Mayotte

Mayotte is a departmental community of overseas French located in the Archipel of the the Comoros at the North-West of Madagascar. Its zip code begins with 976 . It is made up mainly of two island S, Grande Ground and Small Ground. It is located in the channel of Mozambique, in the Indian Ocean. It with the strongest density of DOM-TOM with 538 hab. /km ². 90% of the population are Moslem.

History

See also: History of Mayotte, History of the Comoros

In 1500, a sultanate is established on the island of Mayotte. Later, in 1503, the island is discovered by Portuguese navigators who will note it on the charts.

In 1832, the island is conquered by Andriantsoly, former king Sakalava of Boina in Madagascar. Following the catch of Nosy Be (Madagascar) in 1840, the French take note of the presence of king Sakalava in Mayotte. Mayotte becomes French colony the April 25th 1841, whereas the Franco-British competition for the control of the other islands was going to turn to the advantage of France. In 1886, the Large Comore, Mohéli and Anjouan become protectorate under the direction of the governor of Mayotte 1886. Mayotte, as for it, guard a statute of colony. Starting from 1908, the whole of the Comoros is integrated under the authority of the general government of Madagascar and dependences. In 1946, the Comoros are separated from Madagascar and become Overseas territory. Following the refusal in 1958 so much of the independence than of the departmentalization, the Comoros obtain the December 22nd 1961 (law n°1412) an internal statute of autonomy (which will be widened in 1968 by the law n°6804); the deputy Said Mohamed Sheik becomes president of the government council, until his death the March 16th 1970. The capital Dzaoudzi (Mayotte) is transferred to Moroni in 1966, eight years after the decision of the transfer.

The August 25th 1972, the special Committee of decolonization of UNO registers the archipelago of the Comoros. In 1974, France organizes in the Comoros a referendum on independence. Mayotte will be the only island of the archipelago to be voted for the maintenance of its bonds with France. It will confirm this choice at the time of a second referendum in 1976.

In spite of the choice of Mahorais, since 1975, the island is always asserted by the Union of the Comoros and the African Union recognizes this territory like occupied by a foreign power.

In the same way, the General meeting of the United Nations has many times condemned the French presence to Mayotte, after UNO, by its Safety advice had not adopted a resolution condemning France. UNO had been based on the declaration of December 14th, 1960, " on the granting of independence to the countries and people colonisés" , not n° 6 on the safeguarding of the territorial integrity, in total contradiction with the point n° 2 on the right to self-determination. Since 1995, however, the question of Mayotte was not registered any more with the day order of the general meeting of UNO.

The European Union as for it recognizes obviously this territory like French, with the statute of OCT (Pays and overseas territories).

Statute of the community

The law of the July 11th 2001 relative to Mayotte envisages the phased introduction of the right common French to Mayotte, from the point of view of the evolution towards the statute of Overseas department (DOM). Mayotte is thus a departmental community, equipped with a general advice, and a decentralized administration, in place since April 1st 2004. Since 2001, the rules applicable to Mayotte appear in the general Code of the territorial collectivities. The organic law of February 21st, 2007 rewrote this statute, by prolonging the logic of the law of 2001. From now on (starting from January 1st, 2008), except in some matters (taxation, town planning, social right…), the legislative identity governs the legislative mode of Mayotte: that means that the common right is applicable, as in the DOM. Moreover, starting from his renewal of 2008, the general advice of Mayotte will be able to adopt a resolution inviting the government to transform the community into DOM.

The statute of DOM is perhaps (the question is not clear, since certain Guianeses have such a statute and that the Constitution “protects” the personal status) incompatible with the maintenance of the personal status ( to see low), but would allow the attribution of the Minimum wages of insertion, which explains the lobbying of most of the political community in this direction.

Decentralization meets shelves similar to those known in 1982 in metropolis, worsened by the weakness of the democratic practice which is at the same time recent and plated on the ancestral and cosmopolitan culture of the inhabitants of the island. The clientelism is very developed.

The French State is represented by a prefect. As regards state education, Mayotte constitutes a Vice-vice-chancellorship.

The inhabitants of Mayotte are represented with the National Assembly by a deputy, since June 2007 Abdoulatifou Aly (Force of the Alternation of the MDM, affiliated with the MoDem) like with the Sénat by two senators: Soibahaddine Ibrahim (UMP) and Adrien Giraud (UDF).

