Category Civics

          Dominica is named after the Latin word for Sunday. But who would name a country after a day? Columbus did, because he spotted the island on a Sunday in 1493. The French and the Spanish were early birds to set up colonies in Dominica. By 1763, the island came under British control.

          The French wouldn’t simply give up their colony which had fertile soil suitable for cultivation. The British conquered the island in an expedition in 1761. In addition to that, Britain won the Seven Years War defeating France, Spain and Portugal. France had to give up the island to the British because of this, in the Treaty of Paris of 1763.

          After setting up colonies, the British started to bring slaves to work in plantations. Many slaves died under the inhuman treatment of the British masters. In 1833, slavery was abolished which improved the lives of plantation workers. Dominicans gained authority one step at a time and in 1978, they gained full independence and control over their affairs. Since then, Dominica is a parliamentary democracy that has elected representatives.

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          Costa Rica is one of the most peaceful and stable countries in Latin America. It’s a model democratic state now.

          The name Costa Rica was given by Christopher Columbus. He thought that the land had lots of gold. This name, which means rich coast in Spanish, attracted settlers to the country. Costa Rica was controlled by the Spanish before they chose to side with the Mexican empire. Later, they gained independence in 1838. Since then, Costa Rica took the road to progress. Coffee plantations created a boom and the money obtained from it was used to modernize the country.

          Though democracy continued uninterrupted in Costa Rica, for many years, it had a two-year military dictatorship from 1917-19 when General Federico Tinoco Granados became the dictator. They also had a civil war that broke out in 1948.

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          El Salvador is one of the smallest countries in Central America. It was colonized by Spain. The Spanish had lots of indigo plantations. The harsh conditions in the plantations led to a revolt and the country gained independence in 1821.

          For years after independence, the country experienced a number of wars against other countries in Central America. Military dictatorships prevailed for more than forty years from 1931 to 1979. Wealthy land-owners and the army controlled the country and the poor suffered misery. This inequality led to civil war in 1980 which lasted for twelve years. When the war ended in 1992, about 75,000 Salvadorans were killed. The war ended when the rebels and the government signed a peace treaty which guaranteed political reforms. These reforms improved conditions of the country.

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          Can a country be named as ‘Banana republic’? Well, history says yes. In the late nineteenth century, there was a widespread banana craze in the US. The Latin American countries exported bananas to the US to satiate its crazy banana appetite. The first country to be known as ‘Banana republic’ is Honduras!

          Honduras was colonized by the Spanish. After gaining independence in 1838, the country was ruled primarily by a set of dictators. Later in the 19th century, several American companies set up banana plantations in Honduras which shaped its economy. The plantation workers revolted time and again against the oppressive working conditions that prevailed in the country. They also fought wars against their neighbours El Salvador and Nicaragua. In 1984, Honduras sought American help to bring peace to the country.

          Banana exports declined in 1994 which created an economic crisis in Honduras. To add fuel to the fire, a hurricane named Mitch hit the country. It killed many of its people and destroyed farmlands.

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          When Christopher Columbus first landed in Haiti, he mistook the island for India. After the Italians and the Spanish, the French set up a colony in western Haiti and ran sugar plantations successfully. Slaves were brought from Africa to work for the French masters.

          After years of slavery, Haitians revolted against their French leaders and became an independent nation in 1804. Haiti was being ruled by different inefficient governments since then till the US occupied the country.

          The US occupied the country from 1915 to 1934 and tried to restore order. But this did not solve the issue. A military regime governed Haiti till 1994. The country had elected governments occasionally which were soon overthrown by military coups. Finally, in 1994, democracy was restored in Haiti after a successful negotiation between the coup leaders and the US officials.

          Haiti is often hit by the worst kind of natural calamities. Tropical storms, earthquakes, mudslides, hurricanes and flash floods have taken the lives of thousands of Haitians. The damages caused by these disasters have often left the country in a state of emergency.

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          British Honduras is now known as Belize. It got its new name in 1973. As its old name suggests, it was a colony of Britain before gaining independence. The British settlers came there following a shipwreck. Seeing that the land was suitable for agriculture, they started a colony in Belize under the name British Honduras. Before that, the land was claimed by Spain.

          The Spanish believed that Belize was a part of Guatemala. This land dispute started in the 1520s and surprisingly, it did not end even after Belize gained independence.

          Belize became an independent nation in 1981. Though they were free from the clutches of the colonizers, they were regularly disturbed by Guatemalans who believed that Belize was a part of their country.

          British army regularly protected Belize from these attacks. Guatemala still claims its rights on Belize. In 2008, both countries agreed to put the case before the International Court of Justice. The final decision regarding the case has not come out yet.

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