Bermuda (2003) | Korea, North (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 parishes and 2 municipalities*; Devonshire, Hamilton, Hamilton*, Paget, Pembroke, Saint George*, Saint George's, Sandys, Smith's, Southampton, Warwick | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 4 municipalities (si, singular and plural)
provinces: Chagang-do (Chagang), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae), Kangwon-do (Kangwon), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan), Yanggang-do (Yanggang) municipalites: Kaesong-si (Kaesong), Najin Sonbong-si (Najin), Namp'o-si (Namp'o), P'yongyang-si (Pyongyang) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.2% (male 6,195; female 6,205)
15-64 years: 69.3% (male 22,110; female 22,574) 65 years and over: 11.5% (male 3,215; female 4,183) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.8% (male 2,788,944/female 2,708,331)
15-64 years: 68% (male 7,762,442/female 7,955,522) 65 years and over: 8.2% (male 667,792/female 1,229,988) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, vegetables, citrus, flowers; dairy products | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs |
Airports | 1 (2002) | 77 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 36
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 22 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 41
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 7 (2006) |
Area | total: 53.3 sq km
land: 53.3 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 120,540 sq km
land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
Area - comparative | about one-third the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Mississippi |
Background | Bermuda was first settled in 1609 by shipwrecked English colonists headed for Virginia. Tourism to the island to escape North American winters first developed in Victorian times. Tourism continues to be important to the island's economy, although international business has overtaken it in recent years. Bermuda has developed into a highly successful offshore financial center. A referendum on independence was soundly defeated in 1995. | An independent kingdom for much of its long history, Korea was occupied by Japan in 1905 following the Russo-Japanese War. Five years later, Japan formally annexed the entire peninsula. Following World War II, Korea was split with the northern half coming under Soviet-sponsored Communist domination. After failing in the Korean War (1950-53) to conquer the US-backed Republic of Korea (ROK) in the southern portion by force, North Korea (DPRK), under its founder President KIM Il-so'ng, adopted a policy of ostensible diplomatic and economic "self-reliance" as a check against excessive Soviet or Communist Chinese influence. The DPRK demonized the US as the ultimate threat to its social system through state-funded propaganda, and molded political, economic, and military policies around the core ideological objective of eventual unification of Korea under Pyongyang's control. KIM's son, the current ruler KIM Jong Il, was officially designated as his father's successor in 1980, assuming a growing political and managerial role until the elder KIM's death in 1994. After decades of economic mismanagement and resource misallocation, the DPRK since the mid-1990s has relied heavily on international aid to feed its population while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of 1 million. North Korea's long-range missile development, as well as its nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons programs and massive conventional armed forces, are of major concern to the international community. In December 2002, following revelations that the DPRK was pursuing a nuclear weapons program based on enriched uranium in violation of a 1994 agreement with the US to freeze and ultimately dismantle its existing plutonium-based program, North Korea expelled monitors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In January 2003, it declared its withdrawal from the international Non-Proliferation Treaty. In mid-2003 Pyongyang announced it had completed the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel rods (to extract weapons-grade plutonium) and was developing a "nuclear deterrent." Since August 2003, North Korea has participated in the Six-Party Talks with China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, and the US designed to resolve the stalemate over its nuclear programs. The fourth round of Six-Party Talks were held in Beijing during July-September 2005. All parties agreed to a Joint Statement of Principles in which, among other things, the six parties unanimously reaffirmed the goal of verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner. In the Joint Statement, the DPRK committed to "abandoning all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs and returning, at an early date, to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and to IAEA safeguards." The Joint Statement also commits the US and other parties to certain actions as the DPRK denuclearizes. The US offered a security assurance, specifying that it had no nuclear weapons on ROK territory and no intention to attack or invade the DPRK with nuclear or other weapons. The US and DPRK will take steps to normalize relations, subject to the DPRK's implementing its denuclearization pledge and resolving other longstanding concerns. While the Joint Statement provides a vision of the end-point of the Six-Party process, much work lies ahead to implement the elements of the agreement. |
Birth rate | 12.13 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 15.54 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $609.5 million
expenditures: $574.6 million, including capital expenditures of $54.8 million (FY 00/01) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | Hamilton | name: Pyongyang
geographic coordinates: 39 01 N, 125 45 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | subtropical; mild, humid; gales, strong winds common in winter | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer |
Coastline | 103 km | 2,495 km |
Constitution | 8 June 1968, amended 1989 | adopted 1948; completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992, and September 1998 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Bermuda former: Somers Islands |
conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic of Korea
conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: Choson abbreviation: DPRK |
Currency | Bermudian dollar (BMD) | - |
Death rate | 7.46 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.13 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $145 million (FY 99/00) | $12 billion (1996 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Consul General Denis Patrick COLEMAN, Jr.
