ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief historical background and a description of major events in Comoros. It also provides basic political, economic, and social data arranged in the following categories: polity, economy, population, purchasing power parities, life expectancy, ethnic groups, capital, political rights, civil liberties, and status. The chapter discusses the progress and decline of political rights and civil liberties in Comoros. As Comoros prepared for a referendum in December 2001 to decide the archipelago's future, a small invasion force added another chapter to the country's history of mercenary invasions. Comoros comprises three islands: Grande Comore, Anjouan, and Moheli. A framework agreement on a new federation was signed between the government in Grande Comore and Anjouan in February 2001, paving the way for elections in 2002 and a transition to democracy. The Comorian legal system is based on Sharia and remnants of the French legal code, and is subject to influence by the executive and other elites.
