Compare Iran (2006) - Sri Lanka (2002)

Compare Iran (2006) z Sri Lanka (2002)

	Iran (2006)	Sri Lanka (2002)

Administrative divisions	30 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan-e Janubi, Khorasan-e Razavi, Khorasan-e Shemali, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan	8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western; note - North Eastern province may have been divided in two - Northern and Eastern
Age structure	0-14 years: 26.1% (male 9,204,785/female 8,731,429) 15-64 years: 69% (male 24,133,919/female 23,245,255) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 1,653,827/female 1,719,218) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 25.6% (male 2,559,246; female 2,446,393) 15-64 years: 67.7% (male 6,446,320; female 6,802,515) 65 years and over: 6.7% (male 628,398; female 693,911) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products	wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar	rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef
Airports	321 (2006)	15 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 129 over 3,047 m: 41 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 6 (2006)	total: 14 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 192 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 140 under 914 m: 43 (2006)	total: 1 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Area	total: 1.648 million sq km land: 1.636 million sq km water: 12,000 sq km	total: 65,610 sq km land: 64,740 sq km water: 870 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Alaska	slightly larger than West Virginia
Background	Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was overthrown and the shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority nominally vested in a learned religious scholar. Iranian-US relations have been strained since a group of Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq that eventually expanded into the Persian Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian military forces between 1987-1988. Iran has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and remains subject to US economic sanctions and export controls because of its continued involvement. Following the elections of a reformist president and Majlis in the late 1990s, attempts to foster political reform in response to popular dissatisfaction floundered as conservative politicians prevented reform measures from being enacted, increased repressive measures, and made electoral gains against reformers. Parliamentary elections in 2004 and the August 2005 inauguration of a conservative stalwart as president, completed the reconsolidation of conservative power in Iran's government.	The Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced beginning in about the mid-3rd century B.C. and a great civilization developed at such cities as Anuradhapura (kingdom from c. 200 B.C. to c. 1000 A.D.) and Polonnaruwa (c. 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty seized power in the north and established a Tamil kingdom. Occupied by the Portuguese in the 16th century and by the Dutch in the 17th century, the island was ceded to the British in 1796 and became a crown colony in 1802. As Ceylon it became independent in 1948; its name was changed in 1972. Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted in violence in the mid-1980s. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic war that continues to fester.
Birth rate	17 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	16.36 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget	revenues: $48.82 billion expenditures: $60.4 billion; including capital expenditures of $7.6 billion (2005 est.)	revenues: $2.8 billion expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital	name: Tehran geographic coordinates: 35 40 N, 51 26 E time difference: UTC+3.5 (8.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	Colombo; note - Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital
Climate	mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast	tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)
Coastline	2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)	1,340 km
Constitution	2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership	adopted 16 August 1978
Country name	conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran conventional short form: Iran local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran local short form: Iran former: Persia	conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Serendib, Ceylon
Currency	-	Sri Lankan rupee (LKR)
Death rate	5.55 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external	$19.06 billion (2005 est.)	$9.9 billion (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US	none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland	chief of mission: Ambassador E. Ashley WILLS embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (1) 448007 FAX: [94] (1) 437345
Diplomatic representation in the US	none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990; FAX [1] (202) 965-1073	chief of mission: Ambassador Devinda R. SUBASINGHE chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4025 (through 4028) FAX: [1] (202) 232-7181 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York
Disputes - international	Iran protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed tributaries to the Helmand River in periods of drought; Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al Arab in the Persian Gulf; Iran and UAE dispute Tunb Islands and Abu Musa Island, which are occupied by Iran; Iran stands alone among littoral states in insisting upon a division of the Caspian Sea into five equal sectors	none
Economic aid - recipient	$408 million (2002 est.)	$577 million (1998) (1998)
Economy - overview	Iran's economy is marked by a bloated, inefficient state sector, over reliance on the oil sector, and statist policies that create major distortions throughout. Most economic activity is controlled by the state. Private sector activity is typically small-scale - workshops, farming, and services. President Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI, with limited progress. Relatively high oil prices in recent years have enabled Iran to amass some $40 billion in foreign exchange reserves, but have not eased economic hardships such as high unemployment and inflation. The proportion of the economy devoted to the development of weapons of mass destruction remains a contentious issue with leading Western nations.	In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist economic policies and its import substitution trade policy for market-oriented policies and export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors now are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an average annual rate of 5.5% throughout the 1990s until a drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. The economy rebounded in 1997-2000 with average growth of 5.3%. But 2001 saw the first contraction in the country's history, due to a combination of power shortages, severe budgetary problems, the global slowdown, and continuing civil strife.
