- You are here:
- Home
- › Travel & living abroad
- › Travel advice by country
- › Country profiles
- › Asia and Oceania
- › Pitcairn Islands (British Overseas Territory)
Asia and Oceania
Pitcairn Islands (British Overseas Territory) |
|
|
Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
|
Country information
Status: British Overseas Territory
Area: 4.5 sq km (2 sq m)
Population: 51
Capital City: Adamstown (Administrative Centre)
People: Descended from the mutineers from the HMS Bounty and their Tahitian companions
Languages: English and Pitkern. The latter is a mixture of English and Tahitian and became an official language in 1997.
Religion(s): Seventh Day Adventist
Currency: New Zealand Dollar
Majorpolitical parties: There are no political parties. The Pitcairn IslandCouncil is made up of community elected Councillors.
Governor: His Excellency George Fergusson (resident in Wellington)
Chief Minister: Pitcairn’s mayor is Michael Warren who was elected in December 2007 for a 3-year period.
Administration:Pitcairn is administered by the Government of Pitcairn Islands (GPI),made up of the Governor’s Office in Wellington, the Pitcairn IslandsOffice (PIO) in Auckland and the Pitcairn Island Council. The majorpart of the general administration of Pitcairn is conducted by PIO.The PIO is run by a Commissioner appointed by the Governor. The currentCommissioner is Mr Leslie Jaques.
National Day: 23 January - Bounty Day. This commemorates the day in 1790 when HMS Bounty was scuppered
ECONOMY
The economy of Pitcairn is largely based on subsistence fishing, horticulture, and the sale of handicrafts. Pitcairn’s primary source of income was traditionally the sale of postage stamps, but a downturn in the market led to financial reserves being exhausted and Pitcairn now receives budgetary aid from the UK. The Pitcairn Government is trying to boost revenue through the sale of .pn domain names, honey production and increasing tourist arrivals.The population of the territory is self-employed or works for local government. Although there is no formal taxation, every person between the age of 15 and 65 is required to perform public work each month, in lieu of taxation. Allowances and wages are paid to members of the community, who participate in local government activities and who perform communal services.
Handicrafts, fruit and vegetables are traded with visiting ships. Pitcairn’s handicrafts are also marketed by mail order through the internet.
HISTORY
Pitcairn was first settled in 1790 by some of the HMS Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. The island was left uninhabited between 1856 and 1859 when the entire population was resettled on Norfolk Island. The present community are descended from two parties who, not wishing to remain on Norfolk, returned to Pitcairn in 1859 and 1864 respectively, and from shipwrecked whalers.
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Pitcairn Islands’ Relations with Neighbours
Many Pitcairn Islanders have strong links with New Zealand – some are dual UK/New Zealand nationals. There are also increasing links with French Polynesia, Pitcairn's nearest neighbour and Pitcairn is a member of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community.
Pitcairn Islands’ Relations with the International Community
HMG is responsible for Pitcairn’s external relations.
Relations with the UK
HMG is responsible for Pitcairn’s external relations, defence and internal security. The principal points of contact are Overseas Territories Department, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Governor’s Office at the British High Commission, Wellington, New Zealand.
UK Development Assistance
Pitcairn is crucially dependent upon certain key items of infrastructure (including the jetty, long boats and boat shed, and the road from the jetty up to the main settlement). A DfID-funded £1.9m project recently repaired the jetty, slipway and the Hill of Difficulty Road. Another major project brought an affordable telephone service, limited television and internet access to the island for the first time. Future development plans are focussed on improving access to the island and reducing its reliance on imported diesel with the use of sustainable energy, principally windpower. The Foreign & Commonwealth Office has funded a number of projects aimed at promoting good governance and protection of the environment.
Tourism/Visitors
The dwindling population and the ever-decreasing number of ships stopping at Pitcairn is a concern. There is no airfield. The only access to the island is by cruise and container ships, which travel irregularly between New Zealand and the Americas via the Panama Canal. If there is space available, they may stop at Pitcairn en route. Visitors to the island are then met by the Islanders in their longboats for the last mile into the harbour. It is also possible to charter a yacht from Mangareva in French Polynesia but as this can be enormously expensive, it is beyond the means of the Islanders. Ways of overcoming the isolation are being investigated and a new shipping supply route between French Polynesia and Pitcairn was established in 2006.
All visitors to the Pitcairn are required to obtain entry clearance from the PIO in Auckland unless they are departing on the same vessel as the one they arrived on. In this case ‘permission to land’ can be requested from the Mayor on arrival.
Henderson Island
The conservation of Henderson Island, the best example in the Pacific of a large raised coral atoll, as a World Heritage Site and the control of the environmental impact on all of the islands are being monitored and strengthened.
Read about our work on Pitcairn at the FCO in Action page.
Website: www.government.pn
Email: admin@pitcairn.gov.pn
GEOGRAPHY
Pitcairn Island is a small volcanic island situated in the South Pacific Ocean at latitude 25 04 south and longitude 130 06 west. It is roughly 2170km (1350 miles) east south-east of Tahiti; 5310km (3300 miles) east north-east of its administrative headquarters in Auckland, New Zealand and just over 6600km (4100 miles) from Panama.Pitcairn Island is a rugged island of formidable cliffs of reddish-brown and black volcanic rock. It is an irregular shape, with nowhere giving easy access to the sea. From the ridge above the landing at Bounty Bay, round the southeast corner to Christian Point at the western extremity, the cliffs are sheer and inhospitable, capped by nothing more than volcanic ash and scrub. Many of the land shapes on the western side are also very steep. The highest point, only a few hundred metres from the coast, rises 347 metres above sea level. In the north the land rises a little less precipitously, from 60 metres to 270 metres and the central slopes of Flatland run almost gently downwards to the northeast and the settlement of Adamstown.
POLITICS
Constitutional Status
Pitcairn is a British settlement under the British Settlements Act of 1887, although the Islanders usually date their recognition as a British territory to a constitution of 1838 devised with the help of a visiting Royal Navy officer. In 1893, 1898 and 1940, further changes were made in the Islands Government.
In 1952 responsibility for Pitcairn was transferred from the High Commissioner for the Western pacific to the Governor of Fiji. When Fiji became independent the Pitcairn Royal Instructions, both of 1970, were the instruments that embodied the modern constitution of Pitcairn, establishing the office of the Governor and regulating his powers and duties. In practice, the British High Commissioner to New Zealand is appointed concurrently as Governor (Non-Resident) of Pitcairn and is assisted by PIO in Auckland. Pitcairn Islanders manage their internal affairs through the Island Council, for which elections are held annually.
Law and Order
The Law of Pitcairn is covered by the Pitcairn Order 1970 together with the Pitcairn Royal Instructions 1970. Under these the Governor is the legislature for Pitcairn and is empowered to make laws on any subject. Prior approval of the Foreign Secretary must be sought for the enactment of certain classes of law.
PitcairnIslands (British Overseas Territory) today
Country information
Share this with:
Travel Advice
Travel Advice: Pitcairn Islands
Overseas Territories Department
Foreign & Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
Tel: 020-7008 1500
Fax: 020-7008 2086
Email: otdenquiries@fco.gov.uk
Pitcairn Islands Office
P.O. Box 105 696
Auckland
New Zealand
Tel: 0064 9 366 0186
Fax: 0064 9 366 0187
