se in population in the highlands. Although headhunting and cannibalism have been practically eradicated, in the past they occurred in many parts of the country as part of ritual practices.[13][14] For example, in 1901, on Goaribari Island in the Gulf of Papua, a missionary, Harry Dauncey, found 10,000 skulls in the island’s Long Houses.[15] According to the writer Marianna Torgovnick, "The most fully documented instances of cannibalism as a social institution come from New Guinea, where head-hunting and ritual cannibalism survived, in certain isolated areas, into the fifties, sixties, and seventies, and still leave traces within certain social groups."[16] Little was known in the West about the island until the nineteenth century, although Portuguese and Spanish explorers, such as Dom Jorge de Meneses and Yńigo Ortiz de Retez, respectively, had encountered it as early as the sixteenth century. Traders from Southeast Asia had visited New Guinea as long as 5,000 years ago collecting bird of paradise plumes.[17] The country's dual name results from its complex administrative history before independence. The word papua is derived from pepuah, a Malay word describing the curly, coiled, Melanesian hair, and "New Guinea" (Nueva Guinea) was the name coined by the Spanish explorer Yńigo Ortiz de Retez. In 1545 he noted the resemblance of the people to those he had earlier seen along the Guinea coast of Africa. The northern half of the country was ruled as a colony for some decades by Germany, beginning in 1884, as German New Guinea. Australian forces attack Japanese positions during the Battle of Buna–Gona. January 7, 1943. During World War I, the territory was occupied by Australia, which had begun administering British New Guinea, the southern part, renamed Papua in 1904. After World War I, Australia was given a mandate to administer the former German New Guinea by the League of Nations. Papua, by contrast, was deemed to be an External Territory of the Australian Commonwealth, though as a matter of law it remained a British possession. This was significant for the country's post-independence legal system. The difference in legal status meant that Papua and New Guinea had entirely separate administrations, both controlled by Australia. The New Guinea campaign (1942–1945) was one of the major military campaigns of World War II. Approximately 216,000 Japanese, Australian and U.S. soldiers, sailors and airmen died during the New Guinea Campaign.[18] The two territories were combined into the Territory of Papua and New Guinea after World War II, which later was simply referred to as "Papua New Guinea". However, certain statutes[19] continued to have application only in one of the two territories. This territorial difference of law was complicated further by the adjustment of the former boundary among contiguous provinces with respect to road access and language groups. Some of such statutes apply on one side only of a boundary which no longer exists.[citation needed] The administration of Papua became open to United Nations oversight; a peaceful independence from Australia occurred on September 16, 1975, and close ties remain (Australia continues as the largest bilateral aid donor to Papua New Guinea). Papua New Guinea was admitted to membership in the United Nations on 10 October 1975.[20] A secessionist revolt in 1975–76 on Bougainville Island resulted in an eleventh-hour modification of the draft Constitution of Papua New Guinea to allow for Bougainville and the other eighteen districts to have quasi-federal status as provinces. A renewed uprising started in 1988 and claimed 20,000 lives until it was resolved in 1997. Following the revolt, the autonomous Bougainville elected Joseph Kabui as president. He was succeeded by his deputy John Tabinaman, who continued to be re-elected as leader until the election of December 2008, which James Tanis won. Anti-Chinese rioting, involving tens of thousands of people, broke out in May 2009. The initial spark was a fight between Chinese and Papua New Guinean workers at a nickel factory under construction by a Chinese company. Native resentment against the numerous small businesses being run by Chinese led to the rioting.[21][22] Politics Main article: Politics of Papua New Guinea Because it is a Commonwealth realm, Papua New Guinea's head of state is Queen Elizabeth II. It had been expected by the constitutional convention, which prepared the draft constitution, and by Australia, the outgoing metropolitan power, that Papua New Guinea would choose not to retain its link with the Commonwealth realms monarchy. The founders, however, considered that imperial honours had a cachet that the newly independent state would not be able to confer with a purely indigenous honours system – the Monarchy was thus maintained.[23] The Queen is represented by the Governor-General of Papua New Guinea, currently Michael Ogio. Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands are unusual among Commonwealth realms in that Governors-General are selected by the legislature rather than by the executive branch. Actual executive power lies with the Prime Minister, who heads the cabinet. The current Prime Minister is Peter O'Neill. The unicameral National Parliament has 109 seats, of which 20 are occupied by the governors of the 19 provinces and the National Capital District (NCD). Candidates for members of parliament are voted upon when the prime minister asks the Governor-General to call a national election, a maximum of five years after the previous national election. In the early years of independence, the instability of the party system led to frequent votes of no confidence in Parliament with resulting falls of the government of the day and the need for national elections, in accordance with the conventions of parliamentary democracy. In recent years, successive governments have passed legislation preventing such votes sooner than 18 months after a national election. This has arguably resulted in greater stability, though perhaps at a cost of reducing the accountability of the executive branch of government. Elections in PNG attract large numbers of candidates. After independence in 1975, members were elected by the first past the post system, with winners frequently gaining less than 15% of the vote. Electoral reforms in 2001 introduced the Limited Preferential Vote system (LPV), a version of the Alternative Vote. The 2007 general election was the first to be conducted using LPV. In foreign policy, Papua New Guinea was accorded Observer status within ASEAN in 1976 followed later by Special Observer status in 1981. Since mid-2011, there has been an ongoing dispute between parliament and Peter O'Neill and the judiciary, governor-general and Sir Michael Somare. The crisis involved the status of the prime minister and who is the legitimate head of government between O'Neill and Somare. Law The Parliament building of Papua New Guinea in Port Moresby Main article: Law of Papua New Guinea The unicameral Parliament enacts legislation in the same manner as in other jurisdictions that have "cabinet," "responsible government," or "parliamentary democracy": it is introduced by the executive government to the legislature, debated and, if passed, becomes law when it receives royal assent by the Governor-General. Most legislation is actually regulation implemented by the bureaucracy under enabling legislation previously passed by Parliament. All ordinary statutes enacted by Parliament must be consistent with the Constitution. The courts have jurisdiction to rule on the constitutionality of statutes, both in disputes before them and on a reference where there is no dispute but only an abstract question of law. Unusual among developing countries, the judicial branch of government in Papua New Guinea has remained remarkably independent, and successive executive governments have continued to respect its authority. The "underlying law" – that is, the common law of Papua New Guinea – consists of principles and rules of common law and equity in England[24] common law as it stood on September 16, 1975 (the date of Independence), and thereafter the decisions of PNG’s own courts. The courts are directed by the Constitution and, latterly, the Underlying Law Act, to take note of the "custom" of traditional communities, with a view to determining which customs are common to the whole country and may be declared also to be part of the underlying law. In practice, this has proved extremely difficult and has been largely neglected. Statutes are largely adapted from overseas jurisdictions, primarily Australia and England. Advocacy in the courts follows the adversarial pattern of other common law countries. This national court system used in towns and cities is supported by a village court system in the more remote areas. The law underpinning the village courts is 'customary law' and these courts are discussed further on the Law of Papua New Guinea page. Administrative divisions Main articles: Regions of Papua New Guinea, Provinces of Papua New Guinea, and Districts and LLGs of Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea is divided into four regions, which are not the primary administrative divisions but are quite significant in many aspects of government, commercial, sporting and other activities. The nation has 20 province-level divisions: eighteen provinces, the Autonomous Region of Bougainville and the National Capital District. Each province is divided into one or more districts, which in turn are divided into one or more Local Level Government areas. Provinces[25] are the primary administrative divisions of the country. Provincial governments are branches of the national government – Papua New Guinea is not a federation of provinces. The province-level divisions are as follows: Central Chimbu (Simbu) Eastern Highlands East New Britain East Sepik Enga Gulf Madang Manus Milne Bay Morobe New Ireland Northern (Oro Province) Bougainville (autonomous region) Southern Highlands Western Province (Fly) Western Highlands West New Britain West Sepik (Sandaun) National Capital District Parliament has approved the creation of two additional provinces by 2012: Hela Province, which will consist of part of the current Southern Highlands Province, and Jiwaka Province, which will be formed by dividing Western Highlands Province.