| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
|
| Government type | NA |
|
| Capital | none; each atoll has its own administrative center
time difference: UTC-11 (6 hours behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
|
| Administrative divisions | none (territory of New Zealand) |
|
| Independence | none (territory of New Zealand) |
|
| National holiday | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
|
| Constitution | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948; amended in 1970 |
|
| Legal system | New Zealand and local statutes |
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| Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal |
|
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General of New Zealand Anand SATYANAND (since 23 August 2006); New Zealand is represented by Administrator David PAYTON (since 17 October 2006)
head of government: Kolouei O'BRIEN (2006); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders)
cabinet: the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, consisting of three Faipule (village leaders) and three Pulenuku (village mayors), functions as a cabinet
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
|
| Legislative branch | unicameral General Fono (21 seats; based upon proportional representation from the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; Nukunonu has six seats, Fakaofo has seven seats, Atafu has eight seats); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
elections: last held January 2005 (next to be held January 2008) |
|
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
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Political parties
and leaders | none |
|
Political pressure
groups and leaders | none |
|
International organization
participation | PIF (observer), SPC, UNESCO (associate), UPU |
|
| Flag description | the flag of New Zealand is used |
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