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Puerto Rico

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Central & South American
Countries; Countries

                   Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico
   Commonwealth of Puerto Rico

   Flag of Puerto Rico Coat of arms of Puerto Rico
   Flag                Coat of arms
   Motto: Latin: Joannes Est Nomen Eius;
   Spanish: Juan es su nombre

   (English: "John is his name")
   Anthem: La Borinqueña
   Location of Puerto Rico
          Capital        San Juan
                         18°29′N 66°8′W
       Largest city      San Juan
    Official languages   Spanish, English
   Government            Commonwealth
    - Head of State      George W. Bush
    - Governor           Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
       Independence      None (U.S. territory with Commonwealth status)
                                   Area
    - Total              9,104 km² ( 169th)
                         3,514 sq mi
    - Water (%)          1.6
                                Population
    - July 2005 estimate 3,912,054 ( 126th)
    - 2005 census        3,913,054
    - Density            434/km² ( 21st)
                         1,115/sq mi
        GDP ( PPP)       2005 estimate
    - Total              $72.37 billion ( 68th)
    - Per capita         $18,500 ( N/A)
         Currency        United States dollar ( USD)
         Time zone       AST ( UTC-4)
    - Summer ( DST)      No DST ( UTC-4)
       Internet TLD      .pr
       Calling code      + 1-787 and + 1-939

   The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, (Spanish: Estado Libre Asociado de
   Puerto Rico, IPA [esˈtaðo ˈlibɾe asoˈsjaðo de ˈpweɾto ˈriko]), also
   Porto Rico ( archaic) and more commonly Puerto Rico, is a United States
   territory with Commonwealth status located in the northeastern
   Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of the Virgin
   Islands. The archipelago of Puerto Rico includes the main island of
   Puerto Rico, the smallest of the Greater Antilles, and a number of
   smaller islands and keys, the largest of which are Mona, Vieques, and
   Culebra.

   The nature of Puerto Rico's political relationship with the United
   States is the subject of ongoing debate in the island and also in the
   United Nations. Those who support maintaining the status quo (i.e.,
   Commonwealth status) insist that upon attaining this status, Puerto
   Rico entered into a voluntary association with the U.S. "in the nature
   of a compact", but according to a President's Task Force report, Puerto
   Rico is an unincorporated organized territory of the United States,
   subject to the plenary powers of the United States Congress and with
   the "right to establish a constitution for the internal administration
   of government and on matters of purely local concern".

History

Pre-Columbian era

   Taíno Village at the Tibes Ceremonial Center
   Enlarge
   Taíno Village at the Tibes Ceremonial Centre

   The history of the island of Puerto Rico prior to the arrival of
   Christopher Columbus is not well understood. What is known today comes
   from archeological findings and from early Spanish accounts. The first
   comprehensive book on the history of Puerto Rico was written by Fray
   Iñigo Abbad y Lasierra in 1786, 293 years after the first Spaniards
   arrived on the island.

   The first indigenous settlers of Puerto Rico were the Ortoiroid, an
   Archaic age culture. An archeological dig in the island of Vieques in
   1990 found the remains of what is believed to be an Arcaico (Archaic)
   man (named Puerto Ferro man) which was dated to around 2000 BC (4000
   years ago). Between 120 and 400 AD, the Igneri, a tribe from the
   Orinoco region, arrived on the island. Between the 7th and 11th century
   the Taíno culture developed on the island and by approximately 1000 AD,
   the Taíno culture had become dominant, a trend that lasted until the
   arrival of the Spanish in 1493.

Spanish arrival

   When Christopher Columbus arrived at Puerto Rico during his second
   voyage on November 19, 1493, the island was inhabited by a group of
   Arawak Indians known as Taínos. The Taínos called the island "Borikén"
   or "Borinquen". Columbus named the island San Juan Bautista, in honour
   of Saint John the Baptist. Later the island took the name of Puerto
   Rico (English: Rich Port) while the capital was named San Juan. In
   1508, Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León became the island's first
   governor to take office.

   The island was soon colonized by the Spanish. Taínos were forced to
   work for the Spanish crown but were soon extinguished by diseases
   brought by the Spaniards and the harsh conditions in which they were
   forced to work. African slaves were introduced as labour to replace the
   decreasing populations of Taíno. Puerto Rico briefly became an
   important stronghold and port for the Spanish Empire in the Caribbean.
   Colonial emphasis during the late 17th - 18th centuries, however,
   focused on the more prosperous mainland territories, leaving the island
   impoverished of settlers.
   Garita at Fort San Felipe del Morro
   Enlarge
   Garita at Fort San Felipe del Morro

   Because of concerns of threats from European enemies, over the
   centuries various forts and walls, such as La Fortaleza, El Castillo
   San Felipe del Morro and El Castillo de San Cristóbal, were built to
   protect the port of San Juan. The French, Dutch and English made
   several attempts to capture Puerto Rico but failed to wrest long-term
   occupancy of the island.

