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Extensible Markup Language | 1995-06-15 | 8KB | 19 lines

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?> <!DOCTYPE card PUBLIC "-//Apple, Inc.//DTD card V 2.0//EN" "" > <card> <id>35353</id> <filler1>0</filler1> <cantDelete> <false /> </cantDelete> <showPict> <true /> </showPict> <dontSearch> <false /> </dontSearch> <owner>5472</owner> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="stylesheet_3106.css" /> <content> <layer>background</layer> <id>31</id> <text>NEW ZEALANDOfficial name: New Zealand and AotearoaMember of: UN, Commonwealth, ANZUS, ApecArea: 270534 km2 (104454 sq mi)Population:3520000 (1993 est)Capital:Wellington 325000 (city 150000; 1991 census) Other major cities: Auckland 885000 (city 316000; Manukau 227000; North Shore 151000), Christchurch 307000 (city 293000), Hamilton 149000 (city 101000), Napier with Hastings 110000 (Napier city 52000), Dunedin 109000 (1991 census)Languages:English (official), MaoriReligion: Anglican (24%), Presbyterian (18%), Roman Catholic (15%)New Zealand Dependent Territories: (with areas, populations and capitals):Ross Dependency ΓÇô 730000 km2 (282000 sq mi), no permanent settlementsTokelau ΓÇô 13 km2 (5 sq mi), 1700 (1986 census); as settlement is dispersed there is no capital.New Zealand Associated Territories: (with areas, populations and capitals):Cook Islands ΓÇô 237 km2 (92 sq mi), 19000 (1991 est), AvaruaNiue ΓÇô 259 km2 (100 sq mi), 2270 (1990 est), AlofiGOVERNMENTThe 97-member House of Representatives is elected by universal adult suffrage for three years under a system of proportional representation. Four constitiencies have a Maori electorate. The Governor General ΓÇô the representative of the British Queen as sovereign of New Zealand ΓÇô appoints a Prime Minister who commands a majority in the House. The PM, in turn, appoints a Cabinet, which is responsible to the House.GEOGRAPHYMountains run from north to south through South Island, and in the southwest reach the sea in the deeply indented coast of Fjordland. The Canterbury Plains lie to the east of the mountains. North Island is mainly hilly with isolated mountains, including volcanoes ΓÇô two of which are active. Lowlands on North Island are largely restricted to coastal areas and the Waikato Valley. The highest point is Mount Cook, which, since a major rock fall in 1991, rises to 3754 m (12315 ft). Principal rivers: Waikato 435 km (270 mi), Clutha 338 km (210 mi). Climate: The climate is temperate, although the north is warmer. Rainfall is abundant almost everywhere, but totals vary considerably with altitude and aspect, rising to over 6350 mm (250 in) on the west coast of South Island.ECONOMYThe majority of New ZealandΓÇÖs export earnings come from agriculture, in particular meat, wool and dairy products. Forestry is expanding and supports an important pulp and paper industry. Apart from coal, lignite, natural gas and gold, the country has few natural resources, although its considerable hydroelectric-power potential has been exploited to produce plentiful cheap electricity ΓÇô an important basis of New ZealandΓÇÖs manufacturing industry. Natural gas ΓÇô from the Kapuni Field on North Island and the Maui Field off the Taranaki coast ΓÇô is converted to liquid fuel. Despite its small domestic market and being remote from the worldΓÇÖs major industrial powers, New Zealand has a high standard of living. Currency: New Zealand dollar.HISTORYThe Maoris migrated from Polynesia to New Zealand during the 8th century. Although the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman discovered the Westland coast in 1642, European settlement in New Zealand dates only from the end of the 18th century, in part because of the hostility shown by the Maoris towards the intruders. James Cook circumnavigated both main islands (1769ΓÇô70), and his descriptions of the country encouraged colonization. By the beginning of the 19th century, a number of whaling stations had been established in New Zealand by Australian interests. As colonization increased, Britain determined to annex New Zealand. North Island was ceded to the British Crown by Maori chiefs under the Treaty of Waitangi (1840), while South Island was claimed by right of discovery. New Zealand was governed as a part of New South Wales until a separate colonial government was established in 1841.The 1840s were marked by fierce armed resistance to British settlement by the Maoris, the majority of whom live in North Island. Relations between the Maoris and the white settlers deteriorated further during the 1850s as the colonists sought more land and Maori chiefs increasingly refused to sell it. When troops were used to evict Maoris from disputed lands in Waitara, war broke out (1860). Fighting continued for most of the decade in North Island, and guerrilla action in the King Country ΓÇô the center of North Island ΓÇô was not suppressed until 1870. The Maori Wars retarded the European settlement of North Island, while ΓÇô in the last quarter of the 19th century ΓÇô the discovery of gold and the introduction of refrigerated ships to export meat and dairy products greatly stimulated the colonization and economy of South Island. However, by the beginning of the 20th century, North Island was dominant again, and by 1911 migrants from Britain had boosted the countryΓÇÖs population to one million. Subsequent immigration has remained overwhelmingly British, although there are sizeable communities of Samoans, Cook Islanders and Croats. Liberal governments (1891ΓÇô1912) pioneered many reforms and social measures, including votes for women (1893) and the worldΓÇÖs first old-age pensions (1898). Dominion status was granted in 1907, although the country did not formally acknowledge its independent status until 1947.In World War I, New Zealand fought as a British ally in Europe, achieving distinction in the disastrous Allied expedition to the Gallipoli peninsula during the campaign against Turkey (1915). When Japan entered World War II in 1941, New ZealandΓÇÖs more immediate security was threatened. The major role played by the USA in the Pacific War led to New ZealandΓÇÖs postwar alliance with Australia and America in the ANZUS pact, and the country sent troops to support the Americans in Vietnam. The entry of Britain into the EC in 1973 restricted the access of New ZealandΓÇÖs agricultural products to what had been their principal market. Since then New Zealand has been forced to seek new markets, particularly in the Far and Middle East. Under Labor governments (1972ΓÇô75 and 1984ΓÇô90), the country adopted an independent foreign and defense policy. Since 1990 the National (conservative) government has sharply restricted the welfare state.</text> </content> <name>New Zealand</name> <script></script> </card>