| Turks & Caicos Islands |
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of two groups of tropical islands in the West Indies, the larger Caicos Islands and the smaller Turks Islands, known for tourism and as an offshore financial centre.
The Turks and Caicos Islands lie southeast of Mayaguana in the Bahamas and north of the island of Hispaniola. Cockburn Town, the capital, is situated about 1,042 kilometres (647 mi) east-southeast of Miami in the United States. The islands have a total land area of 430 square kilometres (170 sq mi). The islands are geographically contiguous to the Bahamas, but are politically a separate entity.
The total population is about 36,000, of whom approximately 22,500 live on Providenciales in the Caicos Islands. Cockburn Town, the capital, is on Grand Turk Island.
In August 2009, the United Kingdom suspended the Turks and Caicos' self-government after allegations of ministerial corruption. The prerogative of the ministerial government and the House of Assembly are vested in the islands' incumbent governor, Gordon Wetherell, for a period of up to two years. |
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| Flag Description |
The flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands is similar to the flags of other British dependencies and colonies as it has the Union Flag in the canton. It was adopted on November 7, 1968. It is a defaced Blue Ensign; the yellow shield is taken from the territory's coat of arms and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus. A Red Ensign with the shield is used as civil ensign.
The previous flag used up to 1968 was also a defaced Blue Ensign. Like many other British territories in the region at the time, it had a circular badge showing a ship offshore from a beach with the name of the islands. The Turks and Caicos badge also showed a man working on the beach between two piles of salt.
The 1889 Admiralty Flag Book introduced some shading into the right-hand salt pile, interpreted as an insertion of an entrance to what was erroneously thought to be a hut or igloo. |
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| Geography |
The two island groups are in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of the Bahamas, north of Hispaniola, and about 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from Miami in the United States, at 21°45′N 71°35′W / 21.75°N 71.583°W / 21.75; -71.583.
The territory is geographically contiguous to the Bahamas, both comprising the Lucayan Archipelago, but is politically a separate entity.
The Caicos Islands are separated by the Caicos Passage from the closest Bahamian islands, Mayaguana and Great Inagua.
The eight main islands and more than 20 smaller islands have a total land area of 616.3 square kilometres (238.0 sq mi), primarily of low, flat limestone with extensive marshes and mangrove swamps and 332 square kilometres (128 sq mi) of beach front.
The weather is usually sunny and relatively dry, but suffers frequent hurricanes.
The islands have limited natural fresh water resources; private cisterns collect rainwater for drinking.
The primary natural resources are spiny lobster, conch and other shellfish. The two distinct island groups are separated by the Turks Passage. |
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| The Caicos Islands |
The Caicos Islands are the larger group, with almost 96 percent of the land area (589.5 km2/227.6 sq mi) and 82 percent of the population (26,584 out of a total of 33,302 in 2006). The Caicos Islands are arranged around the Caicos Bank, like an atoll, with the six large islands in the west, north and east, and a few tiny reefs and cays in the south. The Caicos Bank itself, an underwater limestone bank, on which the islands rest, covers an area of 6,140 km2/2,370 sq mi. The area is made up of sand, mixed coral, algae, coral reefs and other habitats, typically at depths of from 1 to 5 metres.
The unofficial capital of the Caicos Islands is the village of Kew on North Caicos. There is no official capital because the island group is not an administrative unit. The Caicos Islands encompass four of the six administrative districts of the territory. Four of the six main islands are inhabited, plus two of the smaller islands: |
| Main islands, from West to East: |
West Caicos (uninhabited since the early 1900s)
Providenciales (main urban centre, with most of the population: 22,542)
North Caicos (population 1,895)
Middle Caicos (population 468)
East Caicos (uninhabited since the early 1900s)
South Caicos (population 1,579)
Ambergris Cay (uninhabited up until 1997) |
| Inhabited smaller islands, in the Caicos Cays between Providenciales and North Caicos: |
Dellis Cay (uninhabited up until 2007, Will host a Mandarin Oriental Hotel in 2010)
Pine Cay (tourist resort, population 30)
Parrot Cay (tourist resort, population 100) |
| The Caicos Islands make up four of the six districts of the territory, North, Middle and East Caicos Islands was designated a Ramsar site of the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance on 27 June 1990. |
| The Turks Islands |
The Turks Islands are separated from the Caicos Islands by Turks Island Passage which is more than 2,200 m/7,200 ft deep), The islands form a chain that stretches north–south. The estimated population is 5,753 on the two main islands, the only inhabited islands of the group:
Grand Turk (with the capital of the territory, area 17.39 km2 (6.71 sq mi), population 5,567)
Salt Cay (area 6.74 km2 (2.60 sq mi), population 186).
