Pacific Islands News Association

Sports News : Fiji’s Lorraine Mar awarded ANOC Meritorious Award for her contribution to sports in Fiji and the Oceania region [17/10/2019 - Qatar]
Sports News : Toea Wisil and Brandon Schuster awarded Oceania’s best female and best male athletes at the ANOC 2019 Awards in Doha [17/10/2019 - Qatar]
News Feature : Tuberculosis infections declining, but not fast enough among poor, marginalised: UN health agency [17/10/2019 - Switzerland]
Business News : US$34 million project to boost RMI’s green energy and power supply [17/10/2019 - Marshall Islands]
News : NZ ‘could have protected’ Samoa from measles [17/10/2019 - New Zealand]
News : Independence for Bougainville to cost K300m a year: Sir Puka [17/10/2019 - Papua New Guinea]
Sports News : ONOC President Dr Mitchell to serve as Acting ANOC President until Sheikh Ahmad case resolved [17/10/2019 - Qatar]
Sports News : Fiji TV secures broadcast rights to HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series from 2020-2023 [17/10/2019 - Fiji]
Sports News : How Cook Islands plan to become the 'new Tonga' [17/10/2019 - Australia]
News Feature : How can building and strengthening international institutions help achieve climate resilient fisheries? [17/10/2019 - United States]
Business News : 200,000 litres of raw slurry spill from Basamuk plant in Madang : PNG Environment Minister [17/10/2019 - Papua New Guinea]
Business News : New Caledonia congress to address debt to main hospital [17/10/2019 - New Caledonia]
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Country profile - Wallis and Futuna

Wallis and Futuna flag

A Polynesian French island territory (but not part of, or even contiguous with, French Polynesia) in the South Pacific between Fiji and Samoa. It is made up of three main volcanic tropical isalnds and a number of tiny islets. The territory is split into two island groups lying about 260 km apart.

Although the Dutch and the British were the European discoverers of the islands in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was the French who were the first Europeans to settle in the territory, with the arrival of French missionaries in 1837, who converted the population to Roman Catholisim. Wallis is named after the British explorer, Samuel Wallis.

On April 5, 1842, they asked for the protection of France after the rebellion of a part of the local population. On April 5, 1887, the queen of Uvea (on the island of Wallis) signed a treaty officially establishing a French protectorate. The kings of Sigave and Alo on the islands of Futuna and Alofi also signed a treaty establishing a French protectorate on February 16, 1888. The islands were put under the authority of the French colony of New Caledonia.

In 1917, the three traditional chiefdoms were annexed to France and turned into the Colony of Wallis and Futuna, still under the authority of the Colony of New Caledonia.

In 1959, the inhabitants of the islands voted to become a French overseas territory, effective in 1961, thus ending their subordination to New Caledonia.

In 2005 the 50th king, Tomasi Kulimoetoke II, faced being deposed after giving sanctuary to his grandson who was convicted of manslaughter. The king claimed his grandson should be judged by tribal law rather than by the French penal system. There were riots in the streets involving the king's supporters, which were victorious over attempts to replace the king. Two years later, Tomasi Kulimoetoke died on May 7, 2007. The state was in a six-month period of mourning. During this period, mentioning a successor was forbidden. On July 25, 2008, Kapiliele Faupala was installed as king despite protests from some of the royal clans.

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