South America the first decade of the 21st century, South American governments have drifted to the political left, with leftist leaders being elected in Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela. Most South American countries are making increasing use of protectionist policies, helping local development. All South American countries are presidential republics with the exceptions of Peru, which is a semi-presidential republic, and Suriname, a parliamentary republic. French Guiana is a French overseas department, while the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are British overseas territories. It is currently the only inhabited continent in the
Indians in French Guiana Tobago. Indians in French Guiana Indians in French Guiana are mostly descendants of Tamil indentured labourers from India who live in the French Overseas Department of French Guiana. Between 1838 and 1917 there were 19,276 Indian immigrants to French Guiana. Labour from India began to enter French Guiana beginning in 1862. By the mid-1880s, however, the British stopped shipments of Indians in response to allegations that the French were ill-treating indentured to the Indian workers under their employ. In recent years, immigrants of East Indian origin have been arriving from French Guiana's neighbouring countries such as Guyana, Suriname, and Trinidad