Constituent assembly
A constituent assembly is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected by popular vote, drawn by sortition, appointed, or some combination of these methods. Assemblies are typically considered distinct from a regular legislature, although members of the legislature may compose a significant number or all of its members. As the fundamental document constituting a state, a constitution cannot normally be modified or amended by the state's normal legislative procedures in some jurisdictions; instead a constitutional convention or a constituent assembly, the rules for which are normally laid down in the constitution, must be set up. A constituent assembly is usually set up for its specific purpose, which it carries out in a relatively short time, after which the assembly is dissolved. A constituent assembly is a form of representative democracy.
Unlike forms of constitution-making in which a constitution is unilaterally imposed by a sovereign lawmaker, the constituent assembly creates a constitution through "internally imposed" actions, in that members of the constituent assembly are themselves citizens, but not necessarily the political leaders, of the country for which they are creating a constitution. As described by Columbia University Social Sciences Professor Jon Elster:
"Constitutions arise in a number of different ways. At the non-democratic extreme of the spectrum, we may imagine a sovereign lawgiver laying down the constitution for all later generations. At the democratic extreme, we may imagine a constituent assembly elected by universal suffrage for the sole task of writing a new constitution. And there are all sorts of intermediate arrangements."
By country
Australia
held four constitutional conventions, one each in 1891, 1897, 1973, and 1998.Bangladesh
The Constituent Assembly of Bangladesh was the first and, to date, the only constitution-making body of Bangladesh, convened in 1972 by the government of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman following the country's independence. It comprised representatives elected in the national and provincial council elections of Pakistan held in 1970. As the assembly was formed with representatives elected under the Legal Framework Order, 1970, issued by Pakistan's then-military ruler and President Yahya Khan, several political parties and political leaders, including Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani, Badruddin Umar, A.S.M. Abdur Rab, Farhad Mazhar, and others, have labeled this assembly as illegitimate. However, despite the controversies and opposition, Sheikh Mujib's uncompromising leadership enabled the Constituent Assembly to draft and enact the Constitution in less than a year. However, from the time of its drafting until today, the constitution has been often labelled as "fascist" and criticized for fostering autocracy and failing to adequately safeguard human rights.In the aftermath of 2024 mass uprising, the interim government of Bangladesh is mulling over convening a new constituent assembly to draft a new inclusive democratic constitution, ensuring the inviolability of human dignity.
See also 2024 Bangladesh constitutional crisis.
Chile
As of May 2021 Chile is the most recently elected constitutional assembly. The 155 members of this assembly were elected between 15 and 16 May 2021. The assembly has gender parity and has 17 seats reserved for people belonging to indigenous peoples. The assembly is granted 12 months to draft a new constitution, which has to be ratified by referendum once written, with compulsory voting.Costa Rica
Immediately after the 1948 Costa Rican Civil War that overthrew the Rafael Angel Calderón Government, the leaders of the victorious side called for the election of a Constituent Assembly in the same year. The Assembly successfully drafted and approved the current Costa Rican Constitution.Denmark
The Danish Constituent Assembly of 1848 established the Constitution of Denmark in 1849 and formalized the transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy. The assembly consisted of members of which 114 were directly elected in October 1848, 38 were appointed by the king and the rest were government ministers. The constituent assembly met at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen and first met on 23 October 1848. The assembly was overall split in three different groupings: the National liberals, the Friends of Peasants, and the Conservatives. A key topic for discussion was the political system, and the rules governing elections. On 25 May 1849, the constituent assembly approved the new constitution, and on 5 June 1849 it was signed by King Frederick VII. For this reason, it is also known as the June constitution. Today, 5 June is known as Constitution Day in Denmark.European Union
The European Convention drafted the Constitution for Europe for approval by the European Council and ratification by the member states. This constitution was abandoned after being rejected in French and Dutch referendums, and was replaced by the Treaty of Lisbon in 2007.France
During the French Revolution a National Constituent Assembly was formed when representatives assembled at the only location available – a tennis court – and swore the Tennis Court Oath on June 20, 1789, promising that they would not adjourn until they had drafted a new constitution for France. Louis XVI recognized the validity of the National Constituent Assembly on June 27, 1789.See also 1848 French Constituent Assembly election.
Germany
– Drafted the Basic Law of the Federal Republic for ratification by the Länder. This council was not recognized as legitimate by Soviet-occupied East Germany, which drafted its own constitution in 1949 and would not accept the Basic Law until German reunification in 1990.Iceland
On 27 November 2010, Iceland held an election for a constitutional assembly, with 522 people competing for 25 delegate seats. The assembly, in session for four months from early April until late July 2011, drafted a new constitution and passed it unanimously with 25 votes and no abstentions. On 20 October 2012 the parliament put the bill to a national referendum, in which 67% of the voters supported the bill. Further, 67% of the voters supported equal voting rights and 83% supported national ownership of natural resources, two key provisions of the bill. Parliament has failed to ratify the bill, however, inviting accusations that the political class is trying to thwart the will of the people by disrespecting the result of the 2012 constitutional referendum.Ireland
In September 1922 the Third Dáil enacted the Irish Free State Constitution while "sitting as a Constituent Assembly in this Provisional Parliament". The Dáil had been elected in June 1