UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

68 localities (Il-lokalita); Attard, Balzan, Birgu, Birkirkara, Birzebbuga, Bormla, Dingli, Fgura, Floriana, Fontana, Ghajnsielem, Gharb, Gharghur, Ghasri Ghaxaq, Gudja, Gzira, Hamrun, Iklin, Imdina, Imgarr, Imqabba, Imsida, Imtarfa, Isla, Kalkara, Kercem, Kirkop, Lija, Luqa, Marsa, Marsaskala, Marsaxlokk, Mellieha, Mosta, Munxar, Nadur, Naxxar, Paola, Pembroke, Pieta, Qala, Qormi, Qrendi, Rabat, Rabat (Ghawdex), Safi, San Giljan/Saint Julian, San Gwann/Saint John, San Lawrenz/Saint Lawrence, Sannat, San Pawl il-Bahar/Saint Paul's Bay, Santa Lucija/Saint Lucia, Santa Venera/Saint Venera, Siggiewi, Sliema, Swieqi, Tarxien, Ta' Xbiex, Valletta, Xaghra, Xewkija, Xghajra, Zabbar, Zebbug, Zebbug (Ghawdex), Zejtun, Zurrieq

21 September 1964 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 21 September (1964); Republic Day, 13 December (1974)

Mixed legal system of English common law and civil law (based on the Roman and Napoleonic civil codes)

Accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

President George ABELA (since 4 April 2009)

Prime Minister Lawrence GONZI (since 23 March 2004)

Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister

President elected by a resolution of the House of Representatives for a five-year term; election last held on 12 January 2009 (next to be held by April 2014); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the president for a five-year term; the deputy prime minister appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister

George ABELA elected president by the House of Representatives

Unicameral House of Representatives (normally 65 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation by the Single Transferrable Vote (STV) to serve five-year terms; note - the parliament elected in 2008 is composed of 69 seats; when the political party winning an absolute majority of first-count votes (or a plurality of first-count votes in an election where only two parties are represented in parliament) does not win an absolute majority of seats, the constitution provides for the winning party to be awarded additional number of seats in parliament to guarantee it an absolute majority; in the event that more than two parties are represented in parliament, with none acquiring the absolute majority of votes, the party winning the majority of seats prevails

Last held on 8 March 2008 (next to be held by March 2013)

Percent of vote by party - PN 49.3%, PL 48.8%, other 1.9%; seats by party - PN 35, PL 34

Constitutional Court; Court of First Instance; Court of Appeal

Magistrates and judges for the courts are appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister

Alternativa Demokratika/Alliance for Social Justice or AD [Michael BRIGUGLIO]; Labor Party or PL [Joseph MUSCAT]; Nationalist Party or PN [Lawrence GONZI]; The Malta Communist Party [Victor DEGIOVANNI]

Alleanza Liberali-Demokratika Maltra or ALDM (for divorce, abortion, gay marriage, the rights existent in other EU member states); Alternattiva Demokratika (pro-environment); Flimkien Ghal-Ambjent Ahjar (pro-environment); Ghazda tal-Konsumaturi (consumer rights)

Australia Group, C, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina (observer), UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

2017 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

[1] (202) 462-3611 through 3612

Ambassador Gina ABERCROMBIE-WINSTANLEY

Ta' Qali National Park, Attard, ATD 4000

Two equal vertical bands of white (hoist side) and red; in the upper hoist-side corner is a representation of the George Cross, edged in red; according to legend, the colors are taken from the red and white checkered banner of Count Roger of Sicily who removed a bi-colored corner and granted it to Malta in 1091; an uncontested explanation is that the colors are those of the Knights of Saint John who ruled Malta from 1530 to 1798; in 1942, King George VI of the United Kingdom awarded the George Cross to the islanders for their exceptional bravery and gallantry in World War II; since independence in 1964, the George Cross bordered in red has appeared directly on the white field

"L-Innu Malti" (The Maltese Anthem)

Adopted 1945; the anthem is written in the form of a prayer