Together with nearby islands, all on Turks Bank, those two main islands form the two of the six administrative districts of the territory that fall within the Turks Islands. Turks Bank, which is smaller than Caicos Bank, has a total area of about 324 km2 (125 sq mi). |
| Mouchoir Bank |
| 25 kilometres (16 mi) east of the Turks Islands and separated from them by Mouchoir Passage is the Mouchoir Bank. Although it has no emergent cays or islets, some parts are very shallow and the water breaks on them. Mouchoir Bank is part of the Turks and Caicos Islands and falls within its Exclusive Economic Zone. It measures 960 square kilometres (370 sq mi) in area. Two banks further east, Silver Bank and Navidad Bank, are geographically a continuation, though belong politically to the Dominican Republic. |
| Administrative Divisions |
| The Turks and Caicos Islands are divided into six administrative districts (two in the Turks Islands and four in the Caicos Islands), headed by district commissioners. For the House of Assembly, the Turks and Caicos Islands are divided into 15 electoral districts (four in the Turks Islands and eleven in the Caicos Islands). |
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| Map of the Turks & Caicos Islands |
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| Climate |
| The Turks and Caicos Islands are situated just south of the Tropic of Cancer and 39 miles from the last island of the Bahamas chain. Temperatures vary from 95°F (35°C) in summer to 75°F (23.9°C) in winter. The average year-round temperature is 83F (28 C). The almost constant easterly trade winds temper the heat and keep life comfortable. Winters are usually dry. Humidity is low. The climate is almost desertlike. |
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| Demographics |
Eight of the thirty islands in the territory are inhabited, with a total population in mid-2006 of about 32,000. One-third of the population is under 15 years old, and only 4% are 65 or older. In 2000 the population was growing at a rate of 3.55% per year, with 14.46 migrants per 1,000 population and 25.65 births per 1,000 population, offset by 4.57 deaths per 1,000 population. The infant mortality rate was 18.66 deaths per 1,000 live births and the life expectancy at birth was 73.28 years (71.15 years for males, 75.51 years for females). The total fertility rate was 3.25 children born per woman. The annual population growth rate is 2.82%.
The islander's ethnicity as "90% Black", with the remainder Mixed, European or North American ancestry.
The people of the Turks and Caicos Islands are called "Turks and Caicos Islanders". |
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| Language |
The official language of the islands is English and the population also speaks Turks and Caicos Islands dialect which is similar to Bahamian dialect.
Due to its close proximity to Cuba and Hispaniola, large Haitian Creole and Spanish-speaking communities have developed in the territory due to immigration, both legal and illegal, from Creole-speaking Haiti and from Spanish-speaking Cuba and Dominican Republic. |
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| Citizenship |
Because the Turks and Caicos is a British Overseas Territory and not an independent country, they cannot confer citizenship. Instead, people with close ties to Britain's Overseas Territories, all hold the same nationality: British Overseas Territories Citizen (BOTC) as defined by the British Nationality Act 1981 and subsequent amendments. BOTC, however, does not confer any right to live in any British Overseas Territory, including the territory from which it is derived. Instead, the rights normally associated with citizenship derive from what is called Belonger status and island natives or descendants from natives are said to be Belongers.
In 2002, the British Overseas Territories Act restored full British citizenship status to all inhabitants of British Overseas Territories, including the Turks and Caicos. |
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| Education |
| Education is free and mandatory for children aged five to sixteen. Primary education lasts for six years and secondary education lasts for five years. In the 1990s, the island nation launched the Primary In-Service Teacher Education Project (PINSTEP) in an effort to increase the skills of its primary school teachers, nearly one-quarter of whom were unqualified. Turks and Caicos also worked to refurbish its primary schools, reduce textbook costs, and increase equipment and supplies given to schools. For example, in September 1993, each primary school was given enough books to allow teachers to establish in-class libraries. In 2001, the student–teacher ratio at the primary level was roughly 15:1. The Turks and Caicos Islands Community College offers higher education to students who have successfully completed their secondary education. The community college also oversees an adult literacy program. The Ministry of Health, Education, Youth, Sports, and Women's Affairs oversees education in Turks and Caicos. |
| Economy |
GDP contributions were as follows: Hotels & Restaurants 23.27%, Financial Services 29.64%, Construction 48.71%, Wholesale & Retail Trade 20.89% and Health & Social Work 10.83% Most capital goods and food for domestic consumption are imported.
