Background :
The Territory of Guam (Guåhån in Chamorro) is an island in the Western Pacific Ocean and is an organized unincorporated territory of the United States. Its indigenous people are the Chamorros, who first inhabited the island approximately 3,500 years ago. The capital is Hagåtña, formerly Agana (pronounced Agaña). Guam's economy is mainly supported by tourism (particularly from Japan) and its United States armed forces bases. The latter takes up one-third of the entire land mass of the island. The United Nations Committee on Decolonization includes Guam on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories.

The island is also known as a prominent example for the disastrous effects of bioinvasion: A stowaway on U.S. military transport at the end of World War II, the slightly venomous, but rather harmless, brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis) came north to Guam and killed almost the entire native bird population on the previously snake-free island. This snake has no natural predators on the island; nowadays, Guam is one of the areas with the highest snake density in the world (an estimated 2,000 snakes/km²). Even so, residents rarely see these snakes. They curl up and hide during the day, and move about on trees and fences at night. As prodigious tree climbers, the snakes caused frequent blackouts in neigborhoods across the Island. Now all power poles have a slick metal sheath that prevent the snakes from climbing up.

Guam lies along the Marianas Trench, a deep subduction zone at the edge of the Pacific plate. The Challenger Deep, the deepest point on earth, is just southwest of Guam at 35,838 ft (10,923 meters) deep.

Politics
The population of Guam is largely proud of its US connection, and its economy is greatly dependent on the US military base. The U.S. connection also contributes to Guam's status as a Japanese tourist desitination. The Guamanian population is generally culturally sympathetic toward the U.S., based especially in common tribulations during WWII, and on good relations with the US military since.

Maintenance of the status quo vis à vis the current political relationship between the territory and the US is, however, not without controversy. There is a significant movement in favor of Guam becoming a commonwealth in political union with the US (i.e., the political status of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands). Competing movements with less significant influence exist, one of which advocates political independence from the United States, while another movement advocates statehood.

In whatever form it takes, most people on Guam favor a modified version of the current territorial status, involving both greater autonomy from Washington (similar to the autonomy of individual states), and also greater rights and freedoms as Americans. Perceived indifference by the US Congress regarding a change-of-status petition submitted by Guam, has led many to feel that the territory is being unjustly deprived of the benefits of a richer and more equitable union with the US.

Conversely, members in the US Congress have shown growing concern with the seemingly rampant political corruption within the local Government of Guam. Investigations into the expenditure of Federal grants have frequently revealed waste, fraud, and abuse throughout all levels of the Guam Government bureaucracy. There are also grievances against political and economic racism; particularly that of native Chamorro possessing more "rights" than other American citizens in a multitude of matters.

Transportation and Communications
Guam is served by Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport.

As travel restrictions eased and the Japanese economy grew, Guam became a favorite destination for Japanese tourists. Guam is a relatively short flight from Japan compared to Hawaii, and a series of tourist hotels and golf courses were built to cater to the tourists. Today, about 90 percent of tourists to Guam are Japanese. The main tourist beach, Tumon Bay has beautiful white sand, and Tumon Bay is now a marine preserve, teeming with fish. Recently completed infrastucture projects have brought underground fiber-optics and new roads to the busy Tumon area.

Economy
The economy depends mainly on US military spending and on tourist revenue. Over the past 20 years, the tourist industry grew rapidly, creating a construction boom for new hotels, golf courses and other tourist amenities. More than 1 million tourists visit Guam each year including about 900,000 from Japan and 150,000 from Korea. The industry suffered numerous setbacks in the 1990's including numerous super-typhoons, an 8.1 earthquake, and a Korean airline crash. More recently, SARS, the Iraq war and most importantly the Japan economy and acommpanying yen to dollar adjustments have significantly impacted tourism with spending per person in retail and attraction sectors now nearly 50% compared to their peak in the mid-1990s. Nevertheless, as of 2005 tourism is finally starting to stabilize and recover.

Most food and industrial goods are imported. As Guam's tourist economy continues to slowly recover, over $ 1 billion in military spending on the island is projected in the coming several years. The Government of Guam (GovGuam) is the biggest employer on the island (exceeding the tourism industry and the federal military), with a payroll and retirment burden that has led in recent years to an ongoing and growing budget deficit.

Language
The official languages on Guam are Chamorro and English. Both languages are taught in the schools and appear in official documents. The Chamorro (Chamoru) language derives its origins over 5000 years ago. It belongs to the western group of the Austronesian language family which includes the languages of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Palau. During its evolution, many Spanish and American words have been assimilated into it.

People and Culture
The present population of Guam is approximately 154,000 of whom roughly 47% are Chamorro, 25% Filipino and the remaining 28% primarily Caucasian, Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Micronesian all of whom bring their cultural herritage and customs and contribute to Guam's unique culture and appeal.

The Chamorro, the core of today's Guam culture, is characterized by a complex social protocol centered upon respect, caring, accepting and helping one another. Inafa'maolek, or interdependence, is a central value, in Chamorro culture which depends on a spirit of cooperation. Historian Lawrence Cunningham in 1992 wrote, "In a Chamorro sense, the land and its produce belong to everyone. This is the armature, or core, that everything in Chamorro culture revolves around. It is a powerful concern for mutuality rather than individualism and private property rights." This culture is visibly manifested in the kissing of the hands of the elders, passing of legends, music, dance, chants, courtship rituals, handicrafts, burial rituals, preparation of herbal medicines, and requesting forgiveness from spiritual ancestors when entering a jungle. Legends and folklore, such as the village taotaomona (ancient spirits), doomed lovers leaping to their death off Two Lovers' Point (Puntan Dos Amantes), and Sirena, a beautiful young girl who became a mermaid, all reflect Guam's unique Chamorro culture.