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Independent States |
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BANGLADESH (People's Republic of Bangladesh) |
Regime : Republic Shahabuddin AHMED
- Chief
of State {Born in 1930 in the
village Pemal of Kendua in the greater Mymensingh
district} [After passing the
Matriculation and Intermediate examinations he took
admission into the Dhaka University in 1948,
obtained B.A. (Hons) in Economics in 1951 and M.A.
in International Relations in 1952 as a resident
student of Fazlul Haq Hall] (President since 9 of
October 1996 - 2nd time) President elected by
National Parliament for a five-year term ; election
last held 24 July 1996 (next to be held by NA
October 2001) Sheik HASINA Wajed - Head of the
Government {Born on 28 September 1947 in Tungipara, a
remote village in south-western Bangladesh} [Bachelor's degree in liberal arts] (Prime Minister since 23 of June 1996) Following legislative
elections, the leader of the party that wins the
most seats is usually appointed prime minister by
the president. Legislative
: Unicameral National
Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad (330 seats ; 300
elected by popular vote from single territorial
constituencies, 30 seats reserved for women ;
members serve five-year terms) Elections : last
held 12 June 1996 (next to be held NA 2001)
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BHUTAN (Kingdom of Bhutan) |
Monarchy ; special
treaty relationship with India His majesty Jigme Singhye
WANGCHUK -
Chief of Stat (King since 21 of July 1972) The monarchy is
hereditary. The monarch is both the
Chief of State and head of the
Government. Lyonpo Yeshey
Zimba
- Head of the Government (Prime minister since 20 July 2000) Council of Ministers
appointed by the monarch, approved by the National
Assembly. Legislative
: Unicameral National
Assembly or Tshogdu (150 seats ; 105 elected from
village constituencies, 10 represent religious
bodies, and 35 are designated by the monarch to
represent government and other secular interests ;
members serve three-year terms) Elections : last
held NA (next to be held NA) |
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INDIA (Republic of India)
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Regime : Federal
Republic Shri Kocheril Raman
NARAYANAN -
Chief of State {Born on October 27, 1920
in the village of Uzhavoor in Kottayam district,
Kerala} [Education from the
University of Travancore where he obtained an M.A.
degree in English Literature standing first in the
University. Later, he obtained B.Sc (Econ.) degree
from the London School of Economics with First
Class Honours specialising in Political
Science] (President since 25 of July 1997) President elected by an
electoral college consisting of elected members of
both houses of Parliament and the legislatures of
the states for a five-year term ; election last
held 14 July 1997 (next to be held NA July
2002) Shri
Krishnan KANT - Vice
President {Born in Khan, Amritsar
District, Punjab, February 28, 1927} [D.A.V. College,
Lahore and Banaras Hindu University ; m. Smt.
Suman, December 11, 1958; 1 d. and 2 s.; Scientist
and Social Worker] (Vice President since 21
of August 1997) Vice president elected by
both houses of Parliament ; election last held 16
August 1997 (next to be held NA August
2002) Shri Atal Behari
VAJPAYEE - Head of the Government {Born on December 25 1924, in the erstwhile
princely State of Gwalior (now a part of the Indian
state of Madhya Pradesh)} [Student of political science and
law] (Prime Minister since 19
of March 1998 / October 13, 1999, he took charge as
Prime Minister of India for the second consecutive
term at the head of a new coalition government)
Prime minister elected by
parliamentary members of the majority party
following legislative elections ; election last
held NA March 1998 (next to be held NA March
2003) Legislative
: Bicameral Parliament or
Sansad consists of the Council of States or Rajya
Sabha (a body consisting of not more than 250
members, up to 12 of which are appointed by the
president, the remainder are chosen by the elected
members of the state and territorial assemblies ;
members serve six-year terms) and the People's
Assembly or Lok Sabha (545 seats ; 543 elected by
popular vote, 2 appointed by the president ;
members serve five-year terms) Elections: People's
Assembly-last held 4, 11, 17, 24 september and 1
october 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004)
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MALDIVES (islands) (Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa) |
Regime : Republic Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM
- Chief of
State {Born on 29 December 1937
in Male', capital of the Maldives} [Educated in Male' until 1947 when he won a
scholarship to be educated in Egypt. He was
educated privately in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) 1948-1950
before enrolling at the Cairo Religious Institute
for primary and intermediate schooling, 1950-1959.