See also: List of the deputies of Mayotte, List of the senators de Mayotte

Policy

In 1958, five Overseas territories, slightly populated, choose to preserve their statute and not to become States within the news French Communauté: it was about Saint-Pierre-and-Miquelon, of the French Côte of Somalis, the archipelago of the the Comoros, the New Caledonia and the French Polynésie. These TOM continued to send representatives to the National Assembly, but because of the time of the exercise of the option, they could not take part in the legislative elections of the 23 and November 30th 1958, the first of the Ve République. The seat of deputy of Mayotte thus goes back to that of the Comoros, since, by its vote of the February 8th 1976 (“Yes” to 99,4%) maintained its bonds with France.

In 1978, it is the UDF Younoussa Bamana which was the first elected deputy, then re-elected, in this territorial collectivity of 19.000 voters. With the election of François Mitterrand, it is Jean-François Hory, near to the PRG which is then elected (whereas Valery Giscard d'Estaing had obtained 89,9% of the voices little time before). In 1986, it is a centrist, Henry Jean-Baptiste, which is elected, then re-elected in 1988 and 1993, whereas the island exceeds from now on 30.000 voters. In spite of the progressive rise of its rival RPR dissident, Mansour Kamardine, it is always Jean-Baptiste who is elected in 1997 (51,7%). It is only in 2002, with the withdrawal of the latter that Mansour Kamardine is elected with the 2nd turn appointed with the support of the president of the General advice, Younoussa Bamana, vis-a-vis the candidate UDF-MDM, Vita Siadi.

In 2007, Abdoulatifou Aly, candidate of the Force of the Alternation of the Movement departementalist mahorais (a dissidence of the Mouvement departementalist mahorais) is elected with the second turn of legislative against Mansour Kamardine. This one belongs to the democratic Mouvement of Francois Bayrou.

Geography and geology

Mayotte is made up of several islands and small islands, two larger are Grande Ground and Pamandzi (or Petite Ground ) surrounded by a lagoon of 1.100 km ² (one of largest of the world) formed by a reef of Corail 160 km length, which surrounds it quasi totality of the island except for a dozen master keys, of which one in the East called " Passes in S". The lagoon is strewn with a hundred coral small islands of which some as Me Zamboro are of any beauty.

The islands which form Mayotte are geologically oldest of the the Comoros. Their age is decreasing of south-east (Mayotte) to the North-West (Grande Comore), although one observes so much on the Large Earth than on the small island of Pamandzi, of the very recent apparatuses (Maars). The insular unit is a vast volcanic shield of alkaline lava with extrusions Phonolitique S as in Choungui whose fifth is still emerged. The center of the apparatus is at sea, in the west. An important subsidence took place, in particular allowing the establishment of an exceptional crown récifale around the residual reliefs.

This reef gets a shelter with the boats and the oceanic rich person fauna.

The last activity Volcan ic of the islands makes the ground particularly fertile.

The climate is tropical, the average temperatures oscillate between 23 and 30°C.

Large Ground, 363 km ², measurement 39 kilometers length by 22 kilometers broad. Its culminating points are: Mount Bénara (660 m), Mount Choungui (594 m), Mount Mtsapéré (572 m) and Mount Combani (477). It shelters Mamoudzou, which is the place chief and the economic capital of Mayotte.
Small Ground (or Pamandzi island), shelters Dzaoudzi-Labattoir, Pamandzi (and the airport). It makes 11 km ².
the small island Me Zamboro is the third island by its dimension, she is inhabited in a permanent way amongst other things by fishermen and is famous for her orange culture.
the small island Bouzi

Climate

The climate is of tropical type maritime. The hot season (rain season) goes from November to April (27 with 30°); the season dries from May to October (22 with 25°).

Environment

Mayotte was initially very rich in Biodiversité, but the primary forest recently disappeared there, involving risks of instability for the grounds and the Littoral as well as a pollution and degradation of the Lagon, whereas the land pressure and demography do not cease growing.

The threats which weigh on the ecosystem are in particular the introduced species and possibly invasive, with increasing risks of biological Invasion; the fragmentation by the roads, which degrade the ecological Intégrité of the island; impacts of tourism; the degradation of the coral reefs by the pollution and accumulations of terrigenous Sediment S (already several km2 are touched in the lagoons of Rodrigues and Mayotte from where the Scléractiniaire S disappeared, following the destruction of the Forêt S which protected the grounds from the erosion. Manure and Pesticide S can also be carried by rain water and support the bleaching of the corals (Bleaching). The collection of shell, overfishing and certain extractive activities (coral sand), the agriculture and the divagation of animals can also have negative impacts.