   In 1809, while Napoleon occupied the majority of the Iberian peninsula,
   a populist assembly based in Cádiz recognized Puerto Rico as an
   overseas province of Spain with the right to send representatives to
   the Spanish Court. The representative Ramon Power y Giralt died soon
   after arriving in Spain. These constitutional reforms were reversed
   when autocratic monarchy was restored. Nineteenth century reforms
   augmented the population and economy, and expanded the local character
   of the island. After the rapid gains of independence by the South and
   Central American states in the first part of the century, Puerto Rico
   and Cuba became the sole New World remnants of the large Spanish
   empire.

   Toward the end of the 19th century, poverty and political estrangement
   with Spain led to a small but significant uprising in 1868 known as "El
   Grito de Lares". The uprising was easily and quickly crushed. Leaders
   of this independence movement included Ramón Emeterio Betances,
   considered the "father" of the Puerto Rican nation, and other political
   figures such as Segundo Ruiz Belvis. Later, another political
   stronghold was the autonomist movement originated by Román Baldorioty
   de Castro and, toward the end of the century, by Luis Muñoz Rivera. In
   1897, Muñoz Rivera and others persuaded the liberal Spanish government
   to agree to a Charters of Autonomy for Cuba and Puerto Rico. The
   following year, Puerto Rico's first, but short-lived, autonomous
   government was organized. The charter maintained a governor appointed
   by Spain, who held the power to annul any legislative decision he
   disagreed with, and a partially elected parliamentary structure.

Puerto Rico under United States rule

   On July 25, 1898 at the outbreak of the Spanish–American War, Puerto
   Rico was invaded by the United States with a landing at Guánica.
   Following the outcome of the war, Spain was forced to cede Puerto Rico,
   along with Cuba, the Philippines, and Guam to the United States under
   the Treaty of Paris (1898). Puerto Rico began the twentieth century
   under the military rule of the United States with officials, including
   the governor, appointed by the President of the United States. In 1917,
   the Jones-Shafroth Act extended the U.S. citizenship on Puerto Ricans,
   a status they still hold today. Many Puerto Ricans served in the U.S.
   Armed Forces beginning in World War I. Natural disasters and the Great
   Depression impoverished the island. Some political leaders demanded
   change; some, like Pedro Albizu Campos, would lead a nationalist (The
   Puerto Rican Nationalist Party) movement in favour of independence. He
   served many years in prison for seditious conspiracy to overthrow the
   U.S. Government in Puerto Rico. Luis Muñoz Marín initially favored
   independence, but saw a severe decline of the Puerto Rican economy, as
   well as growing violence and uprisings and opted to create the
   "commonwealth" option instead.

   Change in the nature of the internal governance of the island came
   about during the later years of the Roosevelt–Truman administrations,
   as a form of compromise spearheaded by Muñoz Marín and others, and
   which culminated with the appointment by President Harry Truman in 1946
   of the first Puerto Rican-born governor, Jesus T. Piñero. In 1947, the
   United States granted the right to democratically elect the governor of
   Puerto Rico. Luis Muñoz Marín became the first elected governor of
   Puerto Rico in the 1948 general elections, serving as such for 16
   years, until 1964.

   Starting at this time, there was heavy migration from Puerto Rico to
   the mainland of the United States in search of better economic
   conditions. In 1945 there were 13,000 Puerto Ricans living in New York
   City; by 1955 there were 700,000, and by the mid-1960s there were over
   a million.

   On November 1, 1950, Puerto Rican nationalist terrorists Griselio
   Torresola and Oscar Collazo attempted to assassinate President Harry S.
   Truman. Subsequently, the Truman Administration allowed for a
   democratic referendum in Puerto Rico to determine whether Puerto Ricans
   desired to draft their own local constitution. Puerto Rico adopted its
   own local constitution in July 25, 1952 which adopted the name of
   "Estado Libre Asociado" (Free Associated State), translated into
   English as Commonwealth , for the body politic and which continues to
   denote Puerto Rico's current relationship with the United States.
   During the 1950s Puerto Rico experienced a rapid industrialization, due
   in large part to Operación Manos a la Obra (" Operation Bootstrap") (an
   offshoot of FDR's New Deal) which aimed to industrialize Puerto Rico's
   economy from agriculture-based into manufacturing-based.