consulate(s) general: Crown Hill, 16 Middle Road, Devonshire DVO3 mailing address: P. O. Box HM325, Hamilton HMBX; American Consulate General Hamilton, Department of State, 5300 Hamilton Place, Washington, DC 20520-5300 telephone: [1] (441) 295-1342 FAX: [1] (441) 295-1592, [1] (441) 296-9233 |
none; note - Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang represents the US as consular protecting power |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | none; North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York |
Disputes - international | none | China seeks to stem illegal migration of tens of thousands of North Koreans escaping famine, economic privation, and political oppression; North Korea and China dispute the sovereignty of certain islands in Yalu and Tumen rivers and a section of boundary around Paektu-san (mountain) is indefinite; Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953; periodic maritime disputes with South over the Northern Limit Line; North Korea supports South Korea in rejecting Japan's claim to Liancourt Rocks (Tok-do/Take-shima) |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $NA; note - approximately 350,000 metric tons in food aid, worth approximately $118 million, through the World Food Program appeal in 2004, plus additional aid from bilateral donors and non-governmental organizations |
Economy - overview | Bermuda enjoys one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, with its economy primarily based on providing financial services for international business and luxury facilities for tourists. The effects of 11 September 2001 have had both positive and negative ramifications for Bermuda. On the positive side, a number of new reinsurance companies have located on the island, contributing to the expansion of an already robust international business sector. On the negative side, Bermuda's tourism industry - which derives over 80% of its visitors from the US - has been severely hit as American tourists have chosen not to travel. Tourism rebounded somewhat in 2002, but remains below the pre-11 September level. Most capital equipment and food must be imported. Bermuda's industrial sector is small, although construction continues to be important. Agriculture is limited, only 6% of the land being arable. | North Korea, one of the world's most centrally planned and isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment and shortages of spare parts. Industrial and power output have declined in parallel. Despite an increased harvest in 2005 because of more stable weather conditions, fertilizer assistance from South Korea, and an extraordinary mobilization of the population to help with agricultural production, the nation has suffered its 11th year of food shortages because of on-going systemic problems, including a lack of arable land, collective farming practices, and chronic shortages of tractors and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the people of North Korea to escape mass starvation since famine threatened in 1995, but the population continues to suffer from prolonged malnutrition and poor living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for investment and civilian consumption. In 2004, the regime formalized an arrangement whereby private "farmers markets" were allowed to begin selling a wider range of goods. It also permitted some private farming on an experimental basis in an effort to boost agricultural output. In October 2005, the regime reversed some of these policies by forbidding private sales of grains and reinstituting a centralized food rationing system. In December 2005, the regime confirmed that it intended to carry out earlier threats to terminate all international humanitarian assistance operations in the DPRK (calling instead for developmental assistance only) and to restrict the activities of international and non-governmental aid organizations such as the World Food Program. Firm political control remains the Communist government's overriding concern, which will likely inhibit the loosening of economic regulations. |
Electricity - consumption | 598.6 million kWh (2001) | 17.43 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 643.7 million kWh (2001) | 18.75 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Town Hill 76 m |
lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m |
Environment - current issues | asbestos disposal; water pollution; preservation of open space; sustainable development | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; waterborne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | black 58%, white 36%, other 6% | racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese |
Exchange rates | Bermudian dollar per US dollar - 1.0000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) | official: North Korean won per US dollar - 170 (December 2004), 150 (December 2002), 2.15 (December 2001); market: North Korean won per US dollar - 300-600 (December 2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Sir John VEREKER (since NA April 2002)
head of government: Premier Alex SCOTT (since 24 July 2003) cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the premier, appointed by the governor elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed premier by the governor |
