POPULATION:	380,400
LITERACY RATE:	91%
SELF DEFENSE FORCES:	Militech
LANGUAGES:	English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
ETHNIC GROUPS:	black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%
BORDERING COUNTRIES:	Island Nation

THE BAHAMAS - Comprised of over 200 cays and over 700 islands, the Bahamas play an important strategic role in Caribbean affairs.  Coming out of the 80's, the Bahamas were a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, and still bowed down to the Queen of England.  With the turmoil of the nineties, the Bahamanian economy was in severe distress, due to the Military traffic from the U.S., the tension from Panama, and finally the near all out death of the tourist industry caused by the global economic crash, the Bahamas were runing out of options.  Their relationship with England was further strained when the EEC was promoting tourism, even during the crash, in the British Virgin Islands.  When the wasting plague hit, the EEC only provided enough vaccine to cover the main islands, the smeller islands populations were decimated by the disease.  That was the final straw.  The Bahamas dropped out of the Commonwealth, and denounced the english completely.  Some say this move was fueled by the Americans, as the aid that flowed in from America immediately afterwards was staggering.

The loss of tourism due to the two economic collapses did serve to teach the the newly formed Bahamanian government a lesson, it could no longer solely rely on the tourism industry to support itself.  Instead teh focus turned towards financial services.  Hosting off-shore accounts was nothing new for the region, but the Bahamas, now fully independent, began exploiting that market on a grand scale, oferring low interest, and completely anonymous account set up.   They further courted corporations with incentive plans and security options.  Almost overnight the Bahamas came the financial hub of the Caribbean, and money started pouring into the area.  Their financial holdings and their nuetrality has also allowed them a measure of leverage, when the region was devastated by hurricanes in 2014, they used that leverage to get aid far quicker, and rebuild far faster, claiming that "hurricanes had damaged bank computers, and without aid, it was unclear how long it would take to get the system back up and running", the subtle hint that unless aid came immediately, the business holdings of the corporations involved could simply become "lost".  A ploy which only worked because the Bahamanian govt requires anyone signing up for an account to sign a 20 year contract of service. 

Of course the tourism industry still flourishes in the Bahamas, and the average income now far exceeds the rest of the region.  The Bhamanian people live well, and reforms to education and eco-conservation ahve kept the islands beutiful and rich, attracting people from all over the world. 

While Bahamanian police do an aequate job of keeping the main islands safe, and crime on these islands has been reduced to petty thievery, occasional muggings, and other low lethality crime, the smaller islands are rampant, and act as gateways for drug smuggling, and illegal immigration into the U.S.  Prostitution and natural narcotics have been completely legalized int he Bahamas, though lax disease screening policies have led to universal cautionas against soliciting prostitutes, posted on every flight, cruise ship, and travel brochure.  While prostitution in the area may be legal, the risk to health is severe. 

Since dropping out of the Commonwealth of Nations, and losing the protection afforded by the EDF, the Bahamanian governement has signed with Militech to provide for their military needs. 

In the shadow of the Third South American War looming inevitably on the horizon, Militech forces are tightening security and cracking down on smugglers and illegal immigration routes.  While technically Militech forces are corporate, and Bahamanian interests and orders take priority, Militech is still an american company, and has its own covert agenda, which is creating some tension on the islands.

(Written by Deric Bernier)