Author: Tom Ginsburg
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Term Limits at Issue in Niger, Philippines
The role of term-limit extensions as a motive for constitutional change has been a consistent theme on this blog. We earlier commented on the proposal by Niger President Tandja to have a referendum on a new constitution to allow him to run again for office after his second term expires this year.
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Niger President joins those seeking to extend term
In Niger, President Mamadou Tandja has joined the ranks of world leaders seeking to amend national constitutions to do away with term limitations. The 70-year old Tandja, coming to the end of his second term, has initiated plans to hold a referendum on a constitutional amendment to do away with term limits.
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New bloggers on the way
We hope to expand the substantive coverage of topics in our forum beyond the processes of constitutional formation and issues of constitutional design, so as to also include constitutional cases and other topics of interest. We will soon welcome posts from Professor David Fontana of George Washington University Law School, one of the leading you…
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Constitutional regulation of the police
Therese Sjöström of International IDEA writes with a query about constitutional provisions related to the police. This is not a subject on which there has been much attention, and as yet we have no general report on the police on our site.
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New Report on Ombudsman
We have recently posted a new report on constitutional provisions on the Ombudsman. The ombudsman is originally a Scandinavian institution, dating at least back to Sweden’s 1809 constitutional settlement. But ombudsmen have become popular in many regions of the world, particularly with the spread of human rights movement in the postwar era.
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Fiji’s Constitution “Repealed”
Fiji’s unstable constitutional bargain unraveled again last week as President Ratu Josefa Iloilo repealed the country’s constitution and reappointed the military chief as interim prime minister. The move followed a decision by the Court of Appeal, the country’s highest court, to overturn a lower court decision rejecting a challenge to the government’s legality.
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Afghan Constitutional Crisis Avoided….
Over the weekend, it was reported that Afghanistan’s Supreme Court ruled that President Karzai can remain in office through the elections now scheduled for August, notwithstanding the explicit provision in Article 61 of the 2004 Constitution that the presidential term will end this May 22 .
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Cambodia and Parliamentary Immunity
A constitutional dispute may be brewing in Cambodia, as long-time opposition leader Sam Rainsy is losing his parliamentary immunity at the request of the Ministry of Justice. During the 2008 election campaign, Sam made remarks about the ruling Cambodia Peoples Party (CPP) that were deemed to constitute defamation.
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Chavez goes to the polls
Hugo Chavez goes to the polls today in his second bid to amend the Venezuelan Constitution to eliminate presidential term limits. Should he lose, he has vowed to leave office when his current term ends in 2012; should he win, he hopes to rule for life.
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Bolivia votes on constitutional amendments
“Bolivia is being refounded” said President Evo Morales, as his country went to the polls today to vote on proposed constitutional amendments that would extend his term. The amendments, which are expected to pass by a solid margin, are hardly exceptional in Bolivia (or in Latin America), where constitutions have been frequently amended or replaced.