Electricity - consumption	132.1 billion kWh (2003)	6.156 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports	840 million kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports	600 million kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production	142.3 billion kWh (2003)	6.619 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 32% hydro: 68% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
Environment - current issues	air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization	deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%	Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1%
Exchange rates	rials per US dollar - 8,964 (2005), 8,614 (2004), 8,193.9 (2003), 6,907 (2002), 1,753.6 (2001) note: Iran has been using a managed floating exchange rate regime since unifying multiple exchange rates in March 2002	Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 93.383 (January 2002), 89.383 (2001), 77.005 (2000), 70.635 (1999), 64.450 (1998), 58.995 (1997)
Executive branch	chief of state: Supreme Leader Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989) head of government: President Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD (since 3 August 2005); First Vice President Parviz DAVUDI (since 11 September 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval; the Supreme Leader has some control over appointments to the more sensitive ministries note: also considered part of the Executive branch of government are three oversight bodies: 1) Assembly of Experts, a popularly elected body of 86 religious scholars constitutionally charged with determining the succession of the Supreme Leader, reviewing his performance, and deposing him if deemed necessary; 2) Expediency Council or Council for the Discernment of Expediency is a policy advisory and implementation board consisting of permanent and temporary members representing all major government factions, some of whom are appointed by the Supreme Leader; the Council exerts supervisory authority over the executive, judicial, and legislative branches and resolves legislative issues on which the Majles and the Council of Guardians disagree; 3) Council of Guardians or Council of Guardians of the Constitution is a 12-member board of clerics and jurists serving six-year terms that determines whether proposed legislation is both constitutional and faithful to Islamic law; the Council also vets candidates for suitability and supervises national elections elections: Supreme Leader appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 17 June 2005 with a two-candidate runoff on 24 June 2005 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD elected president; percent of vote - Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD 62%, Ali Akbar Hashemi RAFSANJANI 36%	chief of state: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government, in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist head of government: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government, in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 21 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2005) election results: Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA reelected president; percent of vote - Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (PA) 51%, Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (UNP) 42%, other 7%
Exports	2.5 million bbl/day (2004 est.)	$4.9 billion f.o.b. (2001)
Exports - commodities	petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets	textiles and apparel 15%, tea, diamonds, coconut products, petroleum products
Exports - partners	Japan 16.6%, China 11%, Italy 5.8%, South Korea 5.7%, South Africa 5.7%, Turkey 5.6%, Netherlands 4.5%, France 4.3% (2005)	US 39%, UK 13%, Middle East 8%, Germany 4%, Japan 4% (2000)
Fiscal year	21 March - 20 March	calendar year
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom) in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band	yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels
GDP	-	purchasing power parity - $62.7 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 11.6% industry: 42.4% services: 46% (2005 est.)	agriculture: 21% industry: 27% services: 52% (2000)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $3,250 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	6.9% (2005 est.)	-1% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates	32 00 N, 53 00 E	7 00 N, 81 00 E
Geography - note	strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil transport	strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes
Heliports	15 (2006)	-
Highways	-	total: 11,285 km paved: 10,721 km unpaved: 564 km (1998 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 4% highest 10%: 28% (1995)
Illicit drugs	despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic narcotics consumption remains a persistent problem and according to official Iranian statistics there are at least 2 million drug users in the country; lacks anti-money-laundering laws	-
Imports	NA bbl/day	$6 billion f.o.b. (2001)
Imports - commodities	industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies	machinery and equipment, textiles, petroleum, foodstuffs
