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181 The Esplanade
       ... Cairns,
201 Lake Street Apartments
       ... Cairns,
A1 Crown Towers Surfers Paradise
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Aarons All Suites Hotel
       ... Perth,
Aarons Hotel Perth
       ... Perth,
Aarons Hotel Sydney
       ... Sydney,
Abergeldie Country House And
       ... Smeaton,
Addisons On Anzac
       ... Sydney,
Adelaide Paringa Motel
       ... Adelaide,
Adelphi Hotel
       ... Melbourne,
Adina Place City View Aparts
       ... Lauceston,
Agincourt Beachfront Apartments
       ... Clifton Beach,
Alara Plaza Motel
       ... Mackay,
Alassio - Palm Cove
       ... Palm Cove,
Albert Heights Exe Apts
       ... Melbourne,
Albert Park Manor Boutique Hotel
       ... Melbourne,
Albury Manor House
       ... Albury,
Alice Springs Plaza Hotel
       ... Alice Springs,
Alice Springs Resort
       ... Alice Springs,
All Seasons Gateway Resort
       ... Cairns,
All Seasons Geraldton
       ... Geraldton,
All Seasons Grande Florida
       ... Miami,
All Seasons Karratha
       ... Karratha,
All Seasons Katherine
       ... Katherine,
All Seasons Ki Ea
       ... Port Macquarie,
All Seasons Kingsgate Hotel
       ... Melbourne,
All Seasons Kununurra
       ... Kununurra,
All Seasons Oasis
       ... Alice Springs,
All Seasons Plaza Hotel
       ... Kalgoorlie,
All Seasons Sunshine Tower
       ... Cairns,
All Seasons Verona Hotel
       ... Mount Isa,
Aloft Boutique Accommodation
       ... Strahan,
Amora Hotel Jamison Sydney
       ... Sydney,
Amora Riverwalk Melbourne
       ... Melbourne,
Anacapri Holiday Resort Apartment
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Angsana Resort Spa Gbr
       ... Cairns,
Annam Suites Cascata
       ... Sydney,
Annam Suites Chatswood
       ... Sydney,
Apartment Hotel East Sydney
       ... Sydney,
Apartments Of South Yarra
       ... Melbourne,
Aqualuna Beach Resort
       ... Sapphire,
Artique Surfers Paradise
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Aspen Hotel Ultimo Sydney
       ... Ultimo,
Assured Ascot Quays Apartment H
       ... Ascot,
Assured Waterside Apartments
       ... South Perth,
Aston Apartments
       ... South Yarra,
Atherton Rain Forest Motor Inn
       ... Atherton,
Aurora Alice Springs
       ... Alice Springs,
Aurora Kakadu
       ... Kakadu Natl Park,
Azzura Greens Resort
       ... Hope Island,
Ballarat Mid City Motor Inn
       ... Ballarat,
Bargara Blue Resort
       ... Bargara,
Barossa Motor Lodge
       ... Tanunda,
Base St Kilda
       ... St Kilda,
Base Sydney
       ... Sydney,
Bay Lodge Apartments
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Bay Village Tropical Retreat
       ... Cairns,
Bayside Motel By Easystay
       ... St Kilda,
Bayview Boulevard Sydney
       ... Sydney,
Bayview Eden Melbourne
       ... Melbourne,
Bayview On The Park
       ... Melbourne,
Beach Club Resort
       ... Hamilton Island,
Beach Haven At Broadbeach
       ... Broadbeach,
Beachcomber Byron Bay
       ... Byron Bay,
Beachside Motor Inn
       ... Hervey Bay,
Beacon Point Ocean View Villas
       ... Apollo Bay,
Beau Monde International
       ... Doncaster,
Bellachara
       ... Gerringong,
Best Western Mill Park Mtr In
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western A Trappers Mtr
       ... Goulburn,
Best Western Abel Tasman
       ... Launceston,
Best Western Ace Motor Inn
       ... Albany,
Best Western Admiralty Motor
       ... Geelong,
Best Western Airport Hacienda
       ... Brisbane,
Best Western Airport Mtl Conve
       ... Attwood,
Best Western All Seasons Mtr
       ... Warrnambool,
Best Western All Settlers Mtr
       ... Tamworth,
Best Western Alpine Motor Inn
       ... Katoomba,
Best Western Ambassador Inn
       ... Wagga Wagga,
Best Western Ambassador Mtr
       ... Hervey Bay,
Best Western Applegum Inn
       ... Toowoomba,
Best Western Arcadia Gardens
       ... Cairns,
Best Western Ascot Lodge Motor
       ... Goondiwindi,
Best Western Ashfields
       ... Sydney,
Best Western Astor Metropole
       ... Brisbane,
Best Western Atlantis Hotel
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western Augusta Georgiana
       ... Augusta,
Best Western Azure Executive
       ... Sydney,
Best Western Bakery Hill Motel
       ... Ballarat,
Best Western Balan Village Mtl
       ... Bomaderry,
Best Western Ballarat Suites
       ... Ballarat,
Best Western Ballina Island
       ... Ballina,
Best Western Banjo Paterson
       ... Lakes Entrance,
Best Western Barkly Motor Ldg
       ... Ballarat,
Best Western Bass And Flinder
       ... Ulverstone,
Best Western Batchelor Resort
       ... Batchelor,
Best Western Beachfront Rst
       ... Bicheno,
Best Western Beechworth Mtr
       ... Beechworth,
Best Western Bega Downs Mtr
       ... Bega,
Best Western Blue Diamond Mtr
       ... Dubbo,
Best Western Blue Hills
       ... Hobart,
Best Western Boulevard Lodge
       ... Bundaberg,
Best Western Boulevard Motor
       ... Mildura,
Best Western Bridge View Motel
       ... Gorokan,
Best Western Broadbeach Trvl
       ... Broadbeach,
Best Western Broken Hill Oasis
       ... Broken Hill,
Best Western Brooklands
       ... Mornington,
Best Western Bundaberg City
       ... Bundaberg,
Best Western Bungil Creek Mtl
       ... Roma,
Best Western Burke And Wills
       ... Swan Hill,
Best Western Cairns
       ... Cairns,
Best Western Camelot Motel
       ... Gladstone,
Best Western Caravilla Motor
       ... Taree,
Best Western Casino Motor Inn
       ... Casino,
Best Western Castle Lodge Mtl
       ... Townsville,
Best Western Cathedral Motor
       ... Bendigo,
Best Western Cattle City Mtr
       ... Rockhampton,
Best Western Ceduna Foreshore
       ... Ceduna,
Best Western Central Motel
       ... Queanbeayn,
Best Western Centretown
       ... Goulburn,
Best Western Charles Sturt Mtr
       ... Wagga Wagga,
Best Western Ciloms Airport
       ... Tullamarine,
Best Western City Park Hotel
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western Coachmans Inn Mtl
       ... Bathurst,
Best Western Coastal Water
       ... Lakes Entrance,
Best Western Colonial Motel
       ... Richmond,
Best Western Colonial Motor
       ... Bairnsdale,
Best Western Colonial Palms
       ... Airlie Beach,
Best Western Cotswold Gardens
       ... Armidale,
Best Western Country
       ... Dalby,
Best Western Country Road
       ... Charters Towers,
Best Western Crystal Inn
       ... Bendigo,
Best Western Destiny Motor Inn
       ... Nambucca Heads,
Best Western Dragon Phoenix
       ... Moree,
Best Western Dunsborough Motel
       ... Dunsborough,
Best Western Early Australian
       ... Mildura,
Best Western El Toro Motor Inn
       ... Liverpool,
Best Western Emerald Hotel
       ... Perth,
Best Western Endeavour East
       ... Maitland,
Best Western Ensenada Motor
       ... Glenelg,
Best Western Fairway Motor Inn
       ... Merimbula,
Best Western Fawkner Airport
       ... Fawkner,
Best Western Garden City Hotel
       ... Canberra,
Best Western Garden Court Mtl
       ... Albury,
Best Western Golden Harvest
       ... Warwick,
Best Western Golden Sands Mtr
       ... Forster,
Best Western Gosford Motor Inn
       ... Gosford,
Best Western Governor Gipps
       ... Traralgon,
Best Western Grand Country Ldg
       ... Mittagong,
Best Western Great Ocean Road
       ... Port Campbell,
Best Western Halls Gap
       ... Halls Gap,
Best Western Harbour City Mtl
       ... Gladstone,
