6; House of Representatives -
percent of vote by party - Fianna Fail 39.1%, Fine Gael 24.5%, Labor
Party 19.3%, Progressive Democrats 4.7%, Democratic Left 2.8%, Sinn
Fein 1.6%, Workers' Party 0.7%, independents 5.9%; seats by party -
Fianna Fail 68, Fine Gael 45, Labor Party 33, Progressive Democrats
10, Democratic Left 4, Greens 1, independents 5
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges appointed by the president on
the advice of the government (prime minister and cabinet)
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Left [Proinsias DE ROSSA];
Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Labor Party [Richard SPRING]; Fine Gael
[John BRUTON]; Communist Party of Ireland [Michael O'RIORDAN]; Sinn
Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Progressive Democrats [Mary HARNEY]; The Workers'
Party [Marion DONNELLY]; Green Alliance [Bronwen MAHER]
note: Prime Minister BRUTON heads a three-party coalition consisting
of the Fine Gael, the Labor Party, and the Democratic Left
International organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, CCC,
CE, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC,
IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MTCR, NEA, NSG, OECD, OSCE, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOP,
UNPREDEP, UNTAES, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Dermot A. GALLAGHER (will return to
Dublin in July)
chancery: 2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 462-3939
FAX : [1] (202) 232-5993
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jean Kennedy SMITH
embassy: 42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin
mailing address : use embassy street address
telephone: [353] (1) 6688777
FAX: [353] (1) 6689946
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side),
white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is
shorter and has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and
green; also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has
colors of green (hoist side), white, and red
Economy
Economy - overview: The economy is small and trade dependent.
Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by
industry, which accounts for 38% of GDP, about 80% of exports, and
employs 26% of the labor force. Although e
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