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Compare Sri Lanka (2006) - Korea, North (2005)

Compare Sri Lanka (2006) z Korea, North (2005)

 Sri Lanka (2006)Korea, North (2005)
 Sri LankaKorea, North
Administrative divisions 8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western


note: in 1998 the Government of Sri Lanka proposed a merger of the former Northern and Eastern provinces; while this merger was never ratified, the Government treats North Eastern Province as a de facto singular administrative unit
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: 24.1% (male 2,488,689/female 2,379,233)


15-64 years: 68.6% (male 6,727,399/female 7,140,751)


65 years and over: 7.3% (male 687,842/female 798,326) (2006 est.)
0-14 years: 24.2% (male 2,816,844/female 2,735,478)


15-64 years: 67.9% (male 7,668,581/female 7,883,267)


65 years and over: 7.9% (male 625,819/female 1,182,188) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef; fish rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs
Airports 16 (2006) 78 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 14


over 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 6


914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2006)
total: 35


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 23


1,524 to 2,437 m: 6


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 2


under 914 m: 2 (2006)
total: 43


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 20


914 to 1,523 m: 14


under 914 m: 8 (2004 est.)
Area total: 65,610 sq km


land: 64,740 sq km


water: 870 sq km
total: 120,540 sq km


land: 120,410 sq km


water: 130 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than West Virginia slightly smaller than Mississippi
Background 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-third century B.C., and a great civilization developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (kingdom from circa 200 B.C. to circa A.D. 1000) and Polonnaruwa (from about 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, became a crown colony in 1802, and was united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted into war in 1983. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic conflict that continues to fester. After two decades of fighting, the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam formalized a cease-fire in February 2002, with Norway brokering peace negotiations. An independent kingdom under Chinese suzerainty for most of the past millennium, 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 in the southern portion by force, North Korea, under its founder President KIM Il Sung, adopted a policy of ostensible diplomatic and economic "self-reliance" as a check against excessive Soviet or Communist Chinese influence. It 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 KIM's successor in 1980 and assumed a growing political and managerial role until his father's death in 1994. He assumed full power without opposition. After decades of economic mismanagement and resource misallocation, the North since the mid-1990s has relied heavily on international aid to feed its population while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of about 1 million. North Korea's long-range missile development and research into nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community. In December 2002, following revelations it was pursuing a nuclear weapons program based on enriched uranium in violation of a 1994 agreement with the United States 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." From August 2003, North Korea has participated on and off in six-party talks with the China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, and the United States to resolve the stalemate over its nuclear programs.
Birth rate 15.51 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) 16.09 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget revenues: $3.804 billion


expenditures: $5.469 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)
revenues: NA


expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
Capital name: Colombo


geographic coordinates: 6 56 N, 79 51 E


time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


note: Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)
Pyongyang
Climate tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October) temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer
Coastline 1,340 km 2,495 km
Constitution adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978 adopted 1948; completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992, and September 1998
Country name conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka


conventional short form: Sri Lanka


local long form: Shri Lamka Prajatantrika Samajaya di Janarajaya/Ilankai Jananayaka Choshalichak Kutiyarachu


local short form: Shri Lamka/Ilankai


former: Serendib, Ceylon
conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic of Korea


conventional short form: North Korea


local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk


local short form: none


note: the North Koreans generally use the term "Choson" to refer to their country


abbreviation: DPRK
Death rate 6.52 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) 7.05 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external $11.05 billion (2005 est.) $12 billion (1996 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Robert O. BLAKE, Jr.


embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3


mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo


telephone: [94] (11) 249-8500


FAX: [94] (11) 243-7345
none (Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang represents the US as consular protecting power)
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Bernard GOONETILLEKE



