the only commercial flights that go to Wallis, where it has an office in Mata-Utu. There are no commercial boat operators.
Miscellaneous
The territory's data code and country code (top level Internet domain) is .wf. Currently this is suspended in favor of the .fr and .nc (Nouvelle Calédonie) data code.
See also
- Outline of Wallis and Futuna
- Administrative divisions of France
- French overseas departments and territories
- Islands controlled by France in the Indian and Pacific oceans
- Vicariate Apostolic of Oriental Oceania
References
External links
- Official website of the French Administrateur supérieur de Wallis et Futuna (French)
- Wikimedia Atlas of Wallis and Futuna
- Map of Wallis and Futuna, with district boundaries
- Information about Wallis and Futuna (French)