In the constitutional non-sequiter department: Zambia is gearing up for a presidential election, and incumbent Rupiah Banda, seeking a second elected term, has just been hit with a lawsuit seeking to disqualify him from running. The Zambian Constitution, Art. 34, provides for the qualifications for the presidency. One cannot serve as a candidate unless he
The Wisdom of Crowds: Iceland citizen’s commission submits draft
Iceland’s Constitutional Council, composed of 25 ordinary citizens publicly elected by their peers, has submitted its draft constitution he to the Althingi, the country’s parliament. The Council had posted the draft constitution on the net in April, and worked through many re-drafts in response to 3600 written comments from the public. As one might expect,
Japan update: Kimigayo lawsuits fail once again
The Tokyo District Court rejected an attempt by Tokyo schoolteachers to nullify the punishments they received for refusing to participate in ceremonies involving the national anthem. This is consistent with the earlier Suphttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifrme Court decisions we noted here as well a more recent decision by the Supreme Court in July that rejected similar appeals from
Japan update: Kimigayo lawsuits fail again
The Tokyo District Court rejected an attempt by Tokyo schoolteachers to nullify the punishments they received for refusing to participate in ceremonies involving the national anthem. This is consistent with the earlier Suphttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifrme Court decisions we noted here as well a more recent decision by the Supreme Court in July that rejected similar appeals from
Senegal: will the Arab Spring travel South?
President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal has been talking about modifying the Constitution to extend his term in office, joining a long series of African “democrats” who came in as reformers but found presidential trappings to be quite comfortable. Wade, who was a longtime opposition leader, was originally elected to a seven year term, renewable once,
A reason to draft constitutions carefully?
On the lighter side of the news: according to this report, owing to a slight omission in the drafting of North Dakota’s constitution (namely, the omission of a requirement that state officials take an oath of office), it is questionable whether North Dakota is legally a state. The report mentions the existence of a conflict
Constitutional Court confirmation politics in Taiwan and Korea
– Dennis Tang instead of female judge who had questioned evidence re: eight-year-old’s consent in rape case– Cho Yong, Lawyers for Democratic Change, false address– retirement of Justice Cho Dae-Hyen, in background
Thailand’s Constitutional Court to consider legality of ruling party
Following last week’s general elections in Thailand, the losing Democrat Party has asked Thailand’s Constitutional Court to dissolve the winning Pheu Thai party. Thailand’s Constitutional Court, like a number of other specialized constitutional courts (e.g., Germany, South Korea, Taiwan, Turkey), has the constitutional power and responsibility to rule upon the lawfulness of political parties (per
Morocco Constitution Approved
Morocco’s new Constitution was overwhelmingly approved by voters in a referndum on Friday, followed by celebrations. As such, the Arab Spring (now Summer?) has its first (mostly) bloodless transition, from an absolute to a constitutional monarchy. Among other things, the new document recognizes Tamazight (the original language of pre-Arab North Africa) as an official language,
Supreme Court of Japan rejects national anthem claims
In a series of cases over this past month, each of the three benches of Japan’s Supreme Court ruled that it is constitutional for school principals to order teachers to stand and sing the national anthem (the Kimigayo) at school ceremonies. In doing so, the Court definitively rejected the claim that such requirements violated the