chief of state: KIM Jong Il (since July 1994); note - on 3 September 2003, rubberstamp Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) reelected KIM Jong Il chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded nation's "highest administrative authority"; SPA reelected KIM Yong Nam president of its Presidium also with responsibility of representing state and receiving diplomatic credentials; SPA appointed PAK Pong Ju premier
head of government: Premier PAK Pong Ju (since 3 September 2003); Vice Premiers KWAK Pom Gi (since 5 September 1998), JON Sung Hun (since 3 September 2003), RO Tu Chol (since 3 September 2003) cabinet: Naegak (cabinet) members, except for Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by SPA elections: last held in September 2003 (next to be held in September 2008) election results: KIM Jong Il and KIM Yong Nam were only nominees for positions and ran unopposed |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | reexports of pharmaceuticals | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments), textiles, fishery products |
Exports - partners | France 77.4%, UK 2.8%, US 2.4% (2002) | China 45.6%, South Korea 20.2%, Japan 12.9% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | red, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Bermudian coat of arms (white and green shield with a red lion holding a scrolled shield showing the sinking of the ship Sea Venture off Bermuda in 1609) centered on the outer half of the flag | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.25 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 10% services: 89% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 30%
industry: 34% services: 36% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $35,200 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.5% (2002 est.) | 1% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 20 N, 64 45 W | 40 00 N, 127 00 E |
Geography - note | consists of about 138 coral islands and islets with ample rainfall, but no rivers or freshwater lakes; some land was leased by US Government from 1941 to 1995 | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated |
Heliports | - | 22 (2006) |
Highways | total: 450 km
paved: 450 km unpaved: 0 km note: public roads - 209 km; private roads - 241 km (2002) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | for years, from the 1970s into the 2000s, citizens of the Democratic People's Republic of (North) Korea (DPRK), many of them diplomatic employees of the government, were apprehended abroad while trafficking in narcotics, including two in Turkey in December 2004; police investigations in Taiwan and Japan in recent years have linked North Korea to large illicit shipments of heroin and methamphetamine, including an attempt by the North Korean merchant ship Pong Su to deliver 150 kg of heroin to Australia in April 2003 |
Imports | NA (2001) | 22,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, chemicals, food and live animals | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment, textiles, grain |
Imports - partners | Kazakhstan 30.9%, France 24.7%, Italy 10.5%, US 9.7%, South Korea 8.4%, Mexico 4.3% (2002) | China 32.9%, Thailand 10.7%, Japan 4.8% (2004) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, international business, light manufacturing | military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 9.05 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.77 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 23.29 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.97 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.3% (July 2002) | NA% |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), ICFTU, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, WCO | ARF, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 20 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 14,600 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Magistrate Courts | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) |
Labor force | 37,472 (2000) | 9.6 million |
Labor force - by occupation | clerical 22%, services 20%, laborers 17%, professional and technical 17%, administrative and managerial 13%, sales 8%, agriculture and fishing 3% (2000 est.) | agriculture: 36%
industry and services: 64% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,673 km
border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km |
Land use | arable land: 6%
permanent crops: 0% other: 94% (55% developed, 45% rural/open space) (1998 est.) |
arable land: 22.4%
permanent crops: 1.66% other: 75.94% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Portuguese | Korean |
Legal system | English law | based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (an 11-member body appointed by the governor, the premier, and the opposition) and the House of Assembly (36 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last general election held 24 July 2003 (next to be held NA July 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - PLP 51.7%, UBP 48%; seats by party - PLP 22, UBP 14 |
unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 August 2003 (next to be held in August 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; ruling party approves a list of candidates who are elected without opposition; some seats are held by minor parties |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.41 years
male: 75.38 years female: 79.49 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 71.65 years
male: 68.92 years female: 74.51 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 99% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% |
Location | North America, group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, east of North Carolina (US) | Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea |
Map references | North America | Asia |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm note: military boundary line 50 nm in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned |
Merchant marine | total: 93 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,993,227 GRT/7,089,760 DWT
ships by type: bulk 25, cargo 4, chemical tanker 1, container 14, liquefied gas 9, passenger 5, petroleum tanker 11, refrigerated cargo 13, roll on/roll off 7, short-sea passenger 4 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 5, Denmark 2, Germany 1, Greece 1, Hong Kong 9, Indonesia 1, Norway 2, Sweden 11, United Kingdom 52, United States 13 (2002 est.) |
total: 232 ships (1000 GRT or over) 983,182 GRT/1,370,104 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 14, cargo 176, chemical tanker 1, container 4, livestock carrier 3, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 17, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 8, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: 60 (British Virgin Islands 1, China 1, Denmark 1, Egypt 2, Greece 1, India 1, Lebanon 6, Lithuania 1, Marshall Islands 1, Pakistan 3, Romania 11, Russia 1, Singapore 1, Syria 14, Turkey 4, UAE 6, US 3, Yemen 2) registered in other countries: 5 (Belize 2, Mongolia 3) (2006) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; Bermuda Regiment, Bermuda Police Force, Bermuda Reserve Constabulary | North Korean People's Army: Ground Force, Navy, Air Force; civil security forces (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $4.028 million (January 2002) | $5,217.4 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.11% (FY00/01) | NA |
National holiday | Bermuda Day, 24 May | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) |
Nationality | noun: Bermudian(s)
adjective: Bermudian |
noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (June to November) | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall |
Natural resources | limestone, pleasant climate fostering tourism | coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 2.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | - | oil 154 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | National Liberal Party or NLP [Dessaline WALDRON]; Progressive Labor Party or PLP [Jennifer SMITH]; United Bermuda Party or UBP [Chairman Wayne FURBERT] | major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Jong Il]; minor parties - Chondoist Chongu Party [RYU Mi Yong] (under KWP control), Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong Dae] (under KWP control) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Bermuda Employer's Union [Eddie SAINTS]; Bermuda Industrial Union or BIU [Derrick BURGESS]; Bermuda Public Services Association or BPSA [leader NA]; Bermuda Union of Teachers [Michael CHARLES] | none |
Population | 64,482 (July 2003 est.) | 23,113,019 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.72% (2003 est.) | 0.84% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Hamilton, Saint George's, Dockyard | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 17 (including 11 stations of Korean Central Broadcasting Station), FM 14, shortwave 14 (2003) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 5,214 km
standard gauge: 5,214 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified) (2005) |
Religions | non-Anglican Protestant 39%, Anglican 27%, Roman Catholic 15%, other 19% | traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.54 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 17 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: modern, fully automatic telephone system international: 3 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 850; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Russian (Indian Ocean region); other international connections through Moscow and Beijing |
Telephones - main lines in use | 52,000 (1997) | 980,000 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,980 (1996) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (1997) | 4 (includes Korean Central Television, Mansudae Television, Korean Educational and Cultural Network, and Kaesong Television targeting South Korea) (2003) |
Terrain | low hills separated by fertile depressions | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.9 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.1 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.5% (1993) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 2,250 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2006) |