Imports - partners	Germany 13.8%, UAE 8.3%, China 8.3%, Italy 7%, France 6.2%, South Korea 5.4%, Russia 4.8% (2005)	Japan 9%, India 8%, Hong Kong 7%, Singapore 7%, South Korea 5% (2000)
Independence	1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)	4 February 1948 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	3% excluding oil (2005 est.)	1.4% (2001)
Industries	petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabrication, armaments	rubber processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco
Infant mortality rate	total: 40.3 deaths/1,000 live births male: 40.49 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	15.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	13.5% (2005 est.)	14.2% (2001 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, CP, ECO, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)	AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	5 (2000)
Irrigated land	76,500 sq km (2003)	6,510 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court - above a special clerical court, a revolutionary court, and a special administrative court	Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president
Labor force	23.68 million note: shortage of skilled labor (2005 est.)	6.6 million (1998)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 30% industry: 25% services: 45% (2001 est.)	services 45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 5,440 km border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 9.78% permanent crops: 1.29% other: 88.93% (2005)	arable land: 13.43% permanent crops: 15.78% other: 70.79% (1998 est.)
Languages	Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%	Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8% note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population
Legal system	the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government	a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats - formerly 270 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 20 February 2004 with a runoff held 7 May 2004 (by-elections next to be held in December 2006; general election to be held in February 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats by party - conservatives/Islamists 190, reformers 50, independents 43, religious minorities 5, and 2 seats unaccounted for	unicameral Parliament (225 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of a modified proportional representation system by district to serve six-year terms) elections: last held 7 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2007) election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 46.8%, PA and EPDP 38%, JVP 9.1%, Tamil National Alliance 3.89%, PLOTE 0.19%; seats by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 114, PA and EPDP 79, JVP 16, Tamil National Alliance 15, PLOTE 1
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 70.26 years male: 68.86 years female: 71.74 years (2006 est.)	total population: 72.35 years male: 69.83 years female: 75 years (2002 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 79.4% male: 85.6% female: 73% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90.2% male: 93.4% female: 87.2% (1995 est.)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan	Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India
Map references	Middle East	Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf continental shelf: natural prolongation	contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	total: 141 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,086,702 GRT/8,878,829 DWT by type: bulk carrier 39, cargo 45, chemical tanker 4, container 12, liquefied gas 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 30, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1) registered in other countries: 22 (Bolivia 1, Cyprus 2, Malta 14, Panama 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2006)	total: 18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 137,321 GRT/233,367 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 15, container 1, petroleum tanker 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 9, Hong Kong 1, United Arab Emirates 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches	Islamic Republic of Iran Regular Forces (Artesh): Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (Niruye Havayi Jomhuriye Islamiye Iran; includes air defense); Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (Sepah-e Pasdaran-e Enqelab-e Eslami, IRGC): Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Qods Force (special operations), and Basij Force (Popular Mobilization Army); Law Enforcement Forces (2006)	Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$4.3 billion (2003 est.)	$719 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3.3% (2003 est.)	4.2% (FY98)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 5,347,153 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 4,148,825 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age	-	18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	-	males: 193,522 (2002 est.)