   Present-day Puerto Rico has become a major tourist destination and a
   leading pharmaceutical and manufacturing centre. Still, Puerto Rico
   continues to struggle to define its political status. Three
   locally-authorized plebiscites have been held in recent decades to
   decide whether Puerto Rico should pursue independence, enhanced
   commonwealth status, or statehood. Narrow victories by commonwealth
   supporters over statehood advocates in the first two plebiscites and
   indefinition by the Puerto-Rican electorate in the third has allowed
   the relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States government
   to remain unchanged. In the latest status referendum of 1998, the "none
   of the above" option won over Statehood, Commonwealth and Independence
   with 50.2% of the votes. Support for the pro-statehood party ( Partido
   Nuevo Progresista or PNP) and the pro-commonwealth party ( Partido
   Popular Democrático or PPD) remains about equal. The only registered
   independence party on the island, the Partido Independentista
   Puertorriqueño or PIP, usually receives 3-5% of the electoral votes,
   though there are several smaller independence groups like the Partido
   Nacionalista de Puerto Rico (Puerto Rican Nationalist Party), el
   Movimiento Independentista Nacional Hostosiano (National Hostosian
   Independence Movement), and the Macheteros - Ejercito Popular Boricua
   (or Boricua Popular Army).

Geography

   Map of Puerto Rico
   Enlarge
   Map of Puerto Rico

   Puerto Rico consists of a main island of Puerto Rico and various
   smaller islands, including Vieques, Culebra, Mona, Desecheo, and Caja
   de Muertos. Of the latter five, only Culebra and Vieques are inhabited
   year-round. Mona is uninhabited through large parts of the year except
   for employees of the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources. There
   are also many other even smaller islands including Monito and "La
   Isleta de San Juan" known as Old San Juan.

   The mainland measures some 100 miles by 35 nautical miles (170 km by 60
   km). It is mostly mountainous with large coastal areas in the north and
   south regions of the island. The main mountainous range is called " La
   Cordillera Central" (The Central Range). The highest elevation point of
   Puerto Rico, Cerro de Punta (4,390  feet; 1,338  m), is located in this
   range. Another important peak is El Yunque, located in the Sierra de
   Luquillo at the Caribbean National Forest, with a maximum elevation of
   3,494 feet (1,065 m). The capital, San Juan, is located on the main
   island's north coast.

   Located in the tropics, Puerto Rico enjoys an average temperature of 28
   °C (82.4 °F) throughout the year. The seasons do not change very
   drastically. The temperature in the south is usually a few degrees
   higher than the north and temperatures in the central interior
   mountains are always cooler than the rest of the island. The hurricane
   season spans between June and November.

   Puerto Rico has 17 lakes (none of them natural) and more than 50
   rivers. Most of these rivers are born in the Cordillera Central. The
   rivers in the northern region of the island are bigger and with higher
   flow capacity than those of the south region. The south is thus drier
   and hotter than the north region.

   As of 1998, 239 plants, 16 birds and 39 amphibians/reptiles have been
   discovered that are endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico. The
   majority of these (234, 12 and 33 repectively) are found on the main
   island. The most recognizable endemic species and a symbol of Puerto
   Rican pride is the Coquí, a small frog easily recognized by the sound
   from which it gets its name. The Caribbean National Forest, also known
   as El Yunque, a tropical rainforest is home to the majority (13 of 16)
   of species of coquí. It is also home to more than 240 plants, 26 of
   which are endemic and 50 bird species, including one of the top 10
   endangered birds in the world, the Puerto Rican Parrot.

Geology

   Geology of Puerto Rico
   Enlarge
   Geology of Puerto Rico

   Puerto Rico is composed of Cretaceous to Eocene volcanic and plutonic
   rocks, which are overlain by younger Oligocene to recent carbonates and
   other sedimentary rocks. Most of the caverns and karst topography on
   the island occurs in the northern Oligocene to recent carbonates. The
   oldest rocks are approximately 190 million years old (Jurassic) and are
   located at Sierra Bermeja in the southwest part of the island. These
   rocks may represent part of the oceanic crust and are believed to come
   from the Pacific Ocean realm.

   Puerto Rico lies at the boundary between the Caribbean and North
   American plates and is currently being deformed by the tectonic
   stresses caused by the interaction of these plates. These stresses may
   cause earthquakes and tsunamis. These seismic events, along with
   landslides, represent some of the most dangerous geologic hazards in
   the island and in the northeastern Caribbean. The most recent major
   earthquake occurred on October 11, 1918 and had an estimated magnitude
   of 7.5 on the Richter scale. It originated off the coast of Aguadilla
   and was accompanied by a tsunami.

   The Puerto Rico Trench, the largest and deepest trench in the Atlantic,
   is located about 120 km (75 miles) north of Puerto Rico in the Atlantic
   Ocean at the boundary between the Caribbean and North American plates.
   The trench is 1,754 km (1,090 miles) long and about 97 km (60 miles)
   wide. At its deepest point, named the Milwaukee Deep, it is 8,380 m
   (27,493 feet) deep, or about 8.38 km (5.2 miles).

