Editing Politics of the Cook Islands (section)

== Legislature ==
[[Image:Parliament of the Cook Islands - 2006.JPG|right|250px|thumb|The parliament building of the Cook Islands, formerly a hotel.]]
The [[Parliament of the Cook Islands]] has 24 members, elected for a five-year term in single-seat constituencies. There is also a [[House of Ariki]], composed of [[ali'i|chiefs]], which has a purely advisory role. The [[Koutu Nui]] is a similar organization consisting of sub-chiefs. It was established by an amendment in 1972 of the 1966 House of Ariki Act.

On 13 June 2008, a small majority of members of the House of Ariki attempted a coup, claiming to dissolve the elected government and to take control of the country's leadership. "Basically we are dissolving the leadership, the prime minister and the deputy prime minister and the ministers," chief Makea Vakatini Joseph Ariki explained. The ''Cook Islands Herald'' suggested that the ''[[ali'i|ariki]]'' were attempting thereby to regain some of their traditional prestige or ''[[Mana (Oceanian mythology)|mana]]''.<ref name="TVNZ_1845025">{{cite news |url=http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/536641/1845025 |title=Cooks heading for internal strife |date=13 June 2008 |work=[[1News|One News]] |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref><ref name="Stuff.co.nz_487892">{{cite news |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/487892 |title=NZ Maori stirs Cooks sovereignty stoush |date=13 June 2008 |agency=[[NZPA]] |work=[[Stuff (website)|Stuff]] |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref> Prime Minister [[Jim Marurai]] described the take-over move as "ill-founded and nonsensical".<ref name="Stuff.co.nz_492347">{{cite news |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/492347 |title=NZ Maori behind strange Cook's 'coup' |date=17 June 2008 |work=[[Stuff (website)|Stuff]] |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref> By 23 June, the situation appeared to have normalised, with members of the House of Ariki accepting to return to their regular duties.<ref name="RNZI_40504">{{cite news |url=http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=40504 |title=Cook Islands chiefs drop take over claim, return to normal duties |date=23 June 2008 |work=[[Radio New Zealand International]] |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref>