The Shaking of Palau 123 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Micronesia

Micronesia is one of the three traditional sub-divisions of Oceania, lying to the North of Melanesia and the West of Polynesia. The Caroline Islands became Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia.

Only a handful of Palau's islands are inhabited and, of these, Babeldaob, the largest island, contains the capital city of Ngerulmud and the country's principal airport. It is not, however, the most populous of Palau's islands. That honor goes to Koror which contains over half of Palau's population (Estimated at 20,796 in 2009 by the CIA World Factbook).

A state of emergency was called in 1996 when the bridge between Koror and Babeldaob collapsed, as almost all of Koror's supplies come through Babeldaob. Its rebuilding was funded by grant money from Japan and it reopened in 2002 as the "Japan Palau Friendship Bridge".

Answer: Second World War

Micronesia was the scene of Second World War engagements between the American and Japanese forces in which more than 60 Japanese ships were sunk around Palau.

Scuba divers have far more than just shipwrecks to explore. Other attractions include a myriad of coral islands, underwater cave systems, deep sea walls and a lake teeming with jellyfish.

Answer: Denmark

In modern times, Palau had contact with both Spanish and English explorers but didn't formally become part of a colonial empire until 1885. In that year, Pope Leo XIII was asked to arbitrate between rival Spanish, English and German claims. He opted for Spain.

Spanish control lasted until 1899 when the Caroline Islands were sold to Germany in the wake of defeat in the Spanish-American war. The price tag was 25 million pesetas or about £1m. Japan invaded the islands at the beginning of the First World War and continued to govern under a League of Nations mandate following the Treaty of Versailles in 1919. After Japan's defeat in the Second World War, the United Nations placed the islands under American administration and they formed part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

Answer: Baseball

The man responsible for bringing baseball to Palau was Motoji Kono, an official in the Japanese administration. Kono was born to a German father and Japanese mother; married into Palauan "royalty" and had an only son that survived 18 hours adrift in shark infested waters after his boat was sunk by an American submarine.

Palau's baseball season stretches from January to early April. These months have the lowest average temperatures and avoid the wet season which runs from April to November.

Answer: Bikini Atoll

Tests were carried out between 1946 and 1958. Although the distance from Bikini Atoll to Palau is over 2100 miles, it was considered close enough for Palau to be included within the compensation arrangements agreed between the USA and the Federated States of Micronesia. Tahiti was the site of French nuclear testing.

Approval of the constitution led to years of American "lobbying". The Reagan administration considered it vital to retain an American military presence on the islands and that could not happen whilst nuclear weapons were outlawed. Their pressure, and refusal to sign up to any independence agreement that failed to reverse the nuclear ban, led to a string of referenda and many years of delay.

Answer: Meeting place of whispers

Palau's political system is modeled on that of the USA, with the populace electing a President to a four year term and representatives to a Senate and House of Delegates.

Remeliik was shot in front of his house. Three men were convicted of the murder but all were acquitted, on appeal, in 1987.

Answer: Women

Traditionally, Palau has been a matrilineal society based upon a system of clans, with land, money and influence being passed through the female line.

Bedor Bins' murder came at the height of the struggle to reverse Palau's non-nuclear constitution. Repeatedly the population was asked to vote in referenda and repeatedly they voted for no change. It was when Palau's government attempted to lower the required majority below 75% that they were taken to court. It is generally believed that Bedor Bins was the victim of mistaken identity and that the assassins were targeting his son, Roman Bedor. Four men were charged with the murder but, as in the Remeliik case, all were acquitted.

Answer: Compact of Free Association

Salii's original inspiration came from the relationship between the Cook Islands and New Zealand and he was instrumental in the talks which paved the way for the independence of the Trust's three constituent parts - the Republic of the Marshall Islands, The Federated States of Micronesia and Palau. Each negotiated its own compact with the US. The former two came into force in 1986 but Palau's was not ratified until 1994 - after 8 referenda and a constitutional change to allow a simple majority.

A coroner's report found that Salii had committed suicide. He had been embroiled in accusations of corruption.

Answer: Survivor

Koror is Palau's largest island on which lives the majority of the country's population.

Ulong Island is part of the mostly uninhabited Rock Islands which lie to the south of Koror. Much of the stone money traditionally used on nearby Yap was quarried on these islands and remnants can still be found, making Palau the only country in the world where money is, literally, left lying on the ground.

Answer: Betel

The initial study, "Effects of chewing betel nut (Areca Catechu) on the symptoms of people with schizophrenia in Palau, Micronesia" (Roger J. Sullivan et al), was published in the "British Journal of Psychiatry" (2000). The quote about the betel nut being the fourth most widely used drug worldwide is taken from a follow-up study, by the same authors, which appeared in the "American Journal of Psychiatry" in 2007. Both studies concluded that the alleviating effects were clinically significant. Betel nut chewers in Palau are usually very visible as a red stain is left around the mouth.

The image of schizophrenia is probably a not inappropriate metaphor to finish a quiz about a country torn between its desire for self-determination and the military needs of its Uncle Sam.