deemed it The New Hebrides. At the end of the 19th century, Ni-Vanuatu were regularly kidnapped and forced to work in plantations in Fiji and Australia, a practice now known as "blackbirding". In 1906, France and England established the Condominium of the New Hebrides. During the joint rulership from the two countries, the Ni-Vanuatu lived under French and British authorities. On 30 July 1980, the New Hebrides gained independence under the new name of Vanuatu. Land and nationalism During the Condominium period, European regulations sometimes resulted in land disputes, particularly around plantations. Upon independence, the new constitution determined that land ownership would belong to native ni-vanuatus: the land rights were given to the traditional owners and community to make decisions. Society Economic impact of economy on the people Workers on the copra plantations were generally Melanesian. Melanesian workers were occupied with their own plantations which led to European owners sourcing labour from foreign countries such as French Indochina for general agricultural labour and construction. After World War II, American soldiers introduced Eurocentric items such as camp supplies, construction aviation, electricity and running water. The two factors of introducing overseas workers in combination with the introduction of modern facilities led to Vanuatu's economic momentum which helped create the backbone of the island's copra production. Copra production such as was the main focus as other areas such as forestry, fishing and native crafts were underdeveloped at the time. Food crops, including yams, taro and cassava, are used for local consumption; copra production such as coconuts and cocoa make up the majority of Vanuatu's exports. Profiles of labour workers, miners and construction workers were mainly of Melanesian descent as labour job demands rose with the economic boom. In 1953, Vietnamese workers started returning to their home country, and most of them had done so by 1963. This caused a shortage in plantation workers which led to recruitment from other islands such as Tahiti. Temperamental weather strongly impacted plantations, as hurricanes destroyed the main copra of coconut plantations. Competition from overseas in combination with natural disasters led to a solution of sourcing different agricultural mediums such as cattle. Local demands of meat as well as international export welcomed another economic boom in Vanuatu. Education Prior to Vanuatu's independence in 1980, the French government offered additional effort into support the French population. Free education and buildings were developed whilst the British government required education fees