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
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 $577 million (1998) NA; note - over $117 million in food aid through the World Food Program in 2003 plus additional aid from bilateral donors and non-governmental organizations
Economy - overview 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. In 2003, plantation crops made up only 15% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an average annual rate of about 5.5% in the 1990s, but 2001 saw the first contraction in the country's history, by 1.4%, due to a combination of power shortages, severe budgetary problems, the global slowdown, and continuing civil strife. Growth recovered to 5% between 2002 and 2005. About 800,000 Sri Lankans work abroad, 90% in the Middle East. They send home about $1 billion a year. The struggle by the Tamil Tigers of the north and east for a largely independent homeland continues to cast a shadow over the economy. In late December 2004, a major tsunami took about 31,000 lives, left more than 6,300 missing and 443,000 displaced, and destroyed an estimated $1.5 billion worth of property. 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 spare parts shortages. Industrial and power output have declined in parallel. The nation has suffered its eleventh year of food shortages because of a lack of arable land, collective farming, weather-related problems, and chronic shortages of fertilizer and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the regime to escape mass starvation since 1995, but the population remains the victim of prolonged malnutrition and deteriorating living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for investment and civilian consumption. In July 2002, the government took limited steps toward a freer market economy. In 2004, heightened political tensions with key donor countries and general donor fatigue threatened the flow of desperately needed food aid and fuel aid. Black market prices have continued to rise following the increase in official prices and wages in the summer of 2002, leaving some vulnerable groups, such as the elderly and unemployed, less able to buy goods. In 2004, the regime allowed private markets to sell a wider range of goods and permitted private farming on an experimental basis in an effort to boost agricultural output. Firm political control remains the Communist government's overriding concern, which will constrain any further loosening of economic regulations.
Electricity - consumption 6.796 billion kWh (2003) 31.26 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2003) 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2003) 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production 7.308 billion kWh (2003) 33.62 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m


highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m


highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m
Environment - current issues 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 water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; waterborne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution


signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups Sinhalese 73.8%, Sri Lankan Moors 7.2%, Indian Tamil 4.6%, Sri Lankan Tamil 3.9%, other 0.5%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data) racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese
Exchange rates Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 100.498 (2005), 101.194 (2004), 96.521 (2003), 95.662 (2002), 89.383 (2001) 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: President Mahinda RAJAPAKSE (since 19 November 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; Ratnasiri WICKREMANAYAKE (since 21 November 2005) holds the ceremonial title of prime minister


head of government: President Mahinda RAJAPAKSE (since 19 November 2005)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister


elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 17 November 2005 (next to be held 2011)


election results: Mahinda RAJAPAKSE elected president; percent of vote - Mahinda RAJAPAKSE 50.3%, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE 48.4%, other 1.3%
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: Cabinet (Naegak), members, except for the Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by the SPA


elections: election 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 bbl/day NA
Exports - commodities textiles and apparel, tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); textiles and fishery products
Exports - partners US 30.9%, UK 11.6%, India 7.3%, Belgium 4.8%, Germany 4.5% (2005) China 29.9%, South Korea 24.1%, Japan 13.2% (2004)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description 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 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 - composition by sector agriculture: 17.8%


industry: 27.6%


services: 54.5% (2005 est.)
agriculture: 30.2%


industry: 33.8%


services: 36% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 6% (2005 est.) 1% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates 7 00 N, 81 00 E 40 00 N, 127 00 E
Geography - note strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated
Heliports - 19 (2004 est.)
Highways - total: 31,200 km


paved: 1,997 km


unpaved: 29,203 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.5%


highest 10%: 28% (1995)
lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs - for years, from the 1970's into the 2000's, 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; in recent years, police investigations in Taiwan and Japan 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; all indications point to North Korea emerging as an important regional source of illicit drugs targeting markets in Japan, Taiwan, the Russian Far East, and China
Imports NA bbl/day 11,500 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Imports - commodities textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; textiles, grain
Imports - partners India 19.7%, China 9.9%, Singapore 7.2%, Iran 5.5%, Malaysia 4.6%, Hong Kong 4.5% (2005) China 32.9%, Thailand 10.7%, Japan 4.8% (2004)
Independence 4 February 1948 (from UK) 15 August 1945 (from Japan)
Industrial production growth rate 8.2% (2005 est.) NA
Industries processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing, textiles; cement, petroleum refining 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: 13.97 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 15.18 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 12.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
total: 24.04 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 25.77 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 22.23 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 11.6% (2005 est.) NA (2003 est.)
International organization participation AsDB, BIMSTEC, C, CP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO ARF, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Irrigated land 7,430 sq km (2003) 14,600 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly)
Labor force 8.08 million (2005 est.) 9.6 million
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 38%