[26] Geography Main article: Geography of Papua New Guinea Map of Papua New Guinea At 462,840 km2 (178,704 sq mi), Papua New Guinea is the world's fifty-fourth largest country. Including all its islands, it lies between latitudes 0° and 12°S, and longitudes 140° and 160°E. The country's geography is diverse and, in places, extremely rugged. A spine of mountains, the New Guinea Highlands, runs the length of the island of New Guinea, forming a populous highlands region mostly covered with tropical rainforest. Dense rainforests can be found in the lowland and coastal areas as well as very large wetland areas surrounding the Sepik and Fly rivers. This terrain has made it difficult for the country to develop transportation infrastructure. In some areas, airplanes are the only mode of transport. The highest peak is Mount Wilhelm at 4,509 metres (14,793 ft). Papua New Guinea is surrounded by coral reefs which are under close watch, in the interests of preservation. The country is situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, at the point of collision of several tectonic plates. There are a number of active volcanoes, and eruptions are frequent. Earthquakes are relatively common, sometimes accompanied by tsunamis. The mainland of the country is the eastern half of New Guinea island, where the largest towns are also located, including the capital Port Moresby and Lae; other major islands within Papua New Guinea include New Ireland, New Britain, Manus and Bougainville. Papua New Guinea is one of the few regions close to the equator that experiences snowfall, which occurs in the most elevated parts of the mainland. Ecology See also: Conservation in Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea is part of the Australasia ecozone, which also includes Australia, New Zealand, eastern Indonesia, and several Pacific island groups, including the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Geologically, the island of New Guinea is a northern extension of the Indo-Australian tectonic plate, forming part of a single landmass Australia-New Guinea (also called Sahul or Meganesia). It is connected to the Australian segment by a shallow continental shelf across the Torres Strait, which in former ages had lain exposed as a land bridge, particularly during ice ages when sea levels were lower than at present. Mount Tavurvur in Papua New Guinea. Consequently, many species of birds and mammals found on New Guinea have close genetic links with corresponding species found in Australia. One notable feature in common for the two landmasses is the existence of several species of marsupial mammals, including some kangaroos and possums, which are not found elsewhere. Many of the other islands within PNG territory, including New Britain, New Ireland, Bougainville, the Admiralty Islands, the Trobriand Islands, and the Louisiade Archipelago, were never linked to New Guinea by land bridges. As a consequence, they have their own flora and fauna; in particular, they lack many of the land mammals and flightless birds that are common to New Guinea and Australia. Australia and New Guinea are portions of the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which started to break into smaller continents in the Cretaceous era, 65-130 million years ago. Australia finally broke free from Antarctica about 45 million years ago. All the Australasian lands are home to the Antarctic flora, descended from the flora of southern Gondwana, including the coniferous podocarps and Araucaria pines, and the broadleafed southern beech (Nothofagus). These plant families are still present in Papua New Guinea. As the Indo-Australian Plate (which includes landmasses of India, Australia, and the Indian Ocean floor in between) drifts north, it collides with the Eurasian Plate. The collision of the two plates pushed up the Himalayas, the Indonesian islands, and New Guinea's Central Range. The Central Range is much younger and higher than the mountains of Australia, so high that it is home to rare equatorial glaciers. New Guinea is part of the humid tropics, and many Indomalayan rainforest plants spread across the narrow straits from Asia, mixing together with the old Australian and Antarctic floras. The green jungle of Papua New Guinea bears a sharp contrast to the nearby desert of Australia. PNG includes a number of terrestrial ecoregions: Admiralty Islands lowland rain forests – forested islands to the north of the mainland, home to a distinct flora. Central Range montane rain forests Huon Peninsula montane rain forests Louisiade Archipelago rain forests New Britain-New Ireland lowland rain forests New Britain-New Ireland montane rain forests New Guinea mangroves Northern New Guinea lowland rain and freshwater swamp forests Northern New Guinea montane rain forests Solomon Islands rain forests (includes Bougainville Island and Buka) Southeastern Papuan rain forests Southern New Guinea freshwater swamp forests Southern New Guinea lowland rain forests Trobriand Islands rain forests Trans Fly savanna and grasslands Central Range sub-alpine grasslands At current rates of deforestation, more than half of the country's forests could be lost or seriously degraded by 2021, according to a new satellite study of the region.