Natural zone:

marine Park of Saziley
Small island Bouzi (Tropical forest dries)

Administrative divisions

Demography

Health

Mamoudzou is the single city where a Hôpital is, whose appendix is opened with Dzaoudzi, on Small-Ground. Maternities known as inter-commune are open: Mramadoudou in the south of the island (2005) and Kahani commune of Ouangani in the center (2006). The maternity of Dzoumogné in north east in the course of construction by company SMTPC subsidiary of the group VINCI. However, large majority of the births with place with Mamoudzou: 54% of the annual births in the island in 2003,57.3% in 2004.

Since the 1 {{er}} April 2005, the care are not free any more on the territory. The patients must present a chart of Social security or discharge a contractual right near the structures of public care or the fees near a private doctor.

There exist also dispensaries in the villages, which divide the rare doctors of guard.

Since 2005, of the male nurse (E) S settle as liberals, ensuring the home care.

The Chikungunya is endemic in Mayotte.

Culture

Personal status

Mahorais can choose between:

the statute of common right, identical to the metropolis (notaries, administrations, courts…),
a derogatory personal status with the Civil code and the secularity, reserved with the Moslems originating in Mayotte (or possibly of other islands of the Comoros or the North-West of Madagascar). They can give up this statute and choose the statute of common right.

With regard to the personal status, justice is returned by Cadi S. the law of orientation for the Overseas n°2003-660 of July 21st, 2003 abolished polygamy while declaring: 'No one cannot contract a new marriage before the dissolution of the precedents. This article is applicable only to the people reaching the necessary age to marry at January 1st, 2003 ". Let us note that traditionally the house belongs to the woman with Mayotte and repudiation or the divorce thus represents primarily the loss of a companion rather than the loss of a social status or economic (the foundis and the elder ones took care of the good behavior of the economic situation of the woman even after the departure of the husband). right of the successions (discriminations according to the religion of the heirs), land right. However, polygamy and unilateral repudiation were abolished for the people who reach the age of the marriage as from 2005. Since the decree of June 1st, 1939, the lapidation of the women is prohibited. There exists many Koranic schools.

Economy

Mayotte is an island where the population practices an agriculture of self-subsistence. The rough national product per capita was only of 1000 $ per capita in 1993. Unemployment rate amounted to 38% in 1995, but did not amount any more but to 29% with the census of 2002. The minimum wages of insertion do not apply to Mayotte.

The agricultural productions are mainly the food crops and in particular the Banane and the Manioc but one also finds the culture of the Ylang-ylang (used in perfumery), the Vanille and the Girofle.

The deep water port is a minor port of call in the channel of Mozambique.

Post and philately

In the postal field, Mayotte was the administrative center of the Comoros in second half of the 19th century, which proves the seal of Oblitération stating the source of the letters: “Mayotte and dependences”. Integrated administratively then and using the colonial stamps of Madagascar of 1912 to 1950, from the archipelago of the Comoros of 1950 to 1975 and France of 1975 to 1997, the island obtains a philatelic and postal autonomy on January 2nd, 1997 by using specific stamps chosen by the local subsidiary company of La Poste.

See also: philatelic and postal History of Mayotte

Tourism

This island offers less Plage S of fair sand that its neighbors (Grande Comore, Mohéli, the Seychelles, the Mauritius, Madagascar) but it is a true paradise for naturalists and sportsmen.

In the Lagon one can cross Baleine S and their whale-calves, Dauphin S per hundreds, and the green tortoises come to lay on the deserted beaches at the fallen night.

Other activities:

Excursion with the extinct Volcano of Small Ground, Dziani Dzaha
Excursion with the Mount Combani or the Mount Choungi
Excursion of the house of the governor.
Observation of the lemurs Makis of the small island Bouzy
Plunged among tropical fish in the master key in S or with Saziley

Bathe and visit with the sand beaches white of the small islands of north and the south

Left discovered whales in and apart from the Lagoon

Visit Tahiti beach

Tourism remains an activity little developed in the island. The hotel capacities of the island are very low besides (150 including 80 of suitable comfort according to THESE in 1997), though the objective is to develop them. According to a study of INSEE, 9300 tourists would have attended Mayotte in the first half of 1999, including 44% of the Meeting and 42% of the metropolis. 42% of the total correspond to family visits. The average stay was 9,6 days for an expenditure of average of 50€ by household of 1,5 person. There does not exist yet of direct flight coming from the metropolis. Indeed, Southern the Air company (which has almost the monopoly on the island, the other company available being the Comoros Aviation) proposes only flights with stopovers in the island of the Meeting, whereas Boeing 777 of Southern Air land since 2005 in Mayotte (source: magazine Southern Air; the first Boeing 777 baptized " Caribou" (" Bienvenue" in shimaore) on July 5th, 2005 landed). Nevertheless the project of a line hot between the metropolis and Mayotte is in hand.

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