Inini

Inini (French Territoire de l' Inini ) was a French colony in South America, which was separated in 1930 from French Guiana. In 1946, both areas were pooled again and since then form a French Overseas Territory.

History

By order of May 1930, the French National Assembly divided the territory of French Guyana in two parts. A 40 kilometer wide strip along the Atlantic coast and the offshore islands was still administered under the name of French Guiana, the entire interior was on July 6, 1930 under the name Territoire de l' Inini a separate administrative district, which takes its name after the Inini, a tributary of the Maroni received. Capital was Saint- Élie. Both areas were under a common governor. By sharing the development of the interior, especially the extraction of mineral resources, advanced and new French settlers should be brought into the country, which had previously been prevented by the negative image of French Guyana as a penal colony.

The newly created, about 70,000 km ² territory was sparsely populated, the indigenous population consisted of the Alukus, plus there were the bonuses known as descendants of runaway black slaves. In the colony convicts were undesirable, so we recruited as laborers for the construction of roads and a railway connection from Saint- Élie to Gare Tigre Vietnamese and Laotians from French Indochina to. In 1937, uprisings among the workers, which were suppressed by the security forces because of poor living and working conditions. In 1941 there were about 5000 inhabitants in the colony.

As of April 1932 made ​​a post Inini area with its own stamp issues. The first issues created by printing the lettering TERRITOIRE DE L' Inini on brands of French Guyana, and later some special stamps issued with joint designs for all French colonies (so-called Omnibus spending ) and the country name Inini.

On March 19, 1946 Inini and the coastal strips were re-united and formed since the Overseas Territory French Guiana. A special statute, coupled with separate administrative bodies for Inini, persisted until 17 March 1969.