Demographics

   Puerto Rico has sometimes been said to have a European ( Spanish)
   descent majority, an extinct Amerindian population, persons of mixed
   ancestry, Africans, and a small Asian minority. An analysis of blood
   groups and protein markers determined that the Puerto Rican gene pool
   was comprised of 45% European contribution, 37% African, and 18% Native
   American. A more recent study of mtDNA from 800 individuals found 61.1%
   as having Amerindian maternal mtDNA, 26.4% as having African maternal
   mtDNA, and 12.5% as having Caucasian maternal mtDNA.
   Royal Decree of Graces, 1815
   Enlarge
   Royal Decree of Graces, 1815

   During the 1800s, hundreds of Corsican, French, Lebanese, Chinese, and
   Portuguese families, along with large numbers of immigrants from Spain
   (mainly from Catalonia, Asturias, Galicia and the Balearic Islands),
   the Canary Islands and numerous Spanish loyalists from Spain's former
   colonies in South America, arrived in Puerto Rico. Other settlers have
   included Irish, Scots, Germans, Italians, and thousands others who were
   granted land from Spain during the Real Cedula de Gracias de 1815 (
   Royal Decree of Graces of 1815), which allowed European Catholics to
   settle in the island with a certain amount of free land. This mass
   immigration during the 19th century helped the population grow from
   155,000 in 1800 to almost a million at the close of the century. A
   census conducted by royal decree on September 30, 1858, gives the
   following totals of the Puerto Rican population at this time, Whites
   300,430 , Free colored 341,015, Slaves 41,736, Unclassified 127. More
   recently Puerto Rico has become the permanent home of over 100,000
   legal residents who immigrated from not only Spain, but from Latin
   America as well. Argentines, Cubans, Dominicans, Colombians and
   Venezuelans can also be accounted for as settlers. The variety of
   surnames which exist in Puerto Rico suggests widespread immigration to
   the island from many regions. Ten percent of the population has either
   Rivera or Rodriguez as their last names making these 2 the most popular
   surnames in Puerto Rico. Seventy-four percent of the population has
   Spanish surnames, sixteen percent can trace their surnames to either
   Corsica or France while the remaining ten percent can be divided (in
   numerical order) between Ireland, Germany, Italy, Denmark, England
   among others.

   Emigration has been a major part of Puerto Rico's recent history as
   well. Starting in the Post-WWII period, due to poverty, cheap airfare,
   and promotion by the island government, waves of Puerto Ricans moved to
   the United States, particularly to New York City, Chicago, Boston,
   Orlando, Tampa, Philadelphia, and Hartford. This continued even as
   Puerto Rico's economy improved and its birth rate declined. Emigration
   continues at the present time, and this, combined with Puerto Rico's
   greatly lowered birth rate, suggests that the island's population will
   age rapidly and start to decline sometime within the next couple of
   decades.

   In the 2000 U.S. Census Puerto Ricans were asked to indicate which
   racial category they consider themselves. 95.8% answered with only one
   choice. The breakdown is as follows: 80.5% described themselves as "
   white"; 8% described themselves as " black"; and only 0.4% described
   themselves as "American Indian or Alaska Native" (the US Census does
   not consider Hispanic to be a race, and asks if a person considers
   himself Hispanic in a separate question). These figures demonstrate
   that racial terms are relative, not absolute, and highlight the
   potential for confusion when they are used in a definitive and distinct
   way. However the island suffers from very high levels of poverty, as of
   2005, 50% of the population is living below the poverty line.

Education

   Education in Puerto Rico is divided into four levels. These are
   elementary, intermediate, high school, and the college level. Students
   can attend either a public or a private school. According to the 2000
   Census, 60.0% of the population attained a high school degree or higher
   level of education, and 18.3% has a bachelor's degree or higher. This
   ranks as worst and 6th worst, respectively, among US states, where the
   national averages are 80.4% and 24.4%. As of 2002, the literacy rate of
   the population was 94.1%. By gender, the literacy rate is 93.9% for
   males and 94.4% for females.

   Public schools are run by the Departamento de Educación Pública de
   Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico Department of Education) while private schools
   are run by private institutions, predominantly the Roman Catholic
   Church. The two public universities in Puerto Rico are the multi-campus
   University of Puerto Rico and the Colegio Universitario de San Juan
   operated by the city of San Juan. The largest private university
   systems on the island are the Ana G. Mendez University System (which
   operates the Turabo University, the Metropolitan University, and the
   Eastern University), the multi-campus Interamerican University, the
   Pontifical Catholic University, and the University of the Sacred Heart.
   Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Puerto Rico y el Caribe located in
   historic Old San Juan is a graduate level institution specializing in
   the study of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean.

   There are more than 600,000 students attending over 1,500 schools every
   year. With 45 thousand teachers the Department of Education is the
   largest employer in the island. The Teachers' Federation of Puerto Rico
   is the largest union which organizes all the permanent teachers within
   the public sector.

Languages

   The official languages of the island are Spanish and English. Spanish
   is the primary language of Puerto Ricans, though English is taught, as
   a second language, in schools from elementary levels to high school. As
   of 2006, an estimated 3,860,120 people use Spanish as their primary
   language; for 82,000, which is less than 2.2% of the population,
   English is their primary language. While relatively few Puerto Ricans
   use English as their main language, the large majority of residents
   living in metropolitan areas are bilingual, or at least understand and
   speak English to a certain extent.

