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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | When the Drafting of a Constitution is not Confined to Men of Stature or Legal Experts: The Eritrean Experience |
Author: | Tesfagiorgis, Gebre Hiwet |
Year: | 1998 |
Periodical: | Eritrean Studies Review (ISSN 1086-9174) |
Volume: | 2 |
Issue: | 2 |
Pages: | 143-161 |
Language: | English |
Notes: | biblio. refs. |
Geographic terms: | Eritrea East Africa |
Subjects: | constitutional amendments Politics and Government Law, Human Rights and Violence law constitutional law Cultural diversity Eritrea. Komisen qewam Social participation |
Abstract: | The author of this commentary on the Eritrean constitution was a member of the Constitutional Commission of Eritrea (CCE), which was established in March 1994 and consisted not only of legal and other experts but also of common citizens, representing the whole spectrum of Eritrean society. Comparisons are made with the drafting and contents of the Constitution of the United States. The article deals with the rationale for the broad composition of the CCE, its specific mandate, the four phases of the drafting process, similarities and differences between the drafting of the Eritrean and American constitutions in postrevolutionary situations of decolonization, the lessons Eritreans drew from the US constitutional experience, issues faced by the CCE, and the character of the new constitution and its implementation. Problems dealt with by the CCE included the structure of government and the distribution of power; the term limit for the chief executive; the issue of official languages; separation of church and State; unicameral versus bicameral legislature; freedom of speech and of the press; and gender equality. Bibliogr., notes. |