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Tonga crowns new king
Pacific nation.
Tongan King George Tupou V is saluted after being crowned in Nuku'alofa,Tonga, on Friday.
George V was anointed with oil and a large gold crown was placed on his head. He was called on to rule "wisely, justly and truly."
The coronation, which included singing by a choir of more than 300, was the first in Tonga since 1967 when George V's father, the late King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, ascended to the throne.
George V sat on a large golden throne in the capital's Centenary Church in front of 1,000 guests, as Archbishop of Polynesia Jabez Bryce proclaimed he had been "anointed, blessed and consecrated" as king of the South Pacific nation. He then called on him to rule "wisely, justly and truly."
Thousands lined the route to the church, waving Tongan flags and balloons. As the king left the church, guests clapped and onlookers cheered.
The nearly weeklong coronation festivities include banquets for visiting heads of state and their representatives, military parades, fireworks displays and elaborate ceremonies that mix colonial-style pomp with centuries-old tribal traditions.
The government on Thursday defended the more than $2.5 million price tag the impoverished nation will pay for the celebrations, saying the money spent by the thousands of tourists the event has attracted will more than make up for it.
The king officially became the 23rd head of Tonga's Tu'i Kanokupolu chiefly line on Wednesday in a traditional Tongan ceremony. The line dates back to the 17th century.
More than 5,000 people, from official guests to Tongans living overseas, have flocked to the archipelago nation for the crowning.
Royalty in attendance included Japan's Crown Naruhito, Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand, New Zealand's Maori King Tuheitia and Britain's Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, representing Queen Elizabeth II.
Heads of state and prime ministers of at least nine Pacific Islands nations were also at the celebrations.
The coronation is seen by many Tongans as marking a new political direction for the kingdom after George V announced earlier this week that he was relinquishing many of his absolute powers.
He also fulfilled a pledge to divest his extensive business interests ahead of his coronation.
Since taking power in 2006, George V has been trying to shed his reputation as a rich eccentric playboy with a taste for elaborate uniforms, colonial era pith helmets and monocles.
New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said the coronation came "at an important juncture" in the country's political growth.
New law expected to be passed next year "to enable Tonga to make the next step in its democratic transition is important for Tonga and a wonderful thing for the Pacific," she told reporters ahead of the ceremony