   In 1991, Governor Rafael Hernández Colón signed a law declaring Spanish
   as the sole official language of the island's government. While many
   applauded the governor's decision, mainly members of the parties
   supporting commonwealth-status and independence, statehood supporters
   saw it as a threat to their cause. The signing of the law also brought
   the island acclaim, as the people of Puerto Rico won the prestigious
   Prince of Asturias Award in literature in 1991. The award is given
   annually to individuals and organizations worldwide for their defense
   and contribution to the growth of the Spanish language by Principe
   Felipe of Spain. Upon his election as governor in 1993, Governor Pedro
   Rosselló overturned the law and re-established English as an official
   language. This was seen by many as a move by the pro-statehood governor
   to move the island closer to statehood, something that never came about
   under his two consecutive four-year terms. The changes to the law in
   1993 appear to have been largely ignored at the municipal level as most
   court proceedings and court documents are still in Spanish. Very few
   restaurants or stores outside of San Juan have menus or signs in
   English and parking tickets and police reports are still in Spanish.

Religion

   The Roman Catholic religion has been historically dominant and is the
   religion of the majority of Puerto Ricans, although the presence of
   Jehovah's Witnesses, various Protestant denominations and Mormons has
   increased under American sovereignty, making modern Puerto Rico an
   interconfessional country. Protestantism was repressed under the
   Spanish regime. For example, the first non-Catholic church, Holy
   Trinity Anglican church in Ponce, now a parish of the Diocese of Puerto
   Rico of the Episcopal Church of the United States, was not allowed to
   ring its church bell until American troops marched through Ponce after
   landing at Guánica harbour on July 25, 1898.

   There is a relatively small but diverse Jewish community in and around
   San Juan with a Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox house of prayer.
   There is as well a Muslim community with worship places in different
   parts of the island. The three main mosques are located in Rio Piedras,
   Ponce, and Vega Alta.

   Taíno religious practices have to a degree been rediscovered/reinvented
   by a few handfuls of advocates. Kongo belief, known as Mayombe or Palo,
   has been around since the days of the arrival of enslaved Africans.
   Although Santeria (stronger and more organized in Cuba) is practiced by
   some, Palo Mayombe (sometimes called an African belief system, but
   rather a way of Bantu lifestyle of Congo origin) finds more adherence
   among individuals who practice some form of African Traditional
   Religion.

Politics

   The government of Puerto Rico is based on the Republican system
   composed of 3 branches: the Executive branch headed by the Governor,
   the Legislative branch consisting of a bicameral Legislative Assembly
   (a Senate and a House of Representatives) and the Judicial branch. The
   legal system is based on a mix of the civil law and the common law
   systems. The governor as well as legislators are elected by popular
   vote every four years. Members of the Judicial branch are appointed by
   the governor and approved by the senate. Puerto Rico is divided into 78
   municipalities, each of which elect a mayor and a municipal
   legislature.

   In 1950, the U.S. Congress afforded Puerto Ricans the right to organize
   a constitutional convention, contingent on the results of a referendum,
   where the electorate would determine if they wished to organize their
   own government pursuant to a constitution of their own choosing. Puerto
   Ricans expressed their support for this measure in a 1951 referendum,
   which gave voters a yes-or-no choice for the commonwealth status,
   defined as a ‘permanent association with a federal union’. A second
   referendum was held to approve the constitution, which was adopted in
   1952. Prior to approving the new constitution, the Constitutional
   Convention specified the name by which the body politic would be known.
   On February 4, 1952, the convention approved Resolution 22 which chose
   in English the word “ Commonwealth ”, meaning a “politically organized
   community” or “ State”, which is simultaneously connected by a compact
   or treaty to another political system. Unable to translate the word
   into Spanish, the convention adopted a translation inspired by the
   Irish Free State called “Estado Libre Asociado” (ELA) to represent the
   compact between the people of Puerto Rico and the United States, which
   is literally translated into English as “Associated Free State”.

   Under the 1952 constitution, Puerto Rico is a Commonwealth (use some
   benefits of the U.S.) and is permitted a degree of autonomy similar to
   that of a state of the Union, such an arrangement is known as federacy.
   Puerto Rico does not have voting representation in the U.S. Congress;
   neither does it have any electors in the U.S. Electoral College, and
   therefore Puerto Rican citizens do not participate in the U.S.
   Presidential elections, although political parties can, and do, have
   state-like voting delegations to the nominating conventions of both
   major national parties. A non-voting Resident Commissioner is elected
   by the residents of Puerto Rico to the U.S. Congress acting as a
   delegate of the people of Puerto Rico.

   While residents of the island do not pay federal income tax, Puerto
   Ricans do pay U.S. federal payroll taxes ( Social Security and
   Medicare). Puerto Rico residents are eligible for Social Security
   benefits upon retirement. Puerto Rico is excluded from Supplemental
   Security Income (SSI). Because Puerto Ricans do not pay federal income
   tax, Puerto Rico receives less than 15% of the Medicaid funding it
   would be allotted as a state. For Medicare, Puerto Rico pays fully but
   only receives partial benefits.