Best Western Harvest Lodge
       ... Gunnedah,
Best Western Heritage Motor
       ... Bendigo,
Best Western High Country Mtr
       ... Bright,
Best Western Hilltops Retreat
       ... Young,
Best Western Hospitality Inn
       ... Carnarvon,
Best Western Hospitality Inn
       ... Geraldton,
Best Western Hospitality Inn
       ... Kalgoorlie,
Best Western Hotel Stellar
       ... Sydney,
Best Western Hotel Unilodge
       ... Sydney,
Best Western Ipswich Heritage
       ... Ipswich,
Best Western Jika
       ... Fairfield,
Best Western Kalbarri Palm Rst
       ... Kalbarri,
Best Western Karratha Central
       ... Karratha,
Best Western Kimba Lodge Motel
       ... Maryborough,
Best Western Lake Inn
       ... Ballarat,
Best Western Lakeside Lodge
       ... Lismore,
Best Western Lazy Lizard Mtr
       ... Port Douglas,
Best Western Lidcombe Motor
       ... Sydney,
Best Western Limestone Coast
       ... Mount Gambier,
Best Western Lonsdale Motor
       ... Hamilton,
Best Western Lorne Coachman
       ... Lorne,
Best Western Lufra Hotel
       ... Eaglehawk Neck,
Best Western Macquarie Barrack
       ... Port Macquarie,
Best Western Madison Motor Inn
       ... Newcastle,
Best Western Mahoneys Motor
       ... Reservoir,
Best Western Mango House Rst
       ... Airly,
Best Western Melbournes
       ... Carlton North,
Best Western Melbourne's Princes ...
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western Meramie Motor Inn
       ... Albury,
Best Western Mitchell Motor
       ... Bairnsdale,
Best Western Moonraker Mtr Inn
       ... Parkes,
Best Western Moore Park Inn
       ... Armidale,
Best Western Motel Farrington
       ... Tumut,
Best Western Motel Monaro
       ... Kingston,
Best Western Murchison Lodge
       ... Burnie,
Best Western New Crossing
       ... Seymour,
Best Western Olde Maritime Mtr
       ... Warrnambool,
Best Western One Four Nelson
       ... Rye,
Best Western Orange Motor Ldg
       ... Orange,
Best Western Outrigger Resort
       ... Burleigh Heads,
Best Western Palm Court Mtr
       ... Port Macquarie,
Best Western Parklands Apt
       ... Canberra,
Best Western Parkside Motor
       ... Coffs Harbour,
Best Western Pemberton Hotel
       ... Pemberton,
Best Western Pine Tree Motel
       ... Katherine,
Best Western Pittsworth Motor
       ... Pittsworth,
Best Western Red Bridge Motor
       ... Nambour,
Best Western Reef Gateway Mtr
       ... Bundaberg,
Best Western Reef Resort
       ... Mackay,
Best Western Riverside
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western Riverside Hotel
       ... Launceston,
Best Western Sanctuary Inn
       ... Tamworth,
Best Western Sandown Heritage
       ... Noble Park,
Best Western Sea Breeze Resort
       ... Exmouth,
Best Western Southgate Motel
       ... Mount Gambier,
Best Western Stagecoach
       ... Wodonga,
Best Western Standpipe Golf
       ... Port Augusta,
Best Western Statesman Ararat
       ... Ararat,
Best Western Strzelecki Motor
       ... Traralgon,
Best Western Sundown Motel Rst
       ... Canberra,
Best Western Sunnybank Star
       ... Eight Mile Plains,
Best Western Sunseeker Motor
       ... Batemans Bay,
Best Western Swan Hill Resort
       ... Swan Hill,
Best Western Tamworth Motor
       ... Tamworth,
Best Western Taree Motor Inn
       ... Taree,
Best Western Taylors Lakes
       ... Taylors Lake,
Best Western The Buckingham
       ... Highett,
Best Western The Carrington
       ... Shepparton,
Best Western The Clifton
       ... Bunbury,
Best Western The Lakesway Mtr
       ... Forster,
Best Western The Tudor-box Hill
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western Top Of The Town
       ... Inverell,
Best Western Torrington Holida
       ... Coffs Harbour Sw,
Best Western Townview Motel
       ... Mount Isa,
Best Western Travel Inn Hotel
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western Tudor Motor Inn
       ... Warrnambool,
Best Western Twin Towers Inn
       ... Artarmon,
Best Western Wanderlight Mtr
       ... Mudgee,
Best Western Warby Lodge Mtr
       ... Wangaratta,
Best Western Warners Bay
       ... Warners Bay,
Best Western Warragul Motel
       ... Warragul,
Best Western Werribee Park
       ... Werribee,
Best Western Wesley Lodge
       ... Sydney,
Best Western Wheelers Hill
       ... Melbourne,
Best Western Wine Country Mtr
       ... Cessnock,
Best Western Wyndhamere Motel
       ... Shepparton,
Best Western Yamba Beach Motel
       ... Yamba,
Best Western Zebra Motel
       ... Coffs Harbour,
Blacktown Travelodge
       ... Blacktown,
Blackwood Cottages
       ... Marysville,
Bloomfield
       ... Cairns,
Blue Lagoon Resort
       ... Trinity Beach,
Blue Sydney - A Taj Hotel
       ... Woolloomooloo,
Brassey Of Canberra
       ... Barton,
Breakfree Aanuka Resort
       ... Coffs Harbour,
Breakfree Acapulco Resort
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Breakfree Beachpoint
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Breakfree Capital Tower Canberr
       ... Canberra,
Breakfree Caribbean Resort
       ... Mooloolaba,
Breakfree French Quarter Resor
       ... Noosa Heads,
Breakfree Longbeach Resort
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Breakfree Maldives Resort
       ... Gold Coast,
Breakfree Neptune Resort
       ... Broadbeach,
Breakfree Noosa International
       ... Noosa Heads,
Breakfree Ocean Breeze Resort
       ... Noosa Heads,
Breakfree On George Sydney
       ... Sydney,
Breakfree Paradise Centre Rst
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Breakfree Paradise Island Rst
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Breakfree Paridso Resort
       ... Kingscliffe,
Breakfree Peninsula Resort
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Breakfree Portsea Resort
       ... Port Douglas,
Breakfree Reef Club Resort
       ... Port Douglas,
Breakfree Royal Harbour
       ... Cairns,
Breakfree Surfers Plaza Resor
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Brighton Savoy
       ... Brighton,
Brisbane Riverview Hotel
       ... Brisbane,
Broadwater Pagoda Resort Hotel
       ... Como,
Broadwater Resort Apartments
       ... Como,
Bronte Guesthouse
       ... Morpeth,
Budds Beach Apartments
       ... Surfers Paradise,
Burrawang West Station
       ... Ootha,
Buxton Manor
       ... Adelaide,
Bw Acacia Court Htl
       ... Cairns,
Bw Alexander Motor Inn
       ... Whyalla,
Bw Balmoral Motor Inn
       ... Hobart,
Bw Cascade Motor Inn
       ... Rosslea,
Bw Central Plaza Apt Cairns
       ... Cairns,
Bw Cervantes Pinnacles Motel
       ... Cervantes,
Bw Chaffey Intl Motor Inn
       ... Mildura,
Bw Coachman S Rest Mtr Inn
       ... Eden,
Bw Frankston International
       ... Frankston,
Bw Gregory Terrace Brisbane
       ... Brisbane,
Bw Heritage Motor Inn
       ... Corowa,
Bw La Trobe At Beechworth
       ... Beechworth,
Bw Motel Warrnambool
       ... Warrnambool,
Bw Pevensey Motor Lodge
       ... Echuca,
Bw Tall Trees Motel
       ... Canberra,
Bw Travellers Motor Village
       ... Mayfield West,
Bw Travellers Rest Motor Inn
       ... Swan Hill,
Bw Tropical Wanderer Resort
       ... Rockhampton,
Cable Beach Club Resort
       ... Broome,
Cairns Beach Resort
       ... Cairns,
Cairns Colonial Club Resort
       ... Cairns,
Cairns International Hotel
       ... Cairns,
Cairns Plaza Hotel
       ... Cairns,
Cairns Queens Court
       ... Cairns,
Cairns Queenslander
       ... Cairns,
California Hotel Hawthorn
       ... Hawthorm,


