Conventional Long Form- None
Capital- Wellington Government type-Parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm Date of Independence- September 26th, 1907 (From UK) National Holidays- Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand on Feburary 6th, 1840) ANZAC Day (Celebrates the landing of Australian and New Zealand troops during World War 1 at Gallipoli, Turkey on April 25th, 1915) Chief of State- Queen Elizabeth II Head of Government- Prime Minister John KEY (since 19 November 2008); Deputy Prime Minister Simon William ENGLISH (since 19 November 2008) Executive Branch- Cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister Elections: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general Legislative Branch/Powers- Unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (usually 120 seats; 70 members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies including 7 Maori constituencies, 50 proportional seats chosen from party lists; serve three-year terms) Judicial Branch- Highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of 5 justices including the chief justice ) note - the Supreme Court in 2004 replaced the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, in London, as the final appeals court. Judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the governor-general on the recommendation of the attorney-general; justices appointed for life. Subordinate courts: Court of Appeal; High Court; tribunals and authorities; district courts; specialized courts for issues related to employment, environment, Maori lands, and military. Suffrage- Anyone 18 Years and older Ambassador in the U.S- Ambassador Michael Kenneth MOORE Location of thieir embassy in the U.S- 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008 New Zealand National Anthem |
Locations of their consulates- New York, Pago Pago (American Samoa), Santa Monica (CA)
U.S Ambassador to them- Ambassador David HUEBNER Location of U.S embassy there- 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington Location of U.S Consulates- Auckland Representative to UN- Jim McLay Symbolism of flag- Blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of the flag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation National Symbols- Southern Cross constellation (four, five-pointed stars); kiwi (bird). International Disputes- Asserts a territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency) Number of refugees inside country- Around 1,700 Outside country- 31 Quantity of Internally Displaced Persons- 0 Quantity of Stateless Persons- 0 Human trafficking issues- New Zealand is destination country for human trafficking. Estimates of human trafficking in New Zealand are modest, with some reports of debt bondage and confiscation of document among women in prostitution. New Zealand has internal trafficking of women and children for commercial sexual exploitation.3 The Prostitution Law Review Committee estimated that approximately 200 young persons under the age of 18 were working as prostitutes in 2004. Illicit Drug trafficking/use- significant consumer of amphetamines |