Major sources of government revenue include Import Duties (36.51%), Stamp Duties from Property Transactions (19.79%), Work Permits and Residency Fees (8.93%) and Accommodation Tax (8.84%). |
The unemployment rate in 2007 was 5.4%. In 2006–2007, the territory took in revenues of $202.5 million against expenditures of $199.5 million. In 1995, the island received economic aid worth $5.7 million.
The territory's currency is the United States dollar, with a few government fines (such as airport infractions) being payable in pounds sterling. Most commemorative coin issues are denominated in crowns.
The primary agricultural products include limited amounts of maize, beans, cassava (tapioca) and citrus fruits.
Fish and conch are the only significant export, with some $169.2 million of lobster, dried and fresh conch, and conch shells exported in 2000, primarily to the United States and the United Kingdom. In recent years, however, the catch has been declining.
The territory used to be an important trans-shipment point for South American narcotics destined for the United States, but due to the ongoing pressure of a combined American, Bahamian and Turks and Caicos effort this trade has been greatly reduced.
The islands import food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufacture and construction materials, primarily from the United States and the United Kingdom. Imports totalled $581 million in 2007.
The islands produce and consume about 5 GWh of electricity, per year, all of which comes from fossil fuels. |
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| Tourism |
The United States was the leading source of tourists in 1996, accounting for more than half of the 87,000 visitors; another major source of tourists is Canada. Tourist arrivals had risen to 264,887 in 2007.
The government is pursuing a two-pronged strategy to increase tourism. Upscale resorts are aimed at the wealthy, while a large new cruise ship port and recreation centre has been built for the masses visiting Grand Turk. Turks and Caicos Islands has one of the longest coral reefs in the world, making it a premier diving destination.
The French vacation village company of Club Mediterannee (Club Med) has an all-inclusive adult resort called 'Turkoise' on one of the main islands.
Providenciales is home to a restaurant scene popular among tourists. There has been a recent trend towards authentic local tastes, with on-the-beach spots such as Da Conch Shack (run by popular Canadian island resident John Macdonald) attracting locals and tourists alike in droves. |
| Several Hollywood stars have built homes in the Turks and Caicos, including Dick Clark and Bruce Willis. Ben Affleck married actress Jennifer Garner on Parrot Cay in 2005. Actress Eva Longoria and her husband Tony Parker went to the islands for their honeymoon in July 2007 and High School Musical actors Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens went for a vacation there. Motivational speaker Eric Edmeades' official website indicates that he resides in Providenciales. |
| On 31 January 2008, the Turks and Caicos Government signed a letter of intent with the Indy Racing League to host the Indy Turks and Caicos Grand Prix, slated for February 2009. A new race track will be constructed in Blue Hills, Providenciales to host the event.[42] The islands' only 18-hole championship golf course, Provo Golf Club was opened in 1992. The course hosted the Caribbean Amateur Golf Championship in 1999, and is due to do so again in 2009. |
In an apparent effort to boost tourism during the Caribbean low season of late summer, the Turks and Caicos Tourist Board has organised and hosted an annual series of concerts called the Turks & Caicos Music and Cultural Festival since summer of 2003. Held in a temporary bandshell at The Turtle Cove Marina in The Bight on Providenciales, this festival lasts about a week and has featured several notable international recording artists such as Lionel Richie, LL Cool J, Anita Baker, Billy Ocean, Alicia Keys, John Legend, Kenny Rogers, Michael Bolton, Ludacris, Chaka Khan, and Boyz II Men.[44] More than 10,000 people attend annually.
The Amanyara resort is located on Providenciales, bordering the pristine reefs of the Northwest Point Marine National Park — a 25-minute transfer from Providenciales' international airport. |
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| Transportation |
Providenciales International Airport is the main entry point for the Turks and Caicos Islands. Altogether, there are seven airports, located on each of the inhabited islands. Five have paved runways (three of which are approximately 2000 metres long and one is approximately 1000 metres long), and the remaining two have unpaved runways (one of which is approximately 1000 metres long and the other is significantly shorter).