[27] Nearly one quarter of Papua New Guinea's rainforests were damaged or destroyed between 1972 and 2002.[28] Economy Main article: Economy of Papua New Guinea Port Moresby Graphical depiction of Papua New Guinea's product exports in 28 color coded categories. Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but access has been hampered by rugged terrain, the high cost of developing infrastructure, serious law and order problems, and the system of land title which makes identifying the owners of land for the purpose of negotiating appropriate agreements problematic. Agriculture provides a livelihood for 85% of the population. Mineral deposits, including oil, copper, and gold, account for 72% of export earnings. The country also has a notable coffee industry and other crops include cocoa, oil palm and tea. Former Prime Minister Sir Mekere Morauta tried to restore integrity to state institutions, stabilize the kina, restore stability to the national budget, privatize public enterprises where appropriate, and ensure ongoing peace on Bougainville following the 1997 agreement which ended Bougainville's secessionist unrest. The Morauta government had considerable success in attracting international support, specifically gaining the backing of the IMF and the World Bank in securing development assistance loans. Significant challenges face the current Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare, including gaining further investor confidence, continuing efforts to privatize government assets, and maintaining the support of members of Parliament. In March 2006 the United Nations Development Programme Policy called for Papua New Guinea's designation of developing country to be downgraded to least-developed country because of protracted economic and social stagnation.[29] However, an evaluation by the International Monetary Fund in late 2008 found that "a combination of prudent fiscal and monetary policies, and high global prices for mineral commodity exports, have underpinned Papua New Guinea's recent buoyant economic growth and macroeconomic stability. Real GDP growth, at over 6% in 2007, was broad-based and is expected to continue to be strong in 2008."[30] Land tenure The PNG legislature has enacted various laws in which a type of tenure called "customary land title" is recognised, meaning that the traditional lands of the indigenous peoples have some legal basis to inalienable tenure. This customary land notionally covers most of the usable land in the country (some 97% of total land area);[31] alienated land is either held privately under State Lease or is government land. Freehold Title (also known as fee simple) can only be held by Papua New Guinea citizens.[32] Only some 3% of the land of Papua New Guinea is in private hands; it[clarification needed] is privately held under 99 year state lease, or it is held by the state. There is virtually no freehold title; the few existing freeholds are automatically converted to state lease when they are transferred between vendor and purchaser. Unalienated land is owned under customary title by traditional landowners. The precise nature of the seisin varies from one culture to another. Many writers portray land as in the communal ownership of traditional clans; however, closer studies usually show that the smallest portions of land whose ownership cannot be further divided are held by the individual heads of extended families and their descendants, or their descendants alone if they have recently died.[citation needed] This is a matter of vital importance because a problem of economic development is identifying the membership of customary landowning groups and the owners. Disputes between mining and forestry companies and landowner groups often devolve on the issue of whether the companies entered into contractual relations for the use of land with the true owners. Customary property – usually land – cannot be devised by will; it can only be inherited according to the custom of the deceased's people.[citation needed] Demographics Main article: Demographics of Papua New Guinea Huli Wigman from the Southern Highlands Papua New Guinea is one of the most heterogeneous nations in the world. There are hundreds of ethnic groups indigenous to Papua New Guinea, the majority being from the group known as Papuans, whose ancestors arr