Corse-du-Sud

Corse-du-Sud
—  Department  —
Coat of arms
Location of Corse-du-Sud in France
Coordinates: 41°51′N 9°2′E / 41.85°N 9.033°E / 41.85; 9.033Coordinates: 41°51′N 9°2′E / 41.85°N 9.033°E / 41.85; 9.033
Country	France
Region	Corse
Prefecture	Ajaccio
Subprefectures	Sartène
Government
- President of the General Council	Jean-Jacques Panunzi (UMP)
Area1
- Total	4,014 km2 (1,549.8 sq mi)
Population (1999)
- Total	118,593
- Rank	99th
- Density	29.5/km2 (76.5/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Department number	2A
Arrondissements	2
Cantons	22
Communes	124
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

Corse-du-Sud (Corsican: Corsica suttana) (English: South Corsica) is a French département composed of the southern part of the island of Corsica.

History

The department was formed on 15 September 1975, when the Corse department was divided into Haute-Corse and Corse-du-Sud. Its boundaries correspond to the former department of Liamone, which existed from 1793 to 1811.

The department hit the head-lines at the end of the twentieth century with the assassination at Ajaccio of the prefect Claude Érignac on 6 February 1998.

Map of Corsica

Geography

The department is surrounded on three sides by the Mediterranean Sea and on the north by the department of Haute-Corse.

The entire island of Corsica is mountainous with many beautiful beaches.

Demographics

The inhabitants of all of Corsica are called Corsicans.

Culture and Politics

Corsicans are a fiercely independent people. However, a 6 July 2003 referendum on increased autonomy was voted down by a very thin majority: 50.98 percent against to 49.02 percent for. This was a major setback for French Minister of the Interior Nicolas Sarkozy, who had hoped to use Corsica as the first step in his decentralization policies.

General Council

The President of the General Council is Jean-Jacques Panunzi, who has held the office since 2006.

Party		seats
•	Union for a Popular Movement	11
	Miscellaneous Left	4
•	Miscellaneous Right	4
	Left Radical Party	2
	Party of the Corsican Nation	1

Tourism

South Corsica enjoys the mild and hot climate of Mediterranean Islands, and therefore attracts a lot of tourists. Its gem is the city of Bonifacio, part of which is built upon a huge cliff. But inside mountains are beautiful as well, especially the Aiguilles de Bavella, some naked, needle-like rocks.

See also

• Cantons of the Corse-du-Sud department
• Communes of the Corse-du-Sud department
• Arrondissements of the Corse-du-Sud department

External links

• (French) General Council website
• (English) Corse-du-Sud at the Open Directory Project

• (French) University of Corsica website