12
Jul
Independent Kiribati
The Gilbert Islands became independent from the British colonial rule as the Republic of Kiribati on 12th July 1979.
Independence Day is a national public holiday in Kiribati, the least-visited country in the world that is the first to welcome a new year annually. It is a day off for the general population of this Pacific Island, and schools and most businesses are closed. National Day festivities usually last for several days because the government appoints the dates of several public holidays (Gospel Day, Senior Citizens’ Day, and National Culture Day) during the Independence Day week. The biggest celebration is held in South Tarawa, the capital of Kiribati, at the Bairiki National Stadium. Independence Day festivities include the President’s speech followed by a colorful parade, traditional dance, kite-flying, canoe races, and many other sports events.
When the British Captain Thomas Gilbert crossed the islands in 1788, soon they were named the Gilbert Islands after him. Great Britain established its protectorate over the Gilbert Islands and the neighbouring Ellice Islands in 1892, and they became a Crown colony in 1916. The colony’s transition to self-determination began after WWII. As a result, the Ellice Island gained independence as Tuvalu, while the Gilbert Islands became the independent Republic of Kiribati.
Although the indigenous Gilbertese language name for the Gilbert Islands is 'Tungaru', the new state chose the name 'Kiribati', the I-Kiribati transliteration of 'Gilbert’s' in the native language, as an equivalent of the former colony to acknowledge the inclusion of other islands like Banaba, the Line Islands, and the Phoenix Islands. These last two groups of islands, the Phoenix Islands and the Line Island, were formally included in the republic in 1983 when the United States giving up all claims to them in a treaty of friendship known as the Treaty of Tarawa, which was signed in 1979, and finally recognised Kiribati.
In the post-independence era, overcrowding and climate change have been two major problems of the country. The Kiribati government and, especially, the 4th President Tong tried their best to gain international attention to the problems of climate change and other environmental issues. Kiribati is expected to be the first country to lose all its land territory to global warming.
In 1988 an announcement was made that 4,700 residents of the main island group would be resettled onto less-populated islands. In June 2008 Kiribati officials asked Australia and New Zealand to accept Kiribati citizens as permanent refugees. The Kiribati President between 2003 and 2016, Anote Tong said, "To plan for the day when you no longer have a country is indeed painful but I think we have to do that". Currently, only 21 of the 33 islands are inhabited.
In early 2012 the government of Kiribati purchased the 2,200-hectare Natoavatu Estate on the second-largest island of Fiji, Vanua Levu, where the government planned to evacuate the entire population of Kiribati, according to the reports back then. In April 2013 President Tong asked his fellow citizens to evacuate the islands and migrate elsewhere. In May 2014 the Office of the President Tong confirmed the purchase of 5,460 acres of land on Vanua Levu at a cost of 9.3 million Australian dollars.
