WHAT’S THE STORY?

TODAY is the 50th anniversary of the nation of Tonga achieving its full independence from the UK. On this date in 1970, the Kingdom of Tonga in the Polynesian islands of the South Pacific ended 70 years of being a protectorate of the UK.

Tonga had never surrendered its sovereign status but had signed the Treaty of Friendship in 1900 which saw the UK take over the foreign affairs of the country which continued to govern itself under a monarch – the only Pacific kingdom to do so.

Queen Salote Tupou III, who died in 1965, had long wished for Tonga to cease to have protected status and become fully independent. The process she set in train was completed on June 4, 1970, when the Kingdom of Tonga declared what it is still known as Emancipation Day, celebrated as a national holiday. The nation also has a holiday in November each year to celebrate Tonga’s National Day, marking the adoption of its status as a constitutional kingdom in 1875.

WHAT WAS THE HISTORY OF TONGA BEFORE EMANCIPATION DAY?

AN archipelago of 169 islands scattered over 270,000 sq m of the Pacific, Tonga has 36 inhabited islands of which the main island is Tongatapu, which houses around 70% of the nation’s population of 100,000. Nuku’alofa is the capital of the country.

The people originated in south-west Asia and by the 10th century its culture was organised enough to have a king in a familial descent that carried on for centuries. Tonga was “discovered” by the Dutch in 1616 and Christian missionaries were soon converting the people – it remains a strongly Christian country and is one of the main Pacific outposts of the Mormon church.

Tonga first came to the notice of the UK when the islands were visited by Captain James Cook in 1773. He was greeted warmly and so dubbed them the Friendly Islands, an alternative name for Tonga to this day.

Of no great strategic advantage, Britain allowed the Tongans to govern themselves rather than impose a Raj, but British influence was strong – English remains the second language after native Tongan and rugby union is the national sport. The late great All Black Jonah Lomu was of Tongan parents and he learned to play in there.

King George Tupou I brought in the 1875 constitution and the islands remain a constitutional monarchy to this day. His great-grandson King George Tupou II was almost ousted in a brief civil war and signed the Treaty of Friendship with the UK to protect his monarchy.

WHAT HAPPENED AFTER FULL INDEPENDENCE WAS GAINED?

SUCCESSIVE British governments had negotiated treaty changes with the Tongan government over the period of the protectorate, but by the 1960s is was clear Tonga wanted to go its own way. Almost as soon as independence was peaceably negotiated and declared, Tonga was accepted into the Commonwealth. It joined the United Nations in 1999.

The islands have performed a delicate balancing act in preserving the people’s own culture while modernising its fishing and agricultural industries on which the economy depends. Corruption has been an endemic problem, however, while there have been occasional constitutional problems and many people would like to see more radical political developments.

ANY LESSONS SUPPORTERS OF SCOTTISH INDEPENDENCE CAN LEARN FROM TONGA?

Tonga has spent 50 years outside of British control and nobody wants to change that.

It started with a poor economy dependent, as it still is, on emigrants sending back money to their families, but now it has ambitious plans.

If a nation with only 100,000 people and precious few resources can survive and prosper, why can’t we?