FACTS
Full name: Republic of Maldives
Population: 294,000 (via UN, 2006)
Capital: Male
Area: 298 sq km (115 sq miles)
Major language: Dhivehi
Major religion: Islam
Life expectancy: 67 years (men), 66 years (women) (UN)
Monetary unit: 1 rufiyaa = 100 laari
Main exports: Fish, clothing
GNI per capita: US $2,390 (World Bank, 2006)
Internet domain: .mv
International dialling code: +960
COUNTRY PROFILE: THE MALDIVES
The Maldives is made up of a chain of nearly 1,200 islands, most of them uninhabited, which lie off the Indian sub-continent.
None of the coral islands measures more than 1.8 metres (six feet) above sea level, making the country vulnerable to a rise in sea levels associated with global warming.
With its abundant sealife and sandy beaches, The Maldives is portrayed by travel companies as a tropical paradise.
The economy revolves around tourism, and scores of islands have been developed for the top end of the tourist market.
Aside from the island capital Male, outsiders are only permitted onto inhabited islands for brief visits, thereby limiting their impact on traditional Muslim communities.
Many Maldivians live in poverty. However, the country has developed its infrastructure and industries, including the fisheries sector, and has boosted health care, education and literacy.
The Maldives was hit by the December 2004 Asian tsunami. Homes and resorts were devastated by the waves, precipitating a major rebuilding programme.
There is a fear that as sea levels rise, island countries such as the Maldives, and some Pacific territories, will simply be swamped and disappear.
LEADERS
President: Maumoon Abdul Gayoom
President Gayoom is Asia's longest-serving leader. He was re-elected for a record sixth five-year term in 2003, having first taken office in 1978. The Maldives has been relatively stable under his rule, despite attempted coups in the 1980s.
The country aims to hold its first multi-party elections by the end of 2008. Parliament voted to introduce a multi-party democracy in 2005; previously, political parties had been banned, although there had been no official ban on political activity.
In 2006 President Gayoom presented a "roadmap" for the democratic reforms, which he said were meant to enhance, among other things, human rights, independence of the judiciary and multi-party politics.
President Gayoom had come under growing pressure, with human rights groups accusing him of running an autocratic state and unprecedented anti-government violence flaring in the streets.
Maldivian presidents are chosen in a yes-no referendum; voters are presented with a single candidate chosen by the Majlis, or parliament.
Under the current system, the president has great influence and appoints members of the cabinet and the judiciary. The president also appoints eight of the 50 Majlis members.
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was born in Male in 1937 and was educated in Sri Lanka and Egypt. He served as transport minister under President Ibrahim Nasir
MEDIA
Broadcasters and the press can carry limited criticism of the state but the government has the power to close media outlets. Self-regulation by the media has meant that there has been only isolated official action against journalists.
The government controls Voice of Maldives radio and the sole TV service, Television Maldives. The country's first private radio station launched in 2007.
Minivan Radio, an opposition station, operates via leased overseas shortwave facilties.
Local dailies which publish in the Divehi language have some English-language pages and concentrate on local and regional topics. Several local periodicals are published, mainly in Maldivian.
The International Press Freedom Mission, a cluster of media groups led by Reporters Without Borders, alleges that the government is harassing and abusing journalists for political ends.
"It would appear that despite the encouraging announcements and steps of the past years, the authorities have not abandoned old methods of harassment and intimidation," the watchdog said after visiting the islands in May 2006.
The press
· Haveeru Daily Online
· Aafathis News
· Miadhu News
Television
· Television Maldives (TVM) - state-owned, operates two channels
Radio
· Voice of Maldives - state-owned
· Radio Eke - state-owned
· Capital Radio 95.6 - private
· DhiFM 95.2 - private
Timeline: The Maldives
A chronology of key events:
12th century - Islam introduced.
1558-1573 - Portuguese occupation, which ends after expulsion by locals.
17th century - Islands become a protectorate first of the Dutch rulers of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and later of the British who take control of Ceylon in 1796.
1887 - Status formalised as internally self-governing British protectorate.
1932 - First democratic constitution proclaimed. The sultanate becomes an elected position.
1953 - Becomes a republic within the Commonwealth as the sultanate is abolished. However, the Sultan is restored within months.
1965 - Full independence as a sultanate outside Commonwealth.
1968 - Sultan deposed after referendum; republic reinstated with Ibrahim Nasir as president.
1978 - Nasir retires, replaced by Maumoon Abd al-Gayoom.
1980s - Development of tourist industry fuels economic growth.
1982 - Rejoins Commonwealth.
1988 - Coup attempt involving Sri Lankan mercenaries foiled with the help of Indian commandos.
1998 - Gayoom re-elected for a fifth term in presidential referendum.
Domestic dissent
1999 November - Parliamentary elections take place, with more than 120 independent candidates contesting 40 seats.
2000 January - Amnesty International says three candidates in 1999 parliamentary elections were tortured after being detained on suspicion of instigating unrest.
2002 March - Concern over the Maldives' vulnerability to rising sea levels prompts government to announce decision to take legal action against US for refusing to sign Kyoto Protocol.
2002 July - Lengthy prison terms are handed down to four people found guilty of defamation and inciting violence.
2002 September - At World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, President Gayoom warns that low-lying islands are at greater risk than ever before, and calls on international community to take urgent action to prevent global environmental catastrophe.
2003 July - Amnesty International accuses Maldives government of political repression and torture. It says arbitrary detentions, unfair trials and long-term imprisonment of government critics are commonplace. The government rejects allegations as "false and baseless".
2003 September - Unprecedented anti-government riots break out in Male, sparked by deaths of four prison inmates.
Amnesty International blames unrest on political repression and human rights abuses. President Gayoom dismisses police chief, promises independent inquiry into prison deaths.
2003 October - Gayoom re-elected for unprecedented sixth term in presidential referendum, winning more than 90% of the vote.
2004 June - President Gayoom promises constitutional changes to limit presidential term and to allow formation of political parties.
2004 August - State of emergency imposed after a pro-democracy demonstration turns violent. Almost 100 people are jailed.
Tsunami
2004 December - Scores of people are killed and many islands suffer severe damage when a tsunami generated by a powerful undersea earthquake off the Indonesian coast hits the Maldives. The government says the disaster has set development work back by 20 years.
2005 June - Parliament votes unanimously to allow multi-party politics.
2005 August - Opposition party leader Mohamed Nasheed is charged with terrorism and sedition. The government says he criticised President Gayoom and incited violence.
2006 March - President Gayoom unveils a "roadmap" for democratic reforms, which he says will enhance multi-party politics.
2006 August - President Gayoom pardons senior opposition figure Jennifer Latheef serving a 10-year term on terrorism charges, but she refuses to recognise the pardon and demands a retrial to clear her name.
2007 May - Government says a coastguard vessel has opened fire and sunk a boat carrying suspected Tamil Tiger rebels from Sri Lanka.
2007 August - Voters in a referendum back President Gayoom's proposal for a presidential system of government.
Foreign Minister Ahmed Shaheed becomes third cabinet member in a month to resign.
2007 September - Bomb wounds 12 tourists in Male.