National holiday	Republic Day, 1 April (1979) note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran include Revolution Day, 11 February (1979); Noruz (New Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5 August (1925); and various Islamic observances that change in accordance with the lunar-based hejira calendar	Independence Day, 4 February (1948)
Nationality	noun: Iranian(s) adjective: Iranian	noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan
Natural hazards	periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes	occasional cyclones and tornadoes
Natural resources	petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur	limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower
Net migration rate	-0.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines	condensate 7 km; condensate/gas 397 km; gas 17,099 km; liquid petroleum gas 570 km; oil 8,521 km; refined products 7,808 km (2006)	crude oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987)
Political parties and leaders	formal political parties are a relatively new phenomenon in Iran and most conservatives still prefer to work through political pressure groups rather than parties; a loose pro-reform coalition called the 2nd Khordad Front, which includes political parties as well as less formal pressure groups and organizations, achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majles in early 2000; groups in the coalition include: Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF), Executives of Construction Party (Kargozaran), Solidarity Party, Islamic Labor Party, Mardom Salari, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO), and Militant Clerics Society (Ruhaniyun); the coalition participated in the seventh Majles elections in early 2004; following his defeat in the 2005 presidential elections, former MCS Secretary General Mehdi KARRUBI formed the National Trust Party; a new apparently conservative group, the Builders of Islamic Iran, took a leading position in the new Majles after winning a majority of the seats in February 2004	All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [KUMARGURUPARAM]; Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; Democratic United National (Lalith) Front or DUNLF [Shrimani ATULATHMUDALI]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN]; Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP [Tilvan SILVA]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; People's Alliance or PA [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [leader NA]; Sihala Urumaya or SU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; Sri Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM]; Sri Lanka Progressive Front or SLPF [P. Nelson PERERA]; Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO [SABARATNAM]; Tamil National Alliance or TNA [Nadarajah RAVIRAJ]; Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF [R. SAMPATHAN]; United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMASINGHE]; Upcountry People's Front or UPF [P. CHANDRASEKARAN]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either Parliament or provincial councils
Political pressure groups and leaders	political pressure groups conduct most of Iran's political activities; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, Tehran Militant Clergy Association (Ruhaniyat), Islamic Coalition Party (Motalefeh), and Islamic Engineers Society; active pro-reform student groups include the Office of Strengthening Unity (OSU); opposition groups include Freedom Movement of Iran, the National Front, Marz-e Por Gohar, and various ethnic and Monarchist organizations; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mujahidin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, and Komala	Buddhist clergy; labor unions; Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or LTTE [Velupillai PRABHAKARAN](insurgent group fighting for a separate state); radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups such as the National Movement Against Terrorism; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups
Population	68,688,433 (July 2006 est.)	19,576,783 note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of mid-1999, approximately 66,000 were housed in 133 refugee camps in south India, another 40,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line	40% (2002 est.)	22% (1997 est.)
Population growth rate	1.1% (2006 est.)	0.85% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee
Radio broadcast stations	AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998)	AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios	-	3.85 million (1997)
Railways	total: 7,256 km broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge standard gauge: 7,162 km 1.435-m gauge (186 km electrified) (2005)	total: 1,463 km broad gauge: 1,404 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2001)
Religions	Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 9%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 2%	Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage	15 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: inadequate, but currently being modernized and expanded with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to several thousand villages, not presently connected domestic: as a result of heavy investing in the telephone system since 1994, the number of long-distance channels in the microwave radio relay trunk has grown substantially; many villages have been brought into the net; the number of main lines in the urban systems has approximately doubled; thousands of mobile cellular subscribers are being served; moreover, the technical level of the system has been raised by the installation of thousands of digital switches international: country code - 98; HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber-optic cable to UAE with access to Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; satellite earth stations - 9 Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat	general assessment: very inadequate domestic service, particularly in rural areas; likely improvement with privatization of national telephone company and encouragement to private investment; good international service (1999) domestic: national trunk network consists mostly of digital microwave radio relay; fiber-optic links now in use in Colombo area and two fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems; telephone density remains low at 2.6 main lines per 100 persons (1999) international: submarine cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999)
Telephones - main lines in use	18.986 million (2005)	494,509 (1998)
Telephones - mobile cellular	7.222 million (2005)	228,604 (1999)
Television broadcast stations	28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997)	21 (1997)
Terrain	rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts	mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior
Total fertility rate	1.8 children born/woman (2006 est.)	1.93 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate	11.2% (2004 est.)	7.7% (2001)
Waterways	850 km (850 km on Karun River; additional service on Lake Urmia) (2006)	430 km (navigable by shallow-draft craft)

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