Cocos (Keeling) Islands

For the Costa Rican island, see Cocos Island. For the island of southern Guam see Cocos Island (Guam) . For the palm tree Cocos nucifera see coconut ''.

The Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands, also called Cocos Islands and Keeling Islands, is a territory of Australia. There are two atolls with 27 coral islands in the group. The islands are located in the Indian Ocean, about one-half of the way from Australia to Sri Lanka, at .

History

Captain William Keeling was the first European to see the islands, in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century, when they became a possession of the Clunies-Ross family. Slaves were brought to work the coconut plantation from Indonesia, the Cape of Good Hope and East Asia by Alexander Hare who had taken part in Stamford Raffles' takeover of Java in 1811. A merchant seaman called Captain John Clunies-Ross, who had also served under Raffles in the takeover, set up a compound and Hare's severely mistreated slaves soon escaped to work under better conditions in the Clunies-Ross compound.

On 1 April 1836 HMS Beagle under Captain Robert FitzRoy arrived to take soundings establishing the profile of the atoll. To the young naturalist Charles Darwin who was on the ship the results supported a theory he had developed of how atolls formed. He studied the natural history of the islands and collected specimens. His assistant Syms Covington noted that "an Englishman and HIS family, with about sixty or seventy Mulattos from the Cape of Good Hope, live on one of the islands. Captain Ross, the governor, is now absent at the Cape."

The islands were brought under the British Empire in 1857. In 1867, their administration was placed under the Straits Settlements, which later became known as Singapore. Queen Victoria granted the islands in perpetuity to the Clunies-Ross family in 1886. The Cocos Islands under the Clunies-Ross family have been cited as an example of a 19th century micronation.

On November 9, 1914, the islands became the site of the Battle of Cocos, one of the first naval battles of World War I. The telegraph station on Direction Island was attacked by the German light cruiser SMS Emden, which was destroyed several hours later by the Australian cruiser, HMAS Sydney.

After the Fall of Singapore in 1942 during World War II, the islands were administered under Ceylon (Sri Lanka), while West Island and Direction Island were placed under Allied military administration. On the night of 8/9 May 1942, gunners of the Ceylon Garrison Artillery on Horsburgh Island rebelled. The Cocos Islands Mutiny was crushed and three of the rebels were to be the only British Commonwealth soldiers to be executed for mutiny during the Second World War. In 1946 the administration of the islands was reverted back to Singapore.

On November 23, 1955 the islands were transferred to Australian control under the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act 1955. In 1978, Australia entered a form of purchase of the islands with the Clunies-Ross family.

Geography

The Cocos (Keeling) Islands consist of two flat, low-lying coral atolls with an area of 14.2 square kilometres (5.4 sq. mi), 2.6 kilometres (1.6 mi) of coastline, a highest elevation of five metres (16 ft) and thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation. The climate is pleasant, modified by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year and with moderate rainfall. Cyclones may occur in the early months of the year.

North Keeling Island is an atoll consisting of just one C-shaped island, a nearly closed atoll ring with a small opening into the lagoon, about 50 metres (165 ft) wide, on the East side. The island measures 1.1 square kilometres (272 acres) in land area and is uninhabited. The lagoon is about 0.5 square kilometres (124 acres).

South Keeling Islands is an atoll consisting of 26 individual islets forming an incomplete atoll ring, with a total land area of 13.1 square kilometres (5.1 sq. mi). Only Home Island and West Island are populated.

There are no rivers or lakes on either atoll; fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs.

Cocos (Keeling) Island is located on almost exactly the opposite side of the globe as Cocos Island, Costa Rica.

Demographics

As of 2004, there are 629 inhabitants of the Cocos (Keeling) islands. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island (est. pop. 120) and the ethnic Malays on Home Island (est. pop. 600). A Cocos dialect of Malay and English are the main languages spoken and 80% of Cocos Islanders are Sunni Muslim.

Government

The capital of the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands is West Island. Some sources say that the capital is a small settlement named Bantam which is located on West Island. Governance of the islands is based on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 and depends heavily on the laws of Australia. The islands are administered from Canberra by the Department of Transport and Regional Services, with a non-resident Administrator (Neil Lucas, appointed on 30 January 2006) appointed by the Governor-General (Neil Lucas is also the Administrator of Christmas Island. These two Territories together make up Australia's Indian Ocean Territories). There also exists a unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council with seven seats. A full term lasts four years, though elections are held every two years; approximately half the members retire each two years. Federally, Cocos (Keeling) Islanders form the electorate of Lingiari with Christmas Island and outback Northern Territory.

While the islands' defence is the responsibility of Australia, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands do have a five-person police force.

Economy

Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Copra and fresh coconuts are the major export earners. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small but growing tourist industry.

The Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage worker operations. Tourism employs others.

The islands are connected within Australia's telecommunication system. There is one paved airport (on the West Island) and a lagoon anchorage.

The region's internet top-level domain is .cc.

Links and references