The graphic arts are highly developed in Palau. In the past the village meetinghouse was the center of both visual and performance arts. The end gables (bai) of these houses and the interior beams were decorated with low-relief painted carvings, depicting histories of the village and its relationships with other villages.
Palau is divided into sixteen administrative regions, called states (the still separately listed Rock Islands did originally not belong to any state, but now belong to the state of Koror).
Politics of Palau takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, where by the President of Palau is both head of state and head of government, and Palau currently has no political parties.