   As statutory U.S. citizens, Puerto Ricans may enlist in the U.S.
   military. Puerto Ricans have been included in the compulsory draft,
   when it has been in effect. Puerto Ricans have fully participated in
   all modern U.S. wars.

   For the past fifty years, Puerto Rico's political status vis-à-vis the
   United States has been the subject of much debate. A Commonwealth
   associated to the U.S. since 1952, the ideology of Puerto Ricans is
   represented by its political parties, which stand for the current
   relationship or the two distinct future political scenarios: the status
   quo, statehood, and independence. The Popular Democratic Party (PPD)
   seeks to maintain or improve the current status, the New Progressive
   Party (PNP) seeks to fully incorporate Puerto Rico as a U.S. state, and
   the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) seeks national independence.

   In 1967, the Legislative Assembly tested political interests of the
   Puerto Rican people by passing a plebiscite Act that allowed a vote on
   the status of Puerto Rico. This constituted the first plebiscite by the
   Legislature for a choice on three status options. Puerto Rican leaders
   had lobbied for such an opportunity repeatedly, in 1898, 1912, 1914,
   1919, 1923, 1929, 1932, 1939, 1943, 1944, 1948, 1956, and 1960.
   Following the plebiscite, efforts in the 1970s to enact legislation to
   address the status issue died in Congressional committees. In both the
   1993 plebiscite, in which Congress played a more substantial role, and
   the 1998 plebiscite the status quo, Commonwealth status, was upheld. .
   In the last plebiscite, 46.5% of the population voted for U.S.
   Statehood, while only 2.5% voted for Independence. The majority voted
   for "none-of-the-above," which was considered to be a vote against
   statehood or independence (and for retaining or improving the current
   relationship with the U.S.).

Puerto Rico's political status and international law

   Although Puerto Rico is, politically speaking, an unincorporated
   territory of the United States classified as a Commonwealth , some
   Puerto Ricans refer to Puerto Rico as a país, the Spanish word for
   country. This is a common term used to describe dependent territories
   by the United Nations although on many occasions it has been thought of
   as a possibility that Puerto Rico would become the 51st state of the
   United States of America. The United Nations has in the past evaluated
   Puerto Rico's political status to ensure that the island's government
   complies with the standards of self-government that constitute the
   basic tenets of the United Nations Charter, its covenants, and its
   principles of international law.

   On November 27, 1953, shortly after establishment of the Commonwealth,
   the General Assembly of the UN approved Resolution 748, removing Puerto
   Rico’s classification as a non-self-governing territory under article
   73(e) of the Charter from United Nations. The resolution garnered a
   favorable vote of fewer than 40% of the General Assembly, with over 60%
   abstaining or voting against it (20 to 16, with 18 abstentions). This
   resolution has not been revoked by the UN even though the political
   status is still debated in many international forums.

   For a territory to be deemed self-governing, the United Nations
   require:

          "(a) Legislative representation. Representation without
          discrimination in the central legislative organs, on the same
          basis as other inhabitants and regions [within the governing
          nation].

          (b) Participation of the population. Effective participation of
          population in the government of the territory

                (1) Is there an adequate and appropriate electoral and
                representation system?
                (2) Is this electoral system conducted without direct or
                indirect interference from a foreign government?

          (c) Citizenship. Citizenship without discrimination on the same
          basis as other inhabitants

          (d) Government officials. Eligibility of officials from the
          territory for all public offices of the central authority, by
          appointment or election, on the same basis as those from other
          parts of the country".

   The General Assembly did not apply its list of criteria to Puerto Rico
   for determining whether or not self-governing status had been achieved.
   In fact, in a 1996 report on a Puerto Rico status political bill, the
   U.S. House Committee on Resources stated that Puerto Rico’s current
   status “does not meet the criteria for any of the options for full self
   government.” The House Committee concluded that Puerto Rico is still an
   unincorporated territory of the United States under the territorial
   clause, that the establishment of local self-government with the
   consent of the people can be unilaterally revoked by U.S. Congress, and
   that U.S. Congress can also withdraw at any time the American
   citizenship now enjoyed by the residents of Puerto Rico as long as it
   achieves a legitimate Federal purpose, in a manner reasonably related
   to that purpose.

