According to abbreviationfinder, the Commonwealth of Dominica is a republic belonging to the Caribbean Sea, which is located between the French overseas territories of Guadeloupe to the north and Martinique to the south. [1]
It belongs to the British Commonwealth of Nations. In 2011 it had a population of 69 017 residents, and an area of 751 km 2. See population of Dominica.
History
Conquests
In the 14th century, the Caribs exterminated or expelled the aboriginal Arawak population from the island. At the end of the following century, Christopher Columbus’s ships arrived in Dominica on November 3, 1493. This was the first island discovered on his second trip to America, it is baptized with this name, with Sunday being the day of the week that the island is sighted. Spanish ships arrived frequently during the 16th century, but fierce resistance from the Caribs deterred Spain from its efforts to settle there. In 1627 the British also failed to capture the island. The French were the first Europeans to achieve the colonization of the island.
In the seventeenth century, French loggers arrived in the area and renamed a Caribbean town with the name of Roseau, forming a city that today stands as the capital of the country. The recent territory managed to have its own church in 1730. Today it is the Catholic Cathedral. Despite the British takeover of the island by force a century later, the French presence spread over the years, as today it continues to dialogue, as will be seen below, a language derived from French and also, the majority of the population practices Catholicism. For about a century, the island of Dominica remained isolated and even so, more Carib Indians from other islands arrived to settle in Dominica. Once the neighboring islands were abandoned, they took refuge here because Europeans dominated the region.
France formally granted possession of the island to the United Kingdom in 1763, which changed the island into a colony in 1805 and finally a government was built by the British. The manumission of African slaves led to the interruption of relations with the British Empire in 1834 and in 1838 it became the first and only British colony in the Caribbean to have a black-dominated legislature. In 1896, the British retake control of the island and it was changed to Colonia de la Corona.
Twentieth century
Between the years 1958 to 1962 and it became a province of the Federation of the West Indies.
After the federation was dissolved, in 1967, Dominica became a grouped state of the United Kingdom, formally taking charge of its internal affairs. The 3 of November of 1978, Britain granted independence to the Commonwealth of Dominica (Commonwealth of Dominica), within the British Commonwealth of Naciones.Esta release very little resolved problems resulting from centuries of economic underdevelopment, and in mid In 1979, political discontent led to the formation of a provisional government, which is replaced after the 1980 elections.by a regime led by the Dominican Freedom Party, under Prime Minister Eugenia Charles, the first woman to hold that position in the Caribbean. Critical economic difficulties were compounded by the severe impact of the hurricanes in 1979 and 1980. In the late 1980s, the economy enjoyed a strong repair, which weakened in the 1990s due to a decline in banana prices.
XXI century
In the February 2000 elections, Edison James’ UWP (United Workers Party) was defeated by the DLP (Dominica Labor Party), led by Roosevelt P. “Rosie” Douglas. Douglas passed away only a few months after taking office, and was replaced by Pierre Charles, also of the DLP.
Government and politics
Government
Dominica is a parliamentary republic within the British Commonwealth of Nations. The president is the head of state, as dictated by article 18 of the 1978 Dominican Constitution. [2] The president is elected by the House of Assembly and serves for a period of five years.
The current president is Dr. Nicholas Liverpool, who was sworn in on October 2, 2003, and re-elected for a second term in 2008.
The Executive Power of the country rests in the cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister, this position is currently held by Roosevelt Skerrit. [3] The unicameral Parliament consists of a 30-member assembly, made up of 21 directly elected members and nine senators, who are chosen by the president or other members of the Assembly.
Ministries
Unlike other former British colonies in the territory, Dominica is not a Commonwealth territory with the British monarch as head of state, but rather an independent republic. The island’s government also has ministries and departments in charge of socio-economic spheres, these are [4]
- Electoral Office,
- Audit Department,
- Establishment, Personnel and Training Department,
- Ministry of Tourism and Legal Affairs,
- House of Assembly,
- Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry,
- Ministry of Caribbean Affairs,
- Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports,
- Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development,
- Ministry of Employment, Trade, Industry and Diaspora Relations,
- Ministry of the Environment, Natural Resources, Physical Planning and Fisheries,
- Treasury,
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
- Ministry of Health,
- Ministry of Information, Telecommunications and Empowerment,
- Ministry of Lands, Housing, Human Settlements and Water Resources Management,
- Ministry of National Security, Immigration and Labor,
- Ministry of Public Works, Energy and Ports,
- Ministry of Social Services, Community Development and Gender Affairs,
- Public Service Commissions and the Police,
- Office of the President and
- Prime Minister’s Office.
Parishes
Dominica is an active and participating member of the Caribbean Community, the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, and the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA).
Dominica is administratively divided into 10 parishes:
- Saint Andrew Parish
- Saint David Parish
- Saint George Parish
- Saint John Parish
- Saint Joseph Parish
- Saint Mark Parish
- Saint Patrick Parish
- Saint Paul Parish
- Saint Peter Parish
National symbols
Flag
The flag of Dominica was adopted on 3 of November of 1978 and was originally designed by Alwin Bully. [5] In the original version, the Sisserou parrot (whose scientific name is Amazona imperialis) was turned to the right (it was changed in 1988), and the order of the bars was different (yellow – white – black, from top to bottom, changed in 1981).
The ten stars that surround the parrot represent the ten parishes on the island (San Andrés, San David, San Jorge, San Juan, San José, San Lucas, San Marcos, San Patricio, San Pablo and San Pedro).
Shield
The coat of arms of Dominica was approved on July 21, 1961. [6] The design represents a shield divided into four quarters of a cross, in reference to the name of the island, due to its discovery on a Sunday.
In the first barracks, made of gold, a coconut tree in its natural colors; in the second, of azure, a toad from Dominica in its natural colors; in the third barracks, of azure, a Caribbean canoe on waves of silver and azure; in the fourth barracks, made of gold, a banana tree.
The shield is stamped by a silver and azure burelet with a saber rock surmounted by a passing lion armed with gold. The shield is supported by two figures (tenants or supports in heraldic terminology) in the shape of a Sisserou parrot (Amazona imperialis) in their natural colors. This bird is also represented on the national flag.
At the bottom is written, in French, the national motto on a gold ribbon with single letters: ” Apres Bondie C’est La Ter [7] ” (“After God is the Earth”), which emphasizes the importance of the land on the island which has an economy based on agriculture.
Anthem
The National Anthem of Dominica, popularly known as ” The Island of Beauty ” (Isle of Beauty) was welcomed as a National Song after achieving independence and the declaration of the small country as an Associated State of the United Kingdom. The lyrics of the hymn were written by the late Reverend W. O. M. Pond, while the music was composed by L. M. Christian.