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Map of Australia Australia Flag of Australia
   Introduction   Geography   People   Government   Economy   Communications   Transportation   Military   Transnational Issues  

Australia    Introduction Top of Page
Background: Australia became a commonwealth of the British Empire in 1901. It was able to take advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef. A referendum to change Australia's status, from a commonwealth headed by the British monarch to an independent republic, was defeated in 1999.
Australia    Geography Top of Page
Location: Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean
Geographic coordinates: 27 00 S, 133 00 E
Map references: Oceania
Area: total:  7,686,850 sq km

land:  7,617,930 sq km

water:  68,920 sq km

note:  includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than the contiguous 48 states of the US
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 25,760 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone:  24 NM

continental shelf:  200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin

exclusive economic zone:  200 NM

territorial sea:  12 NM
Climate: generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
Terrain: mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast
Elevation extremes: lowest point:  Lake Eyre -15 m

highest point:  Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
Natural resources: bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum
Land use: arable land:  6%

permanent crops:  0%

permanent pastures:  54%

forests and woodland:  19%

other:  21% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 21,070 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: cyclones along the coast; severe droughts
Environment - current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources
Environment - international agreements: party to:  Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:  Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography - note: world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as "the Doctor" occurs along the west coast in the summer
Australia    People Top of Page
Population: 19,357,594 (July 2001 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years:  20.64% (male 2,045,892; female 1,948,949)

15-64 years:  66.86% (male 6,538,096; female 6,405,014)

65 years and over:  12.5% (male 1,059,107; female 1,360,536) (2001 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.99% (2001 est.)
Birth rate: 12.86 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Death rate: 7.18 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Net migration rate: 4.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth:  1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:  1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:  1.02 male(s)/female

65 years and over:  0.78 male(s)/female

total population:  0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 4.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population:  79.87 years

male:  77.02 years

female:  82.87 years (2001 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.77 children born/woman (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.15% (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 14,000 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 100 (1999 est.)
Nationality: noun:  Australian(s)

adjective:  Australian
Ethnic groups: Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%
Religions: Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%, non-Christian 11%
Languages: English, native languages
Literacy: definition:  age 15 and over can read and write

total population:  100%

male:  100%

female:  100% (1980 est.)
Australia    Government Top of Page
Country name: conventional long form:  Commonwealth of Australia

conventional short form:  Australia
Government type: democratic, federal-state system recognizing the British monarch as sovereign
Capital: Canberra
Administrative divisions: 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
Dependent areas: Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island
Independence: 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies)
National holiday: Australia Day, 26 January (1788)
Constitution: 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Legal system: based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch: chief of state:  Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Rev. Peter HOLLINGSWORTH (since 29 June 2001)

head of government:  Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister John ANDERSON (since NA)

cabinet:  Cabinet selected from among the members of Federal Parliament by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister

elections:  none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general for a three-year term

note:  government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party
Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the two territories; one-half of the members elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (148 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve three-year terms; no state can have fewer than five representatives)

elections:  Senate - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001); House of Representatives - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001)

election results:  Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 35, Australian Labor Party 29, Australian Democratic Party 9, Green Party 1, One Nation Party 1, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 80, Australian Labor Party 67, independent 1
Judicial branch: High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general)
Political parties and leaders: Australian Democratic Party [Meg LEES]; Australian Labor Party [Kim BEAZLEY]; Green Party [Bob BROWN]; Liberal Party [John Winston HOWARD]; National Party [John ANDERSON]; One Nation Party [Pauline HANSON]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Australian Democratic Labor Party (anti-Communist Labor Party splinter group); Peace and Nuclear Disarmament Action (Nuclear Disarmament Party splinter group)
International organization participation: ANZUS, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMEE, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission:  Ambassador Michael THAWLEY

chancery:  1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

telephone:  [1] (202) 797-3000

FAX:  [1] (202) 797-3168

consulate(s) general:  Atlanta, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission:  Ambassador Edward W. GNEHM, Jr.

embassy:  Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600

mailing address:  APO AP 96549

telephone:  [61] (02) 6214-5600

FAX:  [61] (02) 6214-5970

consulate(s) general:  Sydney

consulate(s):  Melbourne and Perth
Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four, larger, seven-pointed stars
Australia    Economy Top of Page
Economy - overview: Australia has a prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the four dominant West European economies. Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, minerals, metals, and fossil fuels. Commodities account for 57% of the value of total exports, so that a downturn in world commodity prices can have a big impact on the economy. The government is pushing for increased exports of manufactured goods, but competition in international markets continues to be severe. While Australia has suffered from the low growth and high unemployment characterizing the OECD countries in the early 1990s and during the recent financial problems in East Asia, the economy has expanded at a solid 4% annual growth pace in the last five years. Canberra's emphasis on reforms is a key factor behind the economy's resilience to the regional crisis and its stronger than expected growth rate. Growth in 2001 will depend on key international commodity prices, the extent of recovery in nearby Asian economies, and the strength of US and European markets.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $445.8 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.7% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $23,200 (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture:  3%

industry:  26%

services:  71% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%:  2%

highest 10%:  25.4% (1994)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.4% (2000 est.)
Labor force: 9.5 million (December 1999)
Labor force - by occupation: services 73%, industry 22%, agriculture 5% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 6.4% (2000)
Budget: revenues:  $94 billion

expenditures:  $103 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)
Industries: mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel
Industrial production growth rate: 1.5% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 191.727 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel:  89.93%

hydro:  8.36%

nuclear:  0%

other:  1.71% (1999)
Electricity - consumption: 178.306 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1999)
Agriculture - products: wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry
Exports: $69 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Exports - commodities: coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment
Exports - partners: Japan 19%, EU 14%, ASEAN 12%, US 9%, South Korea, NZ, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China (1999)
Imports: $77 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products
Imports - partners: EU 24%, US 22%, Japan 14%, ASEAN 13% (1999)
Debt - external: $220.6 billion (2000)
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $1.43 billion (FY97/98)
Currency: Australian dollar (AUD)
Currency code: AUD
Exchange rates: Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996)
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June
Australia    Communications Top of Page
Telephones - main lines in use: 9.58 million (1998)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 6.4 million (1998)
Telephone system: general assessment:  excellent domestic and international service

domestic:  domestic satellite system; much use of radiotelephone in areas of low population density; rapid growth of mobile cellular telephones

