Flag of French PolynesiaFlag of France  French Polynesia country
brief   French Polynesia comprises five archipelagos (Society,
Tuamotu, Marquesas, Gambier and Australs) spread over 5.3
million square kilometres in the middle of the South Pacific
ocean, approximately 6,000 kilometres east of Australia and
7,500 kilometres west of Chile. French Polynesia’s main island,
Tahiti, became a French protectorate in 1842, and France took
possession of French Polynesia as a whole in 1880. The
population is 277 300.     French Polynesia was designated an
Overseas Territory of France in 1946 and given a Territorial
Assembly on 25 October 1946. French Polynesia's constitutional
status ('Statut') defines its institutions, legal powers and
relationship with France. The French Government has amended this
Statut several times since 1946.  The government of French
Polynesia was given executive responsibility for many areas
(including local financial and economic affairs, customs and
taxation, tourism, transport, agriculture, f