Guyana is a constitutional republic in northern South America. It has an area of 214,970 square kilometers (83,000 square miles) and an estimated population of 702,100. Once a Dutch colony, Guyana was ruled by Great Britain from the early nineteenth century until 1966, when it gained its independence. Since that time the country has experienced both political stability and instability, the latter influenced by racially driven politics and episodes of authoritarian rule, which dominated most of the almost two decades of rule by Forbes Burnham (1923–1985). Burnham was a charismatic leader, as was his nemesis, Cheddi Jagan (1918–1997), who won the presidency in 1992 in what is considered the country's first free and fair election after independence. Upon Jagan's death in 1997, he was succeeded by his wife Janet Jagan (b. 1920), who resigned in 1999 because of poor health. Her successor, Bharrat Jagdeo (b. 1964), was reelected in 2001. As of 2005 he headed the executive branch, and his People's...