international:  submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions) (1998)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 25.5 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 104 (1997)
Televisions: 10.15 million (1997)
Internet country code: .au
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 264 (2000)
Internet users: 7.77 million (2000)
Australia    Transportation Top of Page
Railways: total:  33,819 km (2,540 km electrified)

broad gauge:  3,719 km 1.600-m gauge

standard gauge:  15,422 km 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge:  14,506 km 1.067-m gauge

dual gauge:  172 km NA gauges (1999)
Highways: total:  913,000 km

paved:  353,331 km (including 1,363 km of expressways)

unpaved:  559,669 km (1996)
Waterways: 8,368 km (mainly used by small, shallow-draft craft)
Pipelines: crude oil 2,500 km; petroleum products 500 km; natural gas 5,600 km
Ports and harbors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Devonport (Tasmania), Fremantle, Geelong, Hobart (Tasmania), Launceston (Tasmania), Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney, Townsville
Merchant marine: total:  54 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,558,371 GRT/2,038,776 DWT

ships by type:  bulk 26, cargo 3, chemical tanker 5, container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 6 (2000 est.)
Airports: 411 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total:  271

over 3,047 m:  10

2,438 to 3,047 m:  12

1,524 to 2,437 m:  118

914 to 1,523 m:  122

under 914 m:  9 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total:  140

1,524 to 2,437 m:  17

914 to 1,523 m:  112

under 914 m:  11 (2000 est.)
Australia    Military Top of Page
Military branches: Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force
Military manpower - military age: 17 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49:  4,990,107 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49:  4,303,966 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males:  138,971 (2001 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $6.9 billion (FY98/99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.9% (FY98/99)
Australia    Transnational Issues Top of Page
Disputes - international: territorial claim in Antarctica (Australian Antarctic Territory)
Illicit drugs: Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate


WikiPedia Information About Australia

Information from the WikiPedia.Com Website for Australia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Export/Australia
/_TheTownGuide/Index_Layout_Leaders_wiki_Process.xsl

{{About
the country}} {{pp-move-indef}} {{pp-semi-indef
small=yes}} {{Infobox Country
native_name = Australia
conventional_long_name = Commonwealth of Australia
common_name = Australia
image_flag = Flag_of_Australia.svg
image_coat = Australian_Coat_of_Arms.png
image_map = Australia (orthographic projection).svg
map_width = 220px
national_anthem = ''Advance Australia Fair''{{ref
anthem explanation
N1}}
official_languages = None{{ref
official languages
N2}}
languages_type = National language
languages = Australian English
English (de facto){{ref
official languages
N2}}
capital = Canberra
largest_city = Sydney
government_type = Federalism
Federal parliamentary system
parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy, ''see Government of Australia''
leader_title1 = Monarchy of Australia
Monarch
leader_title2 = Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General
leader_title3 = Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister
leader_name1 = Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Queen Elizabeth II
leader_name2 = Quentin Bryce
leader_name3 = Kevin Rudd
area_rank = 6th
area_magnitude = 1 E12
area_km2 = 7617930
percent_water =
population_estimate = {{formatnum:{{#expr: 22101244 + (86400 / 71) * {{Age in days
2010
1
3}} round 0}}}}{{cite web
url=http://www& #46abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad4 45ff1425ca25682000192af2/1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63?OpenDocument
title=Population clock
publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics
accessdate=3 January 2010}} The population estimate shown is automatically calculated daily at 00:00 UTC and is based on data obtained from the population clock on the date shown in the citation.
population_estimate_year = {{CURRENTYEAR}}
population_estimate_rank = 51st
population_census = 19,855,288{{Census 2006 AUS
id=0
name=Australia
accessdate=2008-10-14
quick=on}}
population_census_year = 2006
population_density_km2 = 2뛱
population_density_rank = 232nd
sovereignty_type = Independence
sovereignty_note = from the United Kingdom
established_event1 = Constitution of Australia
Constitution
established_event2 = Statute of Westminster 1931
Statute of Westminster
established_event3 = Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942
Statute of Westminster Adoption Act
established_event4 = Australia Act 1986
Australia Act
established_date1 = 1 January 1901
established_date2 = 11 December 1931
established_date3 = 9 October 1942 (with effect from 3 September 1939)
established_date4 = 3 March 1986
currency = Australian dollar
currency_code = AUD
time_zone = Time in Australia
various{{ref
time
N3}}
utc_offset = +8 to +10Ǒ
time_zone_DST = Time in Australia
various{{ref
time
N3}}
utc_offset_DST = +8 to +11Ǒ
demonym = Australian,
Aussie{{cite web
url=http://geography.about.com/library/weekly/aa030900a.htm
title=Demonyms – Names of Nationalities
publisher=about.com
accessdate=2008-07-23}}{{cite web
url=http://www.geograph y-site.co.uk/pages/countries/demonyms.html
title=Demonyms, or what do you call a person from ...
publisher=The Geography Site
accessdate=2008-07-25}} (colloquial)
drives_on = left
cctld = .au
calling_code = +61
ISO_3166-1_alpha2 = AU
ISO_3166-1_alpha3 = AUS
ISO_3166-1_numeric = 036
sport_code = AUS
vehicle_code = AUS
GDP_PPP_year = 2008
GDP_PPP = $799돦 billion{{cite web
url=htt p://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2009/0 2/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2006&ey=2009&scsm=1& ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=193&s=NGDPD%2CN GDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=53&pr.y=11
title=Australia
publisher=International Monetary Fund
accessdate=2009-10-01}}
GDP_PPP_rank = 18th
GDP_PPP_per_capita = $36,918
GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 15th
GDP_nominal = $1뎽 trillion
GDP_nominal_rank = 14th
GDP_nominal_year = 2008
GDP_nominal_per_capita = $46,824
GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 13th
HDI_year = 2007
HDI = {{increase}} 0띺[http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2009_EN_Complete.pdf Human Development Report 2009].

The United Nations.

Retrieved 5 October 2009.
HDI_rank = 2nd
HDI_category = very high }} '''Australia''' ({{pron-en
?'stre?lj?}} {{respell
?
STRAYL
y?}} or {{IPA-en
?'stre?lj?
}} {{respell
o
STRAYL
y?}},{{cite book
title = Macquarie ABC Dictionary
publisher = The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd
year = 2003
page = 56
isbn = 0 876429 37 2}} or {{IPA-en
??'stre?li?
}} {{respell
aw
STRAY
lee-?}}), officially the '''Commonwealth of Australia''', is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent)
Australian continent (the world's smallest),{{cite web
url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/43654/Australia
title=Australia
publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica
accessdate=2009-08-22}} "Smallest continent and sixth largest country (in area) on Earth, lying between the Pacific and Indian oceans."{{cite web
url=http:/ /travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/continents/index.html
title=Continents: What is a Continent?
publisher=National Geographic Society
accessdate=2009-08-22}} "Most people recognize seven continents—Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia, from largest to smallest—although sometimes Europe and Asia are considered a single continent, Eurasia." the island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia
smaller islands in the Indian Ocean
Indian and Pacific Oceans.{{ref
Southern Ocean
N4}} Neighbouring countries include Indonesia, East Timor, and Papua New Guinea to the north, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia to the north-east, and New Zealand to the southeast.

For some 40,000 years before European settlement commenced in the late 18th century, the Australian mainland and Tasmania were inhabited by around 250 individual nations''First Australians'' Documentary (Episode 1), Special Broadcasting Service, Australia, 2008. of indigenous Aust ralians.[http://news.softpedia.com/ news/Both-Aborigines-and-Europeans-Rooted-in-Africa-54225.shtml Both Australian Aborigines and Europeans Rooted in Africa – 50,000 years ago]. After sporadic visits by fishermen from the immediate north, and European discovery by Dutch people
Dutch explorers in 1606,MacKnight, CC (1976).