The islands have 121 kilometres of highway, 24 km paved and 97 km unpaved.The territory's main international ports and harbours are on Grand Turk and Providenciales.
The islands have no significant railways. In the early 1900s East Caicos operated a horse-drawn railway to transport Sisal from the plantation to the port. The 14km route was removed after sisal trading ceased. |
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| Media |
| There were three AM radio stations (one inactive) and six FM stations (no shortwave) in 1998. The most popular station is Power 92.5 FM which plays Top 100 hits. Over 8000 radio receivers are owned across the territory. |
| Mobile phone service is provided by Cable & Wireless, using GSM 850 and TDMA, and Digicel, using GSM 900 and 1900. There are no CDMA networks. The system is connected to the mainland by two submarine cables and an Intelsat earth station |
West Indies Video (WIV) has been the sole cable television provider for the Turks and Caicos Islands for over two decades and WIV4 (a subsidiary of WIV) has been the only broadcast station in the islands for over 15 years; broadcasts from the Bahamas can also be received. The territory has two internet service providers and its country code top level domain (ccTLD) is ".tc". Amateur radio callsigns begin with "VP5" and visiting operators frequently work from the islands.
WIV introduced Channel 4 News in 2002 broadcasting local news and infotainment programmes across the country. Channel 4 was re-launched as WIV4 in November 2007 and began providing reliable daily online Turks and Caicos news with the WIV4 News blog, an online forum connecting TCI residents with others interested in the islands, while keeping users updated on the TCI's daily news. |
| Turks and Caicos's newspapers include the Turks and Caicos Weekly News, the Turks and Caicos Sun, and the Turks and Caicos Free Press. All three publications are weekly. The Weekly News and the Sun both have supplement magazines. Other local magazines Times of the Islands, s3 Magazine, Real Life Magazine, Baller Magazine, and Unleashed Magazine. |
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| History of the Turks & Caicos Islands |
The Turks and Caicos Islands are named after the indigenous Turk's Head "fez" cactus (Melocactus communis), and the Lucayan term "caya hico", meaning string of islands.
The first inhabitants of the islands were Arawakan-speaking Taíno people who crossed over from Hispaniola sometime from 500 to 800. Together with Tainos who crossed over from Cuba to the southern Bahamas around the same time, these people became the Lucayans. Around 1200 the Turks and Caicos Islands were resettled by Classical Taínos from Hispaniola. Soon after they arrived in the islands in 1492, the Spanish began capturing the Taínos of the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Lucayans as slaves to replace the largely depleted native population of Hispaniola. The southern Bahama Islands, including the Turks and Caicos Islands, were completely depopulated by about 1513, and remained so until the 17th century.
The first documented European to sight the islands was Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León, who did so in 1512. During the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, the islands passed from Spanish, to French, to British control, but none of the three powers ever established any settlements.
For several decades around the turn of the 18th century they became popular pirate hideouts. Bermudian salt collectors settled the Turk Islands around 1680. In 1765–1783 they were under French occupation and again after the French captured the archipelago in 1783. in After the American Revolution (1775–1783) many loyalists fled to Caribbean colonies, including (in 1783) the first settlers on the Caicos Islands; cotton became an important crop briefly. In 1799, both the Turks and the Caicos island groups were annexed by Britain as part of the Bahamas. |
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| In 1841 the Trouvadore, a Spanish ship engaged in the slave trade, wrecked off the coast of East Caicos, one of the larger Caicos Islands. One hundred and ninety-two captive Africans survived the sinking and made it to shore where, under British rule, the slave trade was illegal. These survivors were apprenticed to trades for one year then settled mostly on Grand Turk Island. An 1878 letter documents the "Trouvadore Africans" and their descendants as constituting an essential part of the "labouring population" on the islands. In 2004 marine archaeologists rediscovered a wreck, called the "Black Rock Ship", that subsequent research has suggested may be that of the Trouvadore. This suggestion was further supported when a marine archaeology expedition funded by NOAA in November 2008 confirmed that the wreck comprises artifacts of which the style and date of manufacture support the association of this wreck with that of the Trouvadore. The wreckage has, however, not been identified with absolute certainty. |
In 1848, the Turks and Caicos were declared a separate colony under a council president. The last incumbent was maintained in 1873 when the islands were made part of Jamaica colony; in 1894 the chief colonial official was restyled commissioner. In 1917, Canadian Prime Minister Robert Borden suggested that the Turks and Caicos join Canada, but this suggestion was rejected by British Prime Minister David Lloyd George. The islands remained a dependency of Jamaica until 1959.