   According to a report by the President’s Task Force on Puerto Rico’s
   Status, released in December 2005, it is not possible “to bind future
   Congresses to any particular arrangement for Puerto Rico as a
   Commonwealth”. This determination was based on articles in the U.S.
   Constitution regarding territories. The governor of Puerto Rico
   promised to challenge the task force report. On January 4, 2006,
   Governor Anibal Acevedo Vilá announced the steps that he and the
   governing Popular Democratic Party will take in the following months.
   The historic resolution denounces the task force as a political fraud
   that represents a threat to democracy and is in violation of the basic
   agreements held between the people of Puerto Rico and the United States
   since 1952. It also stated a compromise to challenge the task force
   report and validate the current status in all international forums
   including the United Nations. Also rejects any colonial or territorial
   status as a status option and vows to keep working for the enhanced
   commonwealth status that was approved by the PPD in 1998 which
   included: sovereignty, an association based on respect and dignity
   between both nations, and common citizenship.

   As part of the PPD's strategy, a bill supporting its position was
   introduced in the United States Senate by two senators who have
   traditionally been identified with Puerto Rico, Sens. Edward M. Kennedy
   (D-MA) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and two senators whose interest in all
   matters Puerto Rican was up to then unknown, Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC)
   and Trent Lott (R-MS). Since its introduction, the bill has not
   attracted any other co-sponsors, in spite of heavy lobbying on the part
   of Puerto Rico's Executive Branch lobbyists. A bipartisan Senate bill
   supporting the implementation of the White House report recommendations
   is expected to be filed shortly by Sens. Mel Martinez (R-FL) and Ken
   Salazar (D-CO).

   On the other hand, Resident Commissioner Luis Fortuño (R-PR) and Rep.
   Jose E. Serrano (D-NY) filed a bipartisan House bill to implement the
   recommendations, which has been cosponsored by over 60 Republicans and
   over 40 Democrats, significantly more cosponsors than the Young Bill
   which cleared the House in 1998. The House Committee on Resources
   called a hearing on the subject on April 27, 2006, signalling a greater
   degree of interest than previously anticipated.

Administrative divisions

   Municipalities of Puerto Rico
   Enlarge
   Municipalities of Puerto Rico

   As an unincorporated territory of the United States, Puerto Rico does
   not have any first-order administrative divisions as defined by the
   U.S. Government, but there are 78 municipalities at the second level (
   Mona Island is not a municipality, but part of the municipality of
   Mayagüez). Municipalities are subdivided into wards or barrios, and
   those into sectors. Each municipality has a mayor and a municipal
   legislature elected for a 4 year term.

   The first municipality (previously called "town") of Puerto Rico, San
   Juan, was founded in 1521. In the 16th century two more municipalities
   were established, Coamo (1570) and San Germán (1570). Three more
   municipalities were established in the 17th century. These were Arecibo
   (1614), Aguada (1692) and Ponce (1692). The 18th and 19th century saw
   an increase in settlement in Puerto Rico. 30 municipalities were
   established in the 18th century and 34 more were established in the
   19th century. Only six municipalities were founded in the 20th century.
   The last municipality was Florida, founded in 1971.

Economy

   In the early 1900's the greatest contributor to Puerto Rico's economy
   was agriculture, its main crop being sugar. In the late 1940's a series
   of projects codenamed Operation Bootstrap encouraged, using tax
   exemptions, the establishment of factories. Thus manufacturing replaced
   agriculture as the main industry.

   The economic conditions in Puerto Rico have improved dramatically since
   the Great Depression due to external investment in capital-intensive
   industry such as petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, and technology. Once
   the beneficiary of special tax treatment from the U.S. government,
   today local industries must compete with those in more economically
   depressed parts of the world where wages are not subject to U.S.
   minimum wage legislation. In recent years, some U.S. and foreign owned
   factories have moved to lower wage countries in Latin America and Asia.
   Puerto Rico is subject to U.S. trade laws and restrictions.

   Tourism is an important component of the Puerto Rican economy supplying
   an approximate $1.8 billion. In 1999, an estimated 5 million tourists
   visited the island, most from the United States. Nearly a third of
   these are cruise ship passengers. A steady increase in hotel
   registrations, which has been observed since 1998, and the construction
   of new hotels and new tourism projects, such as the Puerto Rico
   Convention Centre, are indicators of the current strength of the
   tourism industry.

   Puerto Ricans had a per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimate of
   $17,700 for 2004, which demonstrates a growth over the $14,412 level
   measured in the 2002 Current Population Survey by the Puerto Rican
   Legal Defense and Education Fund. In that survey, Puerto Ricans have a
   48.2% poverty rate. By comparison, the poorest State of the Union,
   Mississippi, had a median level of $21,587, according to the U.S.
   Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, 2002 to 2004 Annual Social
   and Economic Supplements. Since 1952, the gap between Puerto Rico's per
   capita income and U.S. national levels has essentially remained
   unchanged — one third the U.S. national average and roughly half that
   of the poorest state. Nevertheless Puerto Rico remains the most
   developed nation in Latin America based on data of the CIA Worldfact
   book.

