The Bahamas
Arawak Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher Columbus first
set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement
of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783.
Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have
prospered through tourism and international banking and investment
management.
Curacao,
Netherlands Antillies Once the center of the Caribbean slave
trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery
in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored
in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries
to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields.
Malaysia
During the late 18th and 19th centuries, Great Britain established
colonies and protectorates in the area of current Malaysia; these
were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945. In 1948, the British-ruled
territories on the Malay Peninsula formed the Federation of Malaya,
which became independent in 1957. Malaysia was formed in 1963 when
the former British colonies of Singapore and the East Malaysian
states of Sabah and Sarawak on the northern coast of Borneo joined
the Federation.
St.Vincent
and the Grenadines Disputed between France and the United Kingdom
in the 18th century, Saint Vincent was ceded to the latter in 1783.
Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979.
