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Executive branch
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Head of government
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President of the General Council Jacques GILLOT (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Victorin LUREL (since 2 April 2004)
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Prime Minister Mohamed NAJIB bin Abdul Najib Razak (since 3 April 2009); Deputy Prime Minister MUHYIDDIN bin Mohamed Yassin (since 9 April 2009)
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Flag description
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unofficial, local flag based upon the arms of the city of Pointe-a-Pitre; the field is divided horizontally with a narrow, blue stripe along the top edge charged with three gold fleurs-de-lis; the wider, lower portion of the field is black and charged with green sugar cane leaves - representing one of Guadeloupe's main crops - surmounted by a gold radiant sun representing the tropical climate; the only official flag is the national flag of France
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14 equal horizontal stripes of red (top) alternating with white (bottom); there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a yellow crescent and a yellow 14-pointed star; the flag is often referred to as Jalur Gemilang (Stripes of Glory); the 14 stripes stand for the equal status in the federation of the 13 member states and the federal government; the 14 points on the star represent the unity between these entities; the crescent is a traditional symbol of Islam; blue symbolizes the unity of the Malay people and yellow is the royal color of Malay rulers
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Judicial branch
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Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel with jurisdiction over Guadeloupe, French Guiana, and Martinique
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civil courts include Federal Court, Court of Appeal, High Court of Malaya on peninsula Malaysia, and High Court of Sabah and Sarawak in states of Borneo (judges are appointed by the king on the advice of the prime minister); sharia courts include Sharia Appeal Court, Sharia High Court, and Sharia Subordinate Courts at state-level and deal with religious and family matters such as custody, divorce, and inheritance only for Muslims; decisions of sharia courts cannot be appealed to civil courts
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Legal system
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French legal system
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mixed legal system of English common law, Islamic law, and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court at request of supreme head of the federation
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Legislative branch
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unicameral General Council or Conseil General (42 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
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bicameral Parliament or Parlimen consists of Senate or Dewan Negara
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Legislative branch
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Election results
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General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - left-wing candidates 11, PS 8, RPR 8, PPDG 6, right-wing candidates 5, PCG 3, UDF 1; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PS 58.4%, UMP 41.6%; seats by party - PS 29, UMP 12
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House of Representatives - percent of vote - BN coalition 59.9%, opposition parties 40%, others 0.1%; seats - BN coalition 133, opposition parties 89
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Legislative branch
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Elections
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General Council - last held March 2004 (next to be held by in 2010); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in March 2008 to elect half of the body)
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House of Representatives - last held on 5 May 2013 (next to be held by May 2018)
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National holiday
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Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
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Independence Day 31 August (1957) (independence of Malaya); Malaysia Day 16 September (1963) (formation of Malaysia)
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Political parties and leaders
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Communist Party of Guadeloupe or PCG [Mona CADOCE]; FGPS [Dominique LARIFLA]; Left Radical Party or PRG [Flavien FERRANT]; Progressive Democratic Party or PPDG [Henri BANGOU]; Socialist Party or PS [Jules OTTO]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Claudine LACAVE]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (including Rassemblement pour la Republique or RPR) [Gabrielle LOUIS-CARABIN]
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<strong>National Front (Barisan Nasional) or BN (ruling coalition) consists of the following parties: </strong><br />Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia Party or GERAKAN [KOH Tsu Koon]<br />Liberal Democratic Party (Parti Liberal Demokratik - Sabah) or LDP [LIEW Vui Keong]<br />Malaysian Chinese Association (Persatuan China Malaysia) or MCA [CHUA Soi Lek]<br />Malaysian Indian Congress (Kongres India Malaysia) or MIC [Govindasamy PALANIVEL]<br />Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah or PBRS [Joseph KURUP]<br />Parti Bersatu Sabah or PBS [Joseph PAIRIN Kitingan]<br />Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu or PBB [Abdul TAIB Mahmud]<br />Parti Rakyat Sarawak or PRS [James MASING]<br />Sarawak United People's Party (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sarawak) or SUPP [Peter CHIN Fah Kui]<br />United Malays National Organization or UMNO [NAJIB bin Abdul Razak]<br />United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organization (Pertubuhan Pasko Momogun Kadazan Dusun Bersatu) or UPKO [Bernard DOMPOK]<br />People's Progressive Party (Parti Progresif Penduduk Malaysia) or PPP [M.Kayveas]<br /><br /><strong>People's Alliance (Pakatan Rakyat) or PR (opposition coalition) consists of the following parties:</strong><br />Democratic Action Party (Parti Tindakan Demokratik) or DAP [KARPAL Singh]<br />Islamic Party of Malaysia (Parti Islam se Malaysia) or PAS [Abdul HADI Awang<br />People's Justice Party (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) or PKR [WAN AZIZAH Wan Ismail]<br />Sarawak National Party or SNAP [Edwin DUNDANG]<br /><br /><strong>notable independent parties:</strong><br />Sabah Progressive Party (Parti Progresif Sabah) or SAPP [YONG Teck Lee]<br />State Reform Pary (Parti Reformasi Negeri) or STAR [Jeffery KITINGAN]
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Political pressure groups and leaders
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Christian Movement for the Liberation of Guadeloupe or KLPG; General Federation of Guadeloupe Workers or CGT-G; General Union of Guadeloupe Workers or UGTG; Movement for Independent Guadeloupe or MPGI; The Socialist Renewal Movement
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Bar Council<br />BERSIH (electoral reform coalition)<br />PEMBELA (Muslim NGO coalition)<br />PERKASA (defense of Malay rights)<br /><br /><strong>other:</strong> religious groups; women's groups; youth groups
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Transnational Issues
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Disputes
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International
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none
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while the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions over the Spratly Islands, it is not the legally binding "code of conduct" sought by some parties; Malaysia was not party to the March 2005 joint accord among the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam on conducting marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands; disputes continue over deliveries of fresh water to Singapore, Singapore's land reclamation, bridge construction, and maritime boundaries in the Johor and Singapore Straits; in 2008, ICJ awarded sovereignty of Pedra Branca (Pulau Batu Puteh/Horsburgh Island) to Singapore, and Middle Rocks to Malaysia, but did not rule on maritime regimes, boundaries, or disposition of South Ledge; land and maritime negotiations with Indonesia are ongoing, and disputed areas include the controversial Tanjung Datu and Camar Wulan border area in Borneo and the maritime boundary in the Ambalat oil block in the Celebes Sea; separatist violence in Thailand's predominantly Muslim southern provinces prompts measures to close and monitor border with Malaysia to stem terrorist activities; Philippines retains a dormant claim to Malaysia's Sabah State in northern Borneo; per Letters of Exchange signed in 2009, Malaysia in 2010 ceded two hydrocarbon concession blocks to Brunei in exchange for Brunei's sultan dropping claims to the Limbang corridor, which divides Brunei; piracy remains a problem in the Malacca Strait
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