''The Voyage to Marege: Macassan Trepangers in Northern Australia''.

Melbourne University Press. the eastern half of Australia was claimed by the Kingdom of Great Britain
British in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales, founded on 26 January 1788.

The population grew steadily in the following years; the continent was explored, and during the 19th century another five largely Self-governance
self-governing British overseas territories
Crown Colonies were established. On 1 January 1901 the six colonies Federation of Australia
became a federation and the Commonwealth of Australia was formed.

Since Federation, Australia has maintained a stable Liberal democracy
liberal democratic political system and remains a Commonwealth realm.

The population is 22 million, with approximately 60% concentrated in and around the mainland state capitals of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Western Australia
Perth and Adelaide.

The nation's capital city is Canberra, located in the Australian Capital Territory. Australia is a prosperous developed country, with a multicultural society.

It ranks highly in many international comparisons of national performance such as human development, quality of life, health care, life expectancy, public education, economic freedom and the protection of civil liberties and political rights.{{cite web
url=http://www.worldaudit.org/countries/australia.htm
title=Australia: World Audit Democracy Profile
work=WorldAudit.org
accessdate=2008-01-05}} Australian cities rank among the world's highest in terms of cultural offerings and quality of life.

It is a member of the United Nations, G20, Commonwealth of Nations, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
OECD, ANZUS, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
APEC, South Pacific Forum and the World Trade Organization.

Etymology

The name ''List of country name etymologies#A#Australia
Australia'' is derived from the Latin ''australis'', meaning "southern".

Legends of an "unknown land of the south" (''Terra Australis
terra australis incognita'') date back to Roman times and were commonplace in medieval geography but were not based on any documented knowledge of the continent.

The first recorded use of the word ''Australia'' in English was in 1625 in "A note of Australia del Espíritu Santo, written by Master Hakluyt" and published by Samuel Purchas in ''Hakluytus Posthumus''.Purchas, vol.

iv, pp.

1422–32, 1625.

This appears to be variation of the original Spanish "Austrialia" [''sic''].[http://www.hispanicfiesta.com.au/pics/pdf_mag_2004/42.PDF] A copy at the Library of Congress can be read online [http://memory.loc.gov/service/rbc/rbdk/d0404/02951422.jpg]. The Dutch adjectival form ''Australische'' was used by Dutch East India Company officials in Jakarta
Batavia to refer to the newly discovered land to the south in 1638.

''Australia'' was used in a 1693 translation of ''Les Aventures de Jacques Sadeur dans la Découverte et le Voyage de la Terre Australe'', a 1676 French novel by Gabriel de Foigny under the pen-name Jacques Sadeur.Sidney J.

Baker, ''The Australian Language'', second edition, 1966. Alexander Dalrymple then used it in ''An Historical Collection of Voyages and Discoveries in the South Pacific Ocean'' (1771), to refer to the entire South Pacific region.

In 1793, George Shaw and James Edward Smith
Sir James Smith published ''Zoology and Botany of New Holland'', in which they wrote of "the vast island, or rather continent, of Australia, Australasia or New Holland (Australia)
New Holland".{{cite book
last=Ferguson
first=John Alexander
title=Bibliography of Australia: 1784–1830
publisher= National Library Australia
year=1975
edition=reprint
volume=1
page=77
isbn=0642990441
url=http://books.google.com.au /books?id=KQzgC-xeQkIC&pg=PA77&lpg=PA77&dq=Zoolog y+and+Botany+of+New+Holland&source=web&ots=Rt9asD SfDw&sig=4qHuJ8P6f_tFSp6AuH9WkhbdflE&hl=en&ei=Tty QSaqwEIm9kAXwouTwCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=7&ct=result}} It also appeared on a 1799 chart by James Wilson.{{cite book
first = Miriam
last = Estensen
year = 2002
title = The Life of Matthew Flinders
publisher = Allen & Unwin
isbn = 1-74114 152 4
page = 354}} File:Flinders View of Port Jackson taken from South Head.jpg
thumb
240px
Artist's rendition of Port Jackson, the site where Sydney was established, viewed from the South Head.

(From ''A Voyage to Terra Australis''.)The name ''Australia'' was popularised by Matthew Flinders who, as early as 1804, pushed for the name to be formally adopted.

When preparing his manuscript and charts for his 1814 ''A Voyage to Terra Australis'' he was persuaded by his patron, Joseph Banks
Sir Joseph Banks, to use the term ''Terra Australis'' as this was the name most familiar to the public.

Flinders did so, but allowed himself the footnote: {{quote
"Had I permitted myself any innovation on the original term, it would have been to convert it to Australia; as being more agreeable to the ear, and an assimilation to the names of the other great portions of the earth."{{cite book
first = Matthew
last = Flinder
year = 1814
title = A Voyage to Terra Australis}}}} This is the only occurrence of the word ''Australia'' in that text; but in Appendix III, Robert Brown (botanist)
Robert Brown's ''General remarks, geographical and systematical, on the botany of Terra Australis'', Brown makes use of the adjectival form ''Australian'' throughout,{{cite book
editor = J.

J.

Bennett
year = 1866–68
title = The Miscellaneous Botanical Works of Robert Brown, Esq., D.C.L., F.R.S.


volume = 2
chapter = General remarks, geographical and systematical, on the botany of Terra Australis
pages = 1–89}} this being the first known use of that form.{{cite book
first = David
last = Mabberley
year = 1985
title = Jupiter botanicus: Robert Brown of the British Museum
publisher = British Museum (Natural History)
isbn = 3-7682-1408-7}} Despite popular conception, the book was not instrumental in the adoption of the name: the name came gradually to be accepted over the following ten years.Estensen p.

450. Lachlan Macquarie, a Governor of New South Wales, subsequently used the word in his dispatches to England, and on 12 December 1817 recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted.Weekend Australian, 30–31 December 2000, p.

16 In 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as ''Australia''. The word ''Australia'' in Australian English is pronounced {{IPA
Australian English phonology
[?'st?æ?lj?, -li?]}}.Australian pronunciations: ''Macquarie Dictionary
Macquarie Dictionary, Fourth Edition'' (2005).

Melbourne, The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd.

ISBN 1-876429-14-3. Since early in the 20th century, the country has been sometimes referred to locally and internationally as ''Oz''.{{ref
Oss
N5}} ''Aussie'' is common colloquially as an adjective and also as a noun referring to an Australian.{{ref
Oz
N6}}

History

{{Main
History of Australia}} Human habitation of Australia is estimated to have begun between 42,000 and 48,000 years agoGillespie, R.

(2002).

Dating the first Australians.

''Radiocarbon'' 44:455–72; {{cite web
url=http://www.ingentaconnect.com/c ontent/arizona/rdc/2002/00000044/00000002/art00004
title=Dating the First Australians
publisher=Ingenta
accessdate=2008-03-18}} possibly with the migration of people by land bridges and short sea-crossings from what is now Southeast Asia.

These first Australians may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians.

At the time of European settlement in the 18th century, most Indigenous Australians were hunter-gatherers, with a complex oral tradition
oral culture and spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the Dreamtime.

The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, were originally horticulturalists and hunter-gatherers.

File:Endeavour replica in Cooktown harbour.jpg
left
thumb
A replica of Lieutenant Cook's ship HMS Endeavour
HM Bark ''Endeavour'' in Cooktown, Queensland
Cooktown Harbour The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent both belong to the Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon.

He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula on an unknown date in early 1606.

On 26 February 1606, he made landfall at the Pennefather River on the western shore of Cape York, near the modern town of Weipa, Queensland
Weipa.

During the 17th century the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines of what they called New Holland but made no attempt at settlement.