industry: 17%


services: 45% (1998 est.)
agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 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: 13.96%


permanent crops: 15.24%


other: 70.8% (2005)
arable land: 20.76%


permanent crops: 2.49%


other: 76.75% (2001)
Languages 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
Korean
Legal system a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction 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 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 2 April 2004 (next to be held by 2010)


election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance - SLFP and JVP (no longer in formal UPFA alliance) 45.6%, UNP 37.83%, TNA 6.84%, JHU 5.97%, SLMC 2.02%, UPF 0.54%, EPDP 0.27%, others 0.93%; seats by party - UNP 68, SLFP 57, JVP 39, UNP dissident 1, TNA 22, CWC 8, JHU 7, JHU dissidents 2, SLMC 6, SLMC dissidents 4, Communist Party 2, LSSP 2, MEP 2, NUA 2, UPF 2, EPDP 1
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: 73.41 years


male: 70.83 years


female: 76.12 years (2006 est.)
total population: 71.37 years


male: 68.65 years


female: 74.22 years (2005 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 92.3%


male: 94.8%


female: 90% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99%


male: 99%


female: 99%
Location Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea
Map references Asia Asia
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
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: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 144,066 GRT/196,418 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 17, container 2, petroleum tanker 2


foreign-owned: 7 (Germany 5, UAE 2)


registered in other countries: 5 (Panama 5) (2006)
total: 238 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 985,108 GRT/1,389,389 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 13, cargo 191, container 2, livestock carrier 4, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 13, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 5


foreign-owned: 52 (China 1, Denmark 2, France 1, Greece 4, Italy 1, Lebanon 4, Lithuania 1, Netherlands 1, Pakistan 2, Romania 10, Russia 2, Singapore 2, South Korea 2, Syria 9, Turkey 6, Ukraine 1, UAE 3) (2005)
Military branches Sri Lankan Army, Sri Lankan Navy, Sri Lankan Air Force (2006) North Korean People's Army: Ground Force, Navy, Air Force; Civil Security Forces (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $606.2 million (2005 est.) $5,217.4 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.6% (2005 est.) NA
National holiday Independence Day, 4 February (1948) Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948)
Nationality noun: Sri Lankan(s)


adjective: Sri Lankan
noun: Korean(s)


adjective: Korean
Natural hazards occasional cyclones and tornadoes late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall
Natural resources limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower
Net migration rate -1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines - oil 154 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders 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 Perumuna or JVP [Somawansa AMARASINGHE]; Lanka Sama Samaja Party or LSSP; Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (People's United Front) or MEP [D. GUNAWARDENE]; National Heritage Party or JHU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [D. SIDHARTHAN]; Sihala Urumaya or SU; 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 [R. SAMPANTHAN]; Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF [V. ANANDASANGAREE]; United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMASINGHE]; Up-country People's Front or UPF [P. CHANDRASEKARAN]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either Parliament or provincial councils major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Jong Il, general secretary]; minor parties - Chondoist Chongu Party [RYU Mi Yong, chairwoman] (under KWP control); Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong Dae, chairman] (under KWP control)
Political pressure groups and leaders 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 none
Population 20,222,240


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 and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2006 est.)
22,912,177 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line 22% (1997 est.) NA
Population growth rate 0.78% (2006 est.) 0.9% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors - Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimch'aek, Kosong, Najin, Namp'o, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan
Radio broadcast stations AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 17 (including 11 stations of Korean Central Broadcasting Station), FM 14, shortwave 14 (2003)
Railways total: 1,449 km


broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2005)
total: 5,214 km


standard gauge: 5,214 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified) (2004)
Religions Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data) 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: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.53 male(s)/female


total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 17 years of age; universal
Telephone system 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 (1999)


international: country code - 94; submarine cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999)
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 1.244 million (2005) 1.1 million (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular 3.362 million (2005) NA
Television broadcast stations 21 (1997) 4 (includes Korean Central Television, Mansudae Television, Korean Educational and Cultural Network, and Kaesong Television targeting South Korea) (2003)
Terrain mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east
Total fertility rate 1.84 children born/woman (2006 est.) 2.15 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate 7.7% (2005 est.) NA (2003)
Waterways 160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2005) 2,250 km


note: most navigable only by small craft (2004)
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