Tonga Government

What is the capital of Tonga?

Country Name	Tonga
Full Country Name	Kingdom of Tonga
Local - Long	Pule'anga Tonga
Local - Short	Tonga
Former Name	Friendly Islands
Etymology- history of name	"tonga" means "south" in the Tongan language and refers to the country's geographic position in relation to central Polynesia
Government Type	constitutional monarchy
Capital Name	Nuku'alofa
Capital - geographic coordinate	21 08 S, 175 12 W
Capital Time Difference	UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Independence	4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate)
National Holiday	King's Official Birthday, 4 July (1959); Constitution Day (National Day), 4 November (1875)
Constitution	adopted 4 November 1875, revised 1988; amended many times, last in 2014

Tonga Capital City Map

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Tonga Government and Politics

Who is the president of Tonga?

Executive Branch:

chief of state: King TUPOU VI (since 18 March 2012); Heir Apparent Crown Prince Siaosi Manumataogo 'Alaivahamama'o 'Ahoeitu Konstantin Tuku'aho, son of the king (born 17 September 1985); note - on 18 March 2012, King George TUPOU V died and his brother, Crown Prince TUPOUTO'A Lavaka, assumed the throne as TUPOU VI

head of government: Prime Minister Pohiva TU'I'ONETOA (since 27 September 2019)

cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the prime minister and appointed by the monarch

elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister indirectly elected by the Legislative Assembly and appointed by the monarch; election last held on 27 September 2019 (next to be held in November 2020)

election results: Pohiva TU'I'ONETOA (Peoples Party) elected prime minister by parliament receiving 15of 23 votes cast

note: a Privy Council advises the monarch

Citizenship Criteria:

citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Tonga; if a child is born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen of Tonga

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Legal System:

English common law

Suffrage:

21 years of age; universal

Legislative Branch:

description: unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (up to 30 seats; - 26 for the 2017-19 term); 17 people's representatives directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, and 9 indirectly elected by hereditary leaders; members serve 3-year terms)

elections: last held on 16 November 2017 (next to be held in 2020)

election results: percent of vote - NA; seats by party - Democratic Party 14, nobles' representatives 9, independent 3; composition - men 24, women 2, percent of women 7.7%

Judicial Branch:

highest court(s): Court of Appeal (consists of the court president and a number of judges determined by the monarch); note - appeals beyond the Court of Appeal are brought before the King in Privy Council, the monarch's advisory organ that has both judicial and legislative powers

judge selection and term of office: judge appointments and tenures made by the King in Privy Council, judge appointments subject to consent of the Legislative Assembly

subordinate courts: Supreme Court; Magistrate's Courts; Land Courts

Regions or States:

5 island divisions; 'Eua, Ha'apai, Ongo Niua, Tongatapu, Vava'u

Political Parties and Leaders:

Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands [Samuela 'Akilisi POHIVA]

People's Democratic Party or PDP [Tesina FUKO]

Sustainable Nation-Building Party [Sione FONUA]

Tonga Democratic Labor Party

Tonga Human Rights and Democracy Movement or THRDM

International Law Organization Participation:

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

International Organization Participation:

ACP, ADB, AOSIS, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic Representation in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Mahe'uli'uli Sandhurst TUPOUNIUA (since 10 September 2013)

chancery: 250 E. 51st Street, New York, NY, 10022

telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025

FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024

consulate(s) general: San Francisco

Diplomatic Representation from US:

the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga

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