In 1770 James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast of Australia, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain.{{cite web
author=RJW
url=http://www.know-britain.com/general/commonwealth.html
title=The Birth of the Commonwealth of Nations
publisher=Know-britain.com
date=2004-03-29
accessdate=2009-10-07}} Cook's discoveries prepared the way for establishment of a new penal colony.

The British British overseas territories
Crown Colony of New South Wales began a settlement at Port Jackson by Captain Arthur Phillip on 26 January 1788.

This date was later to become Australia's National Day
national day, Australia Day.

Van Diemen's Land, now known as Tasmania, was settled in 1803 and became a separate colony in 1825.

The United Kingdom formally claimed the western part of Australia in 1829.

Separate colonies were created from parts of New South Wales: South Australia in 1836, Victoria (Australia)
Victoria in 1851, and Queensland in 1859.

The Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia.

South Australia was founded as a "free province"—that is, it was never a penal colony.

Victoria and Western Australia were also founded "free" but later accepted transported convicts.[http://www.a ccess.prov.vic.gov.au/public/PROVguides/PROVguide057/PROVguide057.jsp Convict Records] Public Record office of Victoria; [http://www&# 46sro.wa.gov.au/collection/convict.asp State Records Office of Western Australia]. The transportation of convicts in Australia
convicts to the colony of New South Wales ceased in 1848 after a campaign by the settlers.[http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs%40.nsf/0/A890E87A9AB97424CA2569DE0025C18B?Open Australian Bureau of Statistics 1998 Special Article]—The State of New South Wales. File:Port Arthur Seeseite.jpg
thumb
240px
alt=A calm body of water is in the foreground.

The shoreline is about 200 metres away.

To the left, close to the shore, are three tall gum trees; behind them on an incline are a the ruins of part of the goal, including walls and watchtowers of light-coloured stone and brick, and grassed areas.

To the right lies the outer wall of a large rectangular four-storey building dotted with regularly spaced windows.

Forested land rises gently to a peak several kilometres back from the shore.
Port Arthur, Tasmania was Australia's largest gaol for transported convicts. The Indigenous Australian population, estimated at 350,000 at the time of European settlement,Smith, L.

(1980), The Aboriginal Population of Australia, Australian National University Press, Canberra. declined steeply for 150 years following settlement, mainly because of infectious disease.{{cite encyclopedia
title=Smallpox Through History
url=http://encarta. msn.com/media_701508643/Smallpox_Through_History.html
work=
archiveurl=http://www&# 46webcitation.org/query?id=1257008292443871
archivedate=2009-10-31
deadurl=yes}} The "Stolen Generations" (removal of Aboriginal children from their families), which historians such as Henry Reynolds (historian)
Henry Reynolds have argued could be considered genocide by some definitions,{{cite web
url = http://ww w.aiatsis.gov.au/rsrch/rsrch_dp/genocide.htm
title = Genocide in Australia
accessdate = 2007-09-13
last = Tatz
first = Colin
year = 1999
work = AIATSIS Research Discussion Papers No 8
publisher = Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
archiveurl = http://web .archive.org/web/20050808002313/http://www& #46aiatsis.gov.au/rsrch/rsrch_dp/genocide.htm
archivedate = 2005-08-08}} may have contributed to the decline in the indigenous population.Bain Attwood, ''Telling the Truth about Aboriginal History.'' (2005) [http://ww w.questia.com/read/109251500?title=Telling%20the%20Truth%20about%20Aboriginal%20History online edition]. Such interpretations of Aboriginal history are disputed by some conservative commentators, such as former Prime Minister John Howard
Howard, as being exaggerated or fabricated for political or ideological reasons.

This debate is known within Australia as the History Wars.

Following the Australian referendum, 1967 (Aboriginals)
1967 referendum, the Federal government gained the power to implement policies and make laws with respect to Aborigines.

Traditional ownership of land—native title—was not recognised until 1992, when the High Court of Australia
High Court case ''Mabo v Queensland (No 2)'' overturned the notion of Australia as ''terra nullius'' (literally "no one's land") at the time of European occupation.

File:Anzac2.jpg
thumb
The Last Post is played at an ANZAC Day ceremony in Port Melbourne, Victoria.

Similar ceremonies are held in most suburbs and towns. A gold rush began in Australia in the early 1850s, and the Eureka Stockade rebellion against mining licence fees in 1854 was an early expression of civil disobedience.

Between 1855 and 1890, the six colonies individually gained responsible government, managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire.

The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs, defence, and international shipping.

On 1 January 1901, Federation of Australia
federation of the colonies was achieved after a decade of planning, consultation, and voting.

The Commonwealth of Australia was born and it became a dominion of the British Empire in 1907.

The Federal Capital Territory (later renamed the Australian Capital Territory) was formed from a part of New South Wales in 1911 to provide a location for the proposed new federal capital of Canberra.

(Melbourne was the temporary seat of government from 1901 to 1927 while Canberra was being constructed.) The Northern Territory was transferred from the control of the South Australian government to the Commonwealth in 1911.{{cite book
url= http://books.google.com/books?id=-embDa-x6M wC&pg=PA5&lpg=PA5&dq=australia+northern+territory +1911+transferred+commonwealth&source=bl&ots=QRTg SGB-CR&sig=kJ55dxbto4UNMbXbJHncxDma5Wk&hl=en&ei=m 4rKSofrIIitlAeB1aSSAw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=resu lt&resnum=4#v=onepage&q=australia%20northern%20te rritory%201911%20transferred%20commonwealth&f=false
title=Official year book of the Commonwealth of Australia – Google Books
publisher=Books.google.com
year=1957
accessdate=2009-10-07}} In 1914 Australia joined Britain in fighting World War I, with support from both the outgoing Liberal Party and the incoming Labor Party.Stuart Macintyre, ''The Oxford History of Australia: vol 4'' (1986), p.

142; C.

Bean Ed.

(1941).

[http://www.awm.gov.au/histories/ww1/1/index.asp Volume I – The Story of Anzac: the first phase], First World War Official Histories, Eleventh Edition. The Australians took part in many of the major battles fought on the Western Front (World War I)
Western Front.{{cite web
url = http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/ww1.htm
title = First World War 1914–1918
publisher = Australian War Memorial
accessdate = 2006-12-05 }} Many Australians regard the defeat of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) at Gallipoli Campaign
Gallipoli as the birth of the nation—its first major military action.Macintyre, 151–3; Liz Reed, '' Bigger than Gallipoli: war, history, and memory in Australia?'' (2004) [http://books.google.com/books? id=6cCyUtp3SnwC&printsec=frontcover&dq=gallipoli+ intitle:australia&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&a s_miny_is=1980&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&num=30&as_brr=3&as_pt=ALLTYPES#PPA5,M1 p.

5 online]. The Kokoda Track campaign is regarded by many as an analogous nation-defining event during World War II.Hank Nelson, "Gallipoli, Kokoda and the Making of National Identity", ''Journal of Australian Studies,'' (1997) v.

53#1 pp.

148–160 [http:// www.api-network.com/main/pdf/scholars/jas53_nelson.pdf online edition]. File:Kaiapit flags 057510.jpg
thumb
170px
Australian soldiers display Japanese flags they captured at Battle of Kaiapit
Kaiapit, New Guinea in 1943. Britain's Statute of Westminster 1931 formally ended most of the constitutional links between Australia and the UK.

Australia Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942
adopted it in 1942, but backdated it to the beginning of World War II to confirm the validity of legislation passed by the Australian Parliament during the war.

The shock of the UK's defeat in Asia in 1942 and the Military history of Australia during World War II#Defence of Australia
threat of Japanese invasion caused Australia to turn to the United States as a new ally and protector.

Since 1951, Australia has been a formal military ally of the US, under the ANZUS treaty.