He studied at Al Azhar University, Cairo,
1959-1966, obtaining his BA and MA in Islamic
Sharia and Civil Law. He also graduated with MA at
the American University, Cairo] (President since 11 of November 1978) (The President is both
Chief of State and head of the
Government) The president is elected
for a five year term by parliament and confirmed in
a referendum by the people. In this referendum on
16 october 1998, 90.9 % voted in favour of Gayoom.
Legislative
: Unicameral Citizens'
Council or Majlis (48 seats ; 40 elected by popular
vote, 8 appointed by the president ; members serve
five-year terms) Elections: last held 19 November
1999 (next to be held NA 2004) |
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NEPAL (Kingdom of Nepal) |
Regime : Parliamentary democracy
as of 12 May 1991 Bir Bikram Shah Dev
BIRENDRA - Chief of State {Born in Kathmandu
1945} [Studied at St
Joseph's College, Darjeeling, Eton, and Tokyo and
Harvard universities] (King since 31 of January 1972) The monarchy is
hereditary. Girija Prasad KOIRALA - Head of
the Government (Minister for royal palace, defense, women,
children and social welfare, labor &
transportation management and general
administration) {Born in 1925} (Prime minister since 22 March 2000 - 3rd
time) Following legislative
elections, the leader of the majority party or
leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed
prime minister by the monarch. Legislative
: Bicameral Parliament
consists of the National Council (60 seats ; 35
appointed by the House of Representatives, 10 by
the king, and 15 elected by an electoral college ;
one-third of the members elected every two years to
serve six-year terms) and the House of
Representatives (205 seats ; members elected by
popular vote to serve five-year terms) Elections :
House of Representatives - last held 3 and 17 may
1999 (next to be held NA 2004) |
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PAKISTAN (Islamic Republic of Pakistan)
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Regime : Federal
Republic Mohammad Rafiq TARAR
- Chief of
State {Born on November 2, 1929,
in a small village Pir Kot, Ghakkar Mandi,
Wazirabad Tehsil} [Schooling in Ghakkar
Mandi, from where he completed his primary
education and did his matriculation in 1945 from
Government Islamia High School, Gujranwala. In
1947, he passed FSc. from Guru Nanak Khalsa
College, Gujranwala, which was renamed as Islamic
College after independence and graduated from the
same college] (President since 1 of January 1998) President elected by
Parliament for a five-year term ; election last
held 31 December 1997 (next to be held no later
than 1 January 2003) General Pervez
MUSHARRAF - Head of the Government (Chief executive since 14 october 1999) The government is formed
by a military regime. Following legislative
elections, the leader of the majority party or
leader of a majority coalition is usually elected
prime minister by the National Assembly ; election
last held 3 February 1997 (next to be held NA
February 2002) note : After the military
coup parliament has been dissolved. The
Majlis-l-Shura had two chambers. Legislative
: Bicameral Parliament or
Majlis-e-Shoora consists of the Senate (87 seats
;members indirectly elected by provincial
assemblies to serve six-year terms ; one-third of
the members up for election every two years) and
the National Assembly (217 seats - 10 represent
non-Muslims ; members elected by popular vote to
serve five-year terms) Elections: Senate - last
held 12 March 1997. National Assembly - last held 3
February 1997 (next to be held NA February 2002)
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SRI LANKA (Ceylan) (Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka) |
Regime : Republic
Her Excellency Chandrika Bandaranaike
KUMARATUNGA -
Chief of State {Born in Colombo on 29th
June 1945} [Education at St.
Bridget's Convent, Colombo and at the Aquinas
University College Colombo, where she studied for
LLB. From there, she went on to the University of
Paris, from which she graduated in Political
Science. She also obtained a Diploma in Group
Leadership from the same University] (President since 14 of November 1994 - 2nd
time) President elected by
popular vote for a six-year term ; election last
held 21 december 1999 (next to be held NA
2005) Note : (In Sri Lanka the
president is considered to be both the chief of
state and the head of the government, this is in
contrast to the more common practice of dividing
the roles between the president and the prime
minister when both offices exist) Ratnasiri
WICKREMANAYAKE - Head of
Government (Born in 1933) (Prime
minister since 10 Aug
2000) - Also Minister of Public
Administration, Home Affairs and Plantation.
- Legislative
: Unicameral Parliament (225
seats ; members elected by popular vote on the
basis of a modified proportional representation
system to serve six-year terms) Elections: last
held 16 August 1994 (next to be held by August
2000) |
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