History
The islands were named in honour of Captain James Cook, who in 1733
became the first European to sight them. However, credit for the
first discovery of these islands must go to the Polynesians who
discovered them during their great migratory journeys of the 7th
and 8th centuries.
The main island, Rarotonga, was rediscovered by the Bounty Mutineers
in 1789. In 1888 they became a British protectorate, and in 1901
became part of New Zealand. In 1965 the islands achieved self-government
as a New Zealand Dependency.
There are no plans and little pressure from anywhere for any change
to this status.
Domestic politics are dominated by the Cook Islands Party which,
at the most recent poll held in March 1994, took 20 of the 25 assembly
seats; the remainder were shared between the islands' two small
opposition parties, the Democratic Party and the Alliance party.
Geoffrey Henry, who had also won the previous election in 1989,
assumed the premiership for another five-year term.
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