After World War II, Australia encouraged immigration from Europe; since the 1970s and the abolition of the White Australia policy, immigration from Asia and elsewhere was also encouraged.

As a result, Australia's demography, culture, and self-image have been transformed.

The final constitutional ties between Australia and the UK were severed with the passing of the Australia Act 1986, ending any British role in the government of the Australian States, and ending judicial appeals to the UK Privy council
Privy Council.[http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/aa1986114/index.html Australia Act text]. At the Australian republic referendum, 1999
1999 referendum, 54% of Australian voters rejected a proposal to become a republic with a president appointed by two-thirds vote of both houses of the Australian Parliament.

Since the election of the Gough Whitlam
Whitlam Government in 1972, there has been an increasing focus on the expansion of ties with other Pacific Rim nations while maintaining close ties with Australia's traditional allies and trading partners.

Politics

{{Main
Government of Australia
Politics of Australia
Monarchy in Australia}} File:Parliament House Canberra Dusk Panorama.jpg
thumb
Parliament House, Canberra
Parliament House, Canberra was opened in 1988, replacing the Old Parliament House, Canberra
provisional Parliament House building opened in 1927. The Commonwealth of Australia is a constitutional democracy based on a federalism
federal division of powers.

The form of government used in Australia is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government.

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of Australia, a role that is distinct from her position as monarch of the other Commonwealth realms.

The Queen is represented by the Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General at federal level and by the Governors at state level.

Although the Constitution of Australia
Constitution gives extensive executive (government)
executive powers to the Governor-General, these are normally exercised only on the advice of the Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister.

The most notable exercise of the Governor-General's reserve powers outside the Prime Minister's direction was the dismissal of the Whitlam Government in the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis
constitutional crisis of 1975.Parliamentary Library (1997).

[http://www.a ph.gov.au/library/pubs/rn/1997-98/98rn25.htm The Reserve Powers of the Governor-General]. There are Separation of powers
three branches of government: *The legislature: the Parliament of Australia
Commonwealth Parliament, comprising the Queen, the Senate, and the House of Representatives; the Queen is represented by the Governor-General, who by convention acts on the advice of his or her Ministers.[http:// www.gg.gov.au/governorgeneral/category.php?id=2 Website of Governor-General] *The executive: the Federal Executive Council (the Governor-General as advised by the Executive Councillors); in practice, the councillors are the Prime Minister and Ministers of State.

{{Citation needed
date=June 2009}} *The judiciary: the High Court of Australia and other Australian court hierarchy
federal courts.

Appeals from Australian courts to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the United Kingdom ceased when the ''Australia Act 1986
Australia Act of 1986'' was passed.[http://www.servat.unibe.ch/icl/as02000_.html Australia Act 1986] File:Government House Canberra.JPG
thumb
left
Government House, Canberra
The official residence of the Governor-General of Australia The bicameralism
bicameral Commonwealth Parliament consists of the Queen, the Australian Senate
Senate (the upper house) of 76 senators, and a Australian House of Representatives
House of Representatives (the lower house) of 150 members.

Members of the lower house are elected from single-member constituencies, commonly known as "electorates" or "seats", allocated to states on the basis of population, with each original state guaranteed a minimum of five seats.

In the Senate, each state is represented by twelve senators, and each of the territories (the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory) by two.

Elections for both chambers are normally held every three years, simultaneously; senators have overlapping six-year terms, since only half of places in the Senate are put to each election unless the cycle is interrupted by a double dissolution.

Although the Prime Minister is appointed by the Governor-General, in practice the party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms government and its leader becomes Prime Minister.[http://www.wor diq.com/definition/Prime_Minister_of_Australia Word Definition: Prime Minister of Australia] There are two major political groups that form government, federally and in the states: the Australian Labor Party, and the Coalition (Australia)
Coalition which is a formal grouping of two parties: the Liberal Party of Australia
Liberal Party and its minor partner, the National Party of Australia
National Party.

Independent members and several minor parties—including the Australian Greens
Greens and the Australian Democrats—have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses.

The Labor Party came to office with Kevin Rudd as Prime Minister following the Australian federal election, 2007
November 2007 election.

Every Australian parliament (federal, state, and territory) then had a Labor government until Western Australian state election, 2008
September 2008 when the Liberal Party formed a minority government in association with the National Party in Western Australia.

In the Australian federal election, 2004
2004 election, the previous governing coalition led by John Howard won control of the Senate—the first time in more than 20 years that a party (or a coalition) has done so while in government.

Compulsory voting
Voting is compulsory for all enrolled citizens 18 years and over, in each state and territory and at the federal level.{{cite web
u rl=http://www.aec.gov.au/pdf/voting/compulsory_voting.pdf
title=Compulsory Voting in Australia
last=Evans
first=Tim
year=2006
publisher=Australian Electoral Commission
page=4
accessdate=2009-06-21}} Enrolment to vote is compulsory in all jurisdictions except South Australia.{{cite web
url=http://aec.gov.au/FAQs/Voting_Austra lia.htm#What%20happens%20if%20I%20do%20not%20vote
title=What happens if I do not vote?
work=Voting Australia – Frequently Asked Questions
publisher=Australian Electoral Commission
accessdate=2008-01-08}}

States and territories

{{Australia states imagemap}} {{Main
States and territories of Australia}} Australia has six federated state
states—New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria (Australia)
Victoria, and Western Australia—and two major mainland territories—the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).

In most respects these two territories function as states, but the Commonwealth Parliament can override any legislation of their parliaments.

By contrast, federal legislation only overrides state legislation in certain areas that are set out in Section 51 of the Australian Constitution; state parliaments retain all residual legislative powers, including powers over education, police, the judiciary, roads, public transport, and local government as these do not fall under the provisions listed in Section 51.[http://www.austra lia.gov.au/about-australia/our-government/state-and-territory-government Website of Federal Government of Australia] Each state and major mainland territory has its own Parliaments of the Australian states and territories
legislature or parliament: unicameralism
unicameral in the Northern Territory, the ACT, and Queensland, and bicameral in the remaining states.

The states are sovereign, though subject to certain powers of the Commonwealth as defined by the Constitution.

The lower house is known as the Legislative Assembly (House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania) and the upper house is known as the Legislative Council.

The head of government
head of the government in each state is the Premiers of the Australian states
Premier, and in each territory the Chief Minister.

The Queen is represented in each state by a Governors of the Australian states
Governor; an Administrator of the Northern Territory
Administrator in the Northern Territory, and the Australian Governor-General in the ACT, have analogous roles.

{{Citation needed
date=June 2009}} The federal government directly administers the following territories: * Jervis Bay Territory, a naval base and sea port for the national capital in land that was formerly part of New South Wales * Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands * Ashmore and Cartier Islands * Coral Sea Islands * Heard Island and McDonald Islands * Australian Antarctic Territory Norfolk Island is also technically an external territory; however, under the Norfolk Island Act 1979 it has been granted more autonomy and is governed locally by its own legislative assembly.

The Monarchy of Australia
Queen is represented by an List of administrative heads of Norfolk Island
Administrator, currently Owen Walsh.{{cite web
url= http://www.ag.gov.au/www/agd/agd.nsf/ Page/Territories_of_AustraliaNorfolk_IslandAdministrator_of_Norfolk_Island
title=www.ag.gov.au Administrator of Norfolk Island
publisher=Australian Government Attorney-General's Department
accessdate=2009-07-21}}

Foreign relations and military

{{Main
Foreign relations of Australia
Australian Defence Force}} File:War memorial 01.jpg
thumb
The Australian War Memorial Over recent decades, Foreign relations of Australia
Australia's foreign relations have been driven by a close association with the United States through the ANZUS
ANZUS pact, and by a desire to develop relationships with Asia and the Pacific, particularly through ASEAN and the Pacific Islands Forum.

