Hist2 17 government and constitution

FORMS OF GOVERNMENT

FORMS OF GOVERNMENT

Persons exercising powers:• Monarchy• Aristocracy• Democracy

Powers exercise by the nat’l or central gov’t• Unitary gov’t• Federal gov’t

Relationship of the exec. & legis. branch• Parliamentar

y gov’t• Presidential

gov’t

AS TO NUMBER OF PERSONS EXERCISING POWERS:

A. MonarchyOne in which the supreme and final authority

is in the hands of a single person without regard to the source of his election or the nature or duration of his tenure.

MONARCHY

Absolute monarchyOne in which the ruler rules by divine right

The monarch exercises ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government

Limited monarchyOne in which the ruler rules in accordance with a constitution

A form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state

ABSOLUTE MONARCH COUNTRIES

Limited MonarchyUnited KingdomThe Netherlands

Spain

Vatican City

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Brunei Darussala

m

LIMITED MONARCH COUNTRIES

United Kingdom

The Netherland

s

Spain

ARISTOCRACY

- One in which political power is exercised by a few privileged class

- A state characterized by the rule of nobility, elite, or privileged upper class

DEMOCRACY

- One in which the political power is exercised by a majority of the people.

- “…government of the people, by the people, for the people…,”

- Abraham Lincoln

SUBTYPES OF DEMOCRACYD

irect

or

Pu

re

• One in which the will of the state is formulated or expressed directly through the people in a mass meeting or primary assembly

Ind

irect

or

Rep

ub

lican

• The people choose their representatives to govern them in public affairs

POWERS EXERCISED BY THE CENTRAL OR NATIONAL GOVERNMENT:

Unitary government• The control of the national and local

affairs is exercised by the central or national government.

Federal Government• The powers of government are

divided between the national affairs and the local government, each supreme within its own sphere.

Unitary FederalDefinition: One central government controls weaker states. Power is not shared between

states, counties, or provinces.

Power is shared by a powerful central government and states or provinces that are given considerable self-rule, usually through their

own legislatures.

Examples: China, United Kingdom (although Scotland has been

granted self-rule).

The United States, Australia, the Federal Republic of Germany.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE EXECUTIVE AND THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCHES

Parliamentary governmentThe legislature chooses the head of the government, which is part of the legislature and under its control.

Presidential governmentBased on the principle of separation of powers among the Executive, the Legislature, and the Judiciary. The President is directly elected by the people

PARLIAMENTARY GOVERNMENT

PRESIDENTIAL GOVERNMENT

STATE OF BRAZIL

Brazil is a constitutional republic of 26 states and one federal district. Each state has its own governments, with powers in all matters not specifically reserved for the Union.

The executive power is vested in the same head of the state and government, directly elected with non-renewable 5-year term and limited authority. He is assisted by his cabinet members.

Legislative power is exercised by a bicameral National Congress, the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The Congress has the power to rule in all matters that are under the jurisdiction of the union. The Chamber of Deputies is composed of representatives of the states and elected every four years by direct universal suffrage and secret ballot in proportion to the population of each state. On the other hand, the Senate is formed by representatives of the states, who shall serve for a term of eight years.

The 26 states have autonomous laws and constitutions within the provisions of the constitution.

CONSTITUTION

CONSTITUTION IS DEFINED AS:

• “The body of those written or unwritten fundamental laws which regulate the most important rights of the higher magistrates and the most important essential privileges of the subjects."

NATURE AND PURPOSE OF A CONSTITUTION

1) IT SERVES AS A SUPREME OR FUNDAMENTAL LAW

Charter that created a government

Binding all individual citizens and parts of the government together as one

The ultimate law; the law other laws must abide by

Test of legality by government officials

2) ESTABLISHES THE BASIC FRAMEWORK AND UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES OF THE

GOVERNMENT

Prescribes the permanent framework of the system of government, and assigns to the different department or branches, their respective powers and duties

Establishes certain basic principles by which the government is founded

Designed to preserve and protect the rights of the citizens against the powers of the state

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION ACCORDING TO FORM

WRITTEN CONSTITUTION

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION

• One which has been given definitive written form at particular time, usually by a specially constituted authority called a “constitutional convention”

UNWRITTEN CONSTITUTION

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION

• One which is entirely the product of political evolution, consisting largely of a mass of customs, usages and judicial decisions together with a smaller body of statutory enactments of fundamental character, usually bearing different dates.

PROS AND CONS OF A WRITTEN CONSTITUTION

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION

Pro: It has the advantage of clearness, definiteness, and rigidness that the unwritten doesn’t have. It cannot be easily altered.

Con: It is difficult to make changes. To change, it requires to go through “charter changing” which may take a while before any changes can be made.

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION ACCORDING TO THEIR ORIGIN OR HISTORY

CONVENTIONAL OR ENACTED CONSTITUTION

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION

One is enacted by a constituent assembly or granted by a monarch of his subject

Japanese Constitution

CUMULATIVE OR EVOLVED

One which is a product of long growth or a long period of development originating in customs, traditions, judicial decisions, etc., rather than from a deliberate and formal enactment.

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION ACCORDING TO MANNER OF AMENDMENT

RIGID OR INELASTIC CONSTITUTION

KINDS OF CONSTITUTION

• One regarded as a document of

“special sanctity” which

cannot be modified in the same manner as other laws except by some special machinery, more burdensome than the ordinary legislative process.

FLEXIBLE OR ELASTIC

• One which possesses no higher legal authority than ordinary laws and which may be altered or amended in the same way as other laws.

MENTAL EXERCISE

• Israel’s constitution is an accumulated body of documents and precedents, some of which date back to biblical times. Is the constitution of Israel enacted or evolved? Why?

• In Sweden, constitutional amendments must be passed by two successive legislatures, with a general election in between. As to amendment, is their constitution rigid or flexible? Why?

• The British Constitution consists of some laws passed by the Parliament and court decisions and no single document has been codified as constitution to set forth the basic principles of the organization of power. As to form, is the British Constitution written or unwritten? Why?

Thank you!