On 4 July 1959, the islands were again a separate colony, the last commissioner being restyled administrator, but the governor of Jamaica remained the governor of the islands. Until 31 May 1962, they were one of the constitutive parts of the Federation of the West Indies. |
| When Jamaica was granted independence from Britain in August 1962, the Turks & Caicos Islands became a crown colony. From 1965, the governor of the Bahamas was also governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands and oversaw affairs for the islands. When the Bahamas gained independence in 1973, the Turks and Caicos received their own governor (the last administrator was restyled). In 1974, Canadian New Democratic Party MP Max Saltsman tried to use his Private Member's Bill to create legislation to annex the islands to Canada, but it did not pass in the Canadian House of Commons. |
| The islands have had their own government headed by a chief minister, the first of whom was James Alexander George Smith McCartney, since August 1976. In 1979, a move towards independence was agreed upon in principle for 1982, but a change in government caused a policy reversal,[citation needed] and they instead approached the Canadian government to discuss a possible union, but at the time the Canadian Government was embroiled in a debate over free trade with the U.S., and little attention was paid to the suggestion.[citation needed] In 2004 the Canadian province of Nova Scotia gave an invitation to join but Canada's government said they would look at the matter later.[citation needed] The islands' political troubles in recent years have resulted in a rewritten constitution promulgated in 2006 and a reintroduction of direct UK Government rule in 2009. |
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| Politics |
| The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory, a possession of the United Kingdom currently ruled directly by a British-appointed governor. Its autonomous system of government was suspended in August 2009. The United Nations Committee on Decolonisation includes the territory on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories. |
With the election of the territory's first Chief Minister, J.A.G.S. McCartney, the islands adopted a constitution on 30 August 1976, which is Constitution Day, the national holiday. The constitution was suspended in 1986, but restored and revised 5 March 1988.
A new constitution came into force on 9 August 2006, but was in parts suspended and amended in 2009. The territory's legal system is based on English common law, with a small number of laws adopted from Jamaica and the Bahamas. Suffrage is universal for those over 18 years of age. English is the official language. Grand Turk is the administrative and political capital of the Turks and Caicos Islands and Cockburn Town has been the seat of government since 1766.
As a British territory, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is the sovereign, represented by a governor appointed by the monarch, on the advice of the Foreign Office.
Under the suspended constitution, the head of government was the premier, appointed by the governor. The cabinet consisted of three ex officio members and five appointed by the governor from among the members of the House of Assembly.
The unicameral House of Assembly consisted of 21 seats, of which 15 are popularly elected; members serve four-year terms. Elections in the Turks and Caicos Islands were held on 24 April 2003 and again on 9 February 2007. The Progressive National Party, led by Galmo Williams, held thirteen seats, and the People's Democratic Movement, led by Floyd Seymour, held two seats. |
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| The Turks and Caicos Islands participates in the Caribbean Development Bank, is an associate in CARICOM, and maintains an Interpol sub-bureau. Defence is the responsibility of the United Kingdom. In December 2004, the islands sought to become a new associate member to the Association of Caribbean States. |
| The judicial branch of government is headed by a Supreme Court and appeals are heard by the court of appeals and final appeals by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court was Gordon Ward. The islands also have a Court of Appeal with a President and at least two Justices of Appeal. |
| Moves toward independence |
| The winning party of Turks and Caicos' first general election in 1976, the People’s Democratic Movement (PDM) under McCartney, sought to establish a framework and accompanying infrastructure in the pursuit of an eventual policy of full independence for the islands. However, with the early death of McCartney, confidence in the country’s leadership waned. In 1980, the PDM agreed with the British government that independence would be granted in 1982 if the PDM was reelected in the elections of that year. That election was effectively a referendum on the independence issue and was won by the pro-dependency Progressive National Party (PNP), which claimed victory again four years later. With these developments, the independence issue largely faded from the political scene. |
However, in the mid-2000s, the issue of independence for the islands was again raised. In April 2006, PNP Premier Michael Misick reaffirmed that his party saw independence from Britain as the "ultimate goal" for the islands, but not at the present time.
In 2008, opponents of Misick accused him of moving toward independence for the islands in order to dodge a commission of inquiry, which examined reports of corruption by the Misick Administration. |
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