In 2005 Australia secured an inaugural seat at the East Asia Summit following its accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia.

Australia is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, in which the Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings provide the main forum for cooperation.

Australia has energetically pursued the cause of international trade liberalisation.

It led the formation of the Cairns Group and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.

Australia is a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Trade Organization, and has pursued several major bilateral free trade agreements, most recently the Australia – United States Free Trade Agreement and Closer Economic Relations with New Zealand.

Australia is also negotiating a free trade agreement with Japan, with whom Australia has close economic ties as a trusted partner in the Asia-Pacific region.[http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/australia/index.html Japan-Australia Relations], www.mofa.go.jp. Australia, along with New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, and Singapore are party to the Five Power Defence Arrangements, a regional defence agreement.

A founding member country of the United Nations, Australia is strongly committed to multilateralism along with its middle power allies Canada and the Nordic countries, and maintains an international aid program under which some 60 countries receive assistance.

The 2005–06 budget provides A$2Ǒ billion for development assistance;Australian Government.

(2005).

[http://www.budget.gov.au/ Budget 2005–2006]. as a percentage of GDP, this contribution is less than that recommended in the UN Millennium Development Goals.

Australia ranks 7th overall in the Center for Global Development's 2008 Commitment to Development Index.Center for Global Development.

[http://www.cgdev.org/section/initiatives/_active/cdi/_country/australia Commitment to Development Index: Australia], www.cgdev.org.

Retrieved on 5 January 2008. Australia's armed forces—the Australian Defence Force (ADF)—comprise the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), the Australian Army, and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), in total numbering 73,000 personnel (including 53,000 regulars and 20,000 reservists).{{cite web
url= http://www.defence.gov.au/budget/07-08/dar/2007-2008_Defence_DAR_04_v1_s3.pdf
title=Section 3: Management and Accountability (Chapter 4: People Management)
work=Defence Annual Report 2007-08
format=PDF
publisher=Department of Defence (Australia)
Department of Defence
accessdate=2009-01-31}} (pp.

99–100). Australia's military is List of countries by level of military equipment
68th largest in the world, but one of the List of countries by number of troops
world's smallest in per capita terms.

All branches of the ADF have been involved in UN and regional peacekeeping (most recently in East Timor, the Solomon Islands, and Sudan), disaster relief, and armed conflict, including the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

The government appoints the Chief of the Defence Force (Australia)
Chief of the Defence Force from one of the armed services; the current Chief of the Defence Force is Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston.

In the 2006–07 budget, defence spending was A$22 billion,Australian Department of Defence (2006).[ht tp://www.defence.gov.au/budget/06-07/pbs/index.htm ''Portfolio Budget Statements 2006–07.''] p.

19. accounting for List of countries by military expenditures
less than 1% of global military spending.

Australia was placed 27th on the 2008 Global Peace Index, primarily due to its presence in War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
Afghanistan.Everingham, Sara.

[http:/ /www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/05/21/2251569.htm Australia ranks 27th on peace index] (2008), www.abc.net.au Retrieved on 23 January 2008. While the Governor-General is the Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Defence Force, he or she does not play an active part in the ADF's command structure as the elected Australian Government controls the ADF.{{cite book
title=Australian Defence Almanac 2004–05
last=Khosa
first=Raspal
year=2004
publisher=Australian Strategic Policy Institute
location=Canberra
isbn=
page=4}}

Geography

{{Main
Geography of Australia
Climate of Australia
Geology of Australia}} {{See also
List of countries and outlying territories by total area}} File:Australia-climate-map MJC01.png
right
thumb
Climatic zones in Australia, based on the Köppen climate classification Australia's landmass of {{convert
7617930
km2
sqmi
adj=off}}{{cite web
url = http://www.ga.gov.au/education/facts/dimensions/compare.htm
title = Australia's Size Compared
publisher = Geoscience Australia
accessdate = 2007-05-19 }} is on the Indo-Australian Plate.

Surrounded by the Indian{{ref
Southern Ocean
N4}} and Pacific oceans, Australia is separated from Asia by the Arafura Sea
Arafura and Timor Sea
Timor seas.

The world's smallest continent and List of countries and outlying territories by total area
sixth largest country by total area, Australia – owing to its size and isolation – is often dubbed the 'island continent'{{cite web
url=http://www .ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/landforms/islands.jsp
title=Islands
publisher=Geoscience Australia
accessdate=2009-08-22}} "Being surrounded by ocean, Australia often is referred to as an island continent.

As a continental landmass it is significantly larger than the many thousands of fringing islands ..." and variably considered the List of islands by area
world's largest island.{{cite web
url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/island_continent.html
title=Australia in Brief: The island continent
publisher=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
accessdate=2009-05-29}} "Mainland Australia, with an area of 7ሽ million square kilometres, is the Earth’s largest island but smallest continent." Australia has {{convert
34218
km
mi
0}} of coastline (excluding all offshore islands){{cite web
url = http://www.environment.gov.au/ soe/2006/publications/drs/indicator/142/index.html
title = State of the Environment 2006
publisher = Department of the Environment and Water Resources
accessdate = 2007-05-19 }} and claims an extensive Exclusive Economic Zone of {{convert
8148250
km2
sqmi}}.

This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory. File:Australia satellite plane.jpg
left
thumb
Australia seen from space The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef,{{cite web
author=UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre
year=1980
title=Protected Areas and World Heritage – Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area
url=ht tp://sea.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/gbrmp.html
publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts
Department of the Environment and Heritage
accessdate=2007-05-19}} lies a short distance off the north-east coast and extends for over {{convert
2000
km
mi
-1}}.

Mount Augustus National Park
Mount Augustus, claimed to be the world's largest monolith,{{cite web
url = http://www.smh. com.au/news/Western-Australia/Mount-Augustus/2005/02/17/1108500208314.html
title = Mount Augustus
publisher = The Sydney Morning Herald
accessdate = 2007-05-19 }} is located in Western Australia.

At {{convert
2228
m
ft
0}}, Mount Kosciuszko on the Great Dividing Range is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland, although Mawson Peak on the remote Australian territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands
Heard Island is taller at {{convert
2745
m
ft
0}}. By far the largest part of Australia is Deserts of Australia
desert or semi-arid land commonly known as the outback.

Australia is the flattest continent, with the oldest and least fertile soils, and is the driest inhabited continent.

Only the south-east and south-west corners of the continent have a temperate climate.

The List of countries and dependencies by population density
population density, 2ǔ inhabitants per square kilometre, is among the lowest in the world, although a great proportion of the population lives along the temperate south-eastern coastline.

The landscapes of the northern part of the country, with a tropical climate, consist of rainforest, woodland, grassland, mangrove swamps, and desert.

The climate is significantly influenced by ocean currents, including the Indian Ocean Dipole and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation, which is correlated with periodic Drought in Australia
drought, and the seasonal tropical low pressure system that produces cyclones in northern Australia.[http://www.theage.c om.au/news/climate-watch/no-more-drought-its-a-permanent-dry/2007/09/06/1188783415754.html No more drought: it's a "permanent dry"]; [http://ne ws.independent.co.uk/world/australasia/article2465960.ece Australia's epic drought: The situation is grim].

Environment

File:Koala climbing tree.jpg
thumb
The koala and the ''eucalyptus'' form an iconic Australian pair {{Main
Environment of Australia}} Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, it includes a diverse range of habitats from alpine climate
alpine heaths to tropical rainforests, and is recognised as a megadiverse countries
megadiverse country.

Because of the continent's great age, its extremely variable weather patterns, and its long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's biota (ecology)
biota is unique and diverse.

About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of List of birds of Austra lia<

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