Tahiti and by light aircraft from Tahiti-Faa'a airport. There are airfields at Rurutu, Tubuai, Raivavae and Rimatara. The currency is (still) the CFP franc, which is pegged to the euro. The administrative budget of the Austral Islands is largely financed by France and the EU. Politics and government Politically, the Austral Islands today belong to French Polynesia (Pays d'outre-mer – POM) and are therefore affiliated with the EU. They are administered by a subdivision (Subdivision administrative des Îles Australes) of the High Commissariat of the Republic in French Polynesia (Haut-commissariat de la République en Polynésie française) in Papeete, on the island of Tahiti. The archipelago is politically divided into 5 municipalities (Communes des Îles Australes), which administer themselves. The official time zone is UTC −10. Demographics The 6,820 inhabitants (2012 census) live mainly in small villages; there are no large cities in the Austral Islands. Unlike other regions of Polynesia, the population of the Austral Islands has declined since the mid-1990s. The reason is the high migration of young people from the isolated archipelago to other parts of Polynesia or to France for their better job prospects. Religion The majority of the population is Christian mostly belonging to various Protestant groups and the Catholic Church. Catholics follow the Latin rite and administer 4 churches under the Archdiocese of Papeete, 2 on Tubuai Island: the Church of Mary and the Church of Saint Joseph (Église de Maria no te Hau; Église de Saint-Joseph) one on Rurutu Island: the Church of Saint Francis Regis (Église de Saint-François-Régis), and one more on Raivavae Island: the Church of Saint Peter (Église de Saint-Pierre). According to 1991 data, Protestant Christian groups represent the majority on these islands. Languages The official language, as in the rest of France, is French. In everyday life, the Austral language, which belongs to the Polynesian languages, is often spoken, but with a tendency to decline. Culture The traces of culture originating from the Austral Islands are quite numerous and the works of art produced there have often been judged as the most remarkable produced in Polynesia However, almost none of these works can be found on these islands but in renowned museums in Western countries. Indeed, passing ships received numerous offerings but also plundered some of the islands' sites, notably the missionaries of the London Missionary Society, anxious to eradicate all traces of ancient worship. The marae, Polynesian places of