   On May 1, 2006, the Puerto Rican government faced significant shortages
   in cash flows, which forced the closure of the local Department of
   Education and 42 other government agencies. All 1,536 public schools
   closed, and 95,762 people were furloughed in the first-ever partial
   shutdown of the government in the island's history. On May 10, 2006,
   the budget crisis was resolved with a new tax reform agreement, with
   plans to apply a temporary 1% tax input so that all government
   employees could return to work. On November 15, 2006 a 5.5% sales tax
   was implemented. Municipalities have the option of applying a municipal
   sales tax of 1.5% bringing the total sales tax to 7%.

Culture

   Kapok tree (Ceiba) the national tree of Puerto Rico
   Enlarge
   Kapok tree (Ceiba) the national tree of Puerto Rico

   Puerto Rican culture is a mix of four cultures, African (from the
   slaves), "Taíno" (Amerindians), Spanish, and, more recently, North
   American. From Africans, the Puerto Ricans have obtained the " bomba
   and plena", a type of music and dance including percussions and
   maracas. From the Amerindians, Puerto Ricans have kept many names for
   their municipalities, food, and other objects. From the Spanish they
   got the Spanish language, the Catholic religion, among other
   influences. From the United States they received the English language,
   the university system, consumption practices, fast food, and a variety
   of hybrid cultural forms that developed between the mainland and the
   island.

   The official national symbols of Puerto Rico are bird, Reinita mora (
   Spindalis portoricensis), flower, Flor de Maga ( Thespesia
   grandiflora), and tree, Ceiba or Kapok ( Ceiba pentandra). The
   unofficial national animal is the Coquí ( Eleutherodactylus coqui).
   Another popular unofficial symbol of Puerto Rico is the " jibaro".

   Puerto Rico has its own representatives in international beauty
   pageants including Miss World and Miss Universe. Puerto Rican beauty
   queens have won the Miss Universe pageant five times (1970, 1985, 1993,
   2001, 2006), second only to Miss USA, and the Miss World pageant once
   (1975). The island's contestant was second-runner up in the 2005 Miss
   World pageant, and held the title of Miss World Caribbean the same
   year.

Sports

   Juan Evangelista Venegas, winner of the first Puerto Rican Olympic
   medal.
   Enlarge
   Juan Evangelista Venegas, winner of the first Puerto Rican Olympic
   medal.

   Puerto Rico has an Olympic team in the Summer Olympic and the Winter
   Olympics, as well as international representation in many other
   sporting events including the Pan-American Games, the Central American
   and Caribbean Games, and the Caribbean World Series. Puerto Rican
   athletes have won 6 medals (1 silver, 5 bronze) in Olympic competition,
   the first one in 1948 by boxer Juan Evangelista Venegas. Puerto Rican
   professional tennis player Beatriz "Gigi" Fernandez won a gold medal in
   tennis doubles competitions, representing the United States Olympic
   Team.

   Although boxing, basketball, volleyball and baseball are popular,
   traditionally baseball had been the most popular sport, until recently
   being overcome by basketball. Puerto Rico has its own professional
   baseball leagues. San Juan hosted the Montreal Expos for several series
   in 2003 and 2004 before they moved to Washington, D.C. and became the
   Washington Nationals. Puerto Rico has participated in the World Cup of
   Baseball winning 1 gold (1951), 4 silver and 4 bronze medals.

   August 8, 2004, became a landmark date for Puerto Rico's national
   olympic team when the basketball team of Puerto Rico defeated the U.S.
   basketball team in Athens, Greece, the defending gold medalist and
   basketball powerhouse in Olympic play. On September 29, 2005, Major
   League Baseball (MLB) announced that San Juan's Hiram Bithorn Stadium
   would be one of the sites of the opening round as well as the second
   round of the newly formed World Baseball Classic, a 16-country
   tournament featuring top players, which was held in San Juan in March
   2006. Puerto Rico fielded its own team in that event, composed mostly
   of MLB players, which survived the opening round but was defeated in
   the second round.

   Professional wrestling has enjoyed much popularity in Puerto Rico for a
   long time. Matches have been televised since the 1960s, and multiple,
   non-televised matches are held each week across the island. The World
   Wrestling Council is the main wrestling promoter in Puerto Rico. Famous
   Puerto Rican wrestlers have included Barrabas, Carlos Colon and his
   son, Carlito, Los Invaders, Savio Vega, WWE Hall of Famer Pedro
   Morales, and Los Super Médicos. Many World Wrestling Entertainment
   stars, such as Randy Savage, and Ric Flair have fought in Puerto Rico.
   Women's wrestling has been gaining popularity in Puerto Rico since the
   1990s.

Transportation

   Tren Urbano at Bayamón Station.
   Enlarge
   Tren Urbano at Bayamón Station.

   Puerto Rico is connected by a system of freeways, expressways, and
   highways, all maintained by the Roads and Transportation Authority and
   patrolled by the Police of Puerto Rico. The island's metropolitan area
   is served by a public bus transit system and a metro system called Tren
   Urbano (In English: Urban Train). The island's main airport, Luis Muñoz
   Marín International Airport is located in Carolina, and the main port
   is the San Juan Port

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rico"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
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