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The Philippines were ceded by Spain to the US in 1898 following the Spanish-American War. They attained independence in 1946 after Japanese occupation in World War II. The 21-year rule of Ferdinand MARCOS ended in 1986, when a widespread popular rebellion forced him into exile. In 1992, the US closed its last military bases on the islands. The Philippines has had two electoral presidential transitions since the removal of MARCOS. In January 2001, the Supreme Court declared Joseph ESTRADA unable to rule in view of mass resignations from his government and administered the oath of office to Vice President Gloria MACAPAGAL-ARROYO as his constitutional successor. The government continues to struggle with Muslim insurgencies in the south.
Location: Southeastern Asia, archipelago between the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, east of Vietnam
Area: total: 300,000 sq km
water: 1,830 sq km
land: 298,170 sq km
Climate: tropical marine; northeast monsoon (November to April); southwest monsoon (May to October)
Land use: arable land: 18.45%
permanent crops: 14.76%
other: 66.79% (1998 est.)
Environment - current issues: uncontrolled deforestation in watershed areas; soil erosion; air and water pollution in Manila; increasing pollution of coastal mangrove swamps that are important fish breeding grounds
Geography - note: favorably located in relation to many of Southeast Asia\'s main water bodies: the South China Sea, Philippine Sea, Sulu Sea, Celebes Sea, and Luzon Strait
Population: 84,619,974 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 36.2% (male 15,625,480; female 15,028,498)
15-64 years: 59.9% (male 25,206,467; female 25,485,482)
65 years and over: 3.9% (male 1,427,238; female 1,846,809) (2003 est.)
Birth rate: 26.3 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: 5.6 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 69.29 years
male: 66.44 years
female: 72.28 years (2003 est.)
Religions: Roman Catholic 83%, Protestant 9%, Muslim 5%, Buddhist and other 3%
Languages: two official languages - Filipino (based on Tagalog) and English; eight major dialects - Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocan, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinense
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