2 different countries are named congo.
1) the democratic republic of congo-kishaska is the former zaire. it was once a very poorly run belgian colony. for years, it was a dictatorship under joseph motubo. in the 1990s, the nation was in a constant state of civil war. it is currently under the authority of a transitional gov't.
2) the republic of congo, a country in just as bad of a state as the above. a former french colony, it saw multiple coups until a communist government came to power in the late 1960s. civil war occured in the 1990s, and the country is currently a faux democracy. it is known for its vast jungles with their gorillas.
1) the democratic republic of congo-kishaska is the former zaire. it was once a very poorly run belgian colony. for years, it was a dictatorship under joseph motubo. in the 1990s, the nation was in a constant state of civil war. it is currently under the authority of a transitional gov't.
2) the republic of congo, a country in just as bad of a state as the above. a former french colony, it saw multiple coups until a communist government came to power in the late 1960s. civil war occured in the 1990s, and the country is currently a faux democracy. it is known for its vast jungles with their gorillas.
there are two nations called the congo. interesting enough, the former zaire is officially called congo-kishaska, but it is usually refered to as just 'congo', while the republic of congo is usually refered to as 'congo-braza'
by Ben E. Hama January 27, 2007
poorest country in the world, sitting in a very rural and rugged part of africa. nobody from the outside world knew the region existed til the mid-1800s. the french exploited this place until the 1950s. since then it's been extremely unstable.
by Ben E. Hama February 02, 2007
a very poor west african country. a former portuguese and later french colony. a bright spot in africa over the last few years, as its economy is growing (although not substantually) and it's actually becoming a true democracy. the most interesting fact about it to most people is its shape.
by Ben E. Hama January 27, 2007
tiny country that is basically just an independent city surrounded by italy. its people are ethnic italians, but when italy was unified in the 1870s, san marino refused to join. it's actually been an independent nation since 301 AD. nowadays, they are famous for producing special coins and postage stamps marketed directly at tourists.
by Ben E. Hama January 31, 2007
mozambique is a country in africa. it was a long time posession of portugal, but was basically owned through most of the 1800s and early 1900s by a corpoartion known as the nissa company. this organization, of course, ran mozambique into the ground. portugal held on this place until their own upheaval in the 1970s. since then, mozambique has been typical africa with coups, civil wars, aids, and poverty.
by Ben E. Hama February 02, 2007
palau is a tiny island nation in the pacific, with a population of only about 20,000 people. it was colonized by various powers between the 1600s and late 20th century, including the Spanish, Germans, British, Japanese, and Americans. however, no foreign power really did anything to help or harm the region. a huge WWII battle occured here, and following the end of the war, the US was put in charge of the region. palau refused to join the country of micronesia when it was formed in the 1970s. after political chaos, it finally became independent in 1994.
by Ben E. Hama February 02, 2007
yemen is a middle eastern nation that isn't wealthy because it lacks oil. the nation was once part of the old ottoman empire. after wwi, the the northern part became an independent faux republic, while the south remained a british colony. south yemen became independent in the '60s as a communist state. they united in 1990 and have been a country filled with drought, civil war, and political corruption ever since. its close distance to africa has lead to vicitms of wars in both the mid east and africa fleeing back and forth between the 2 continents through yemen.
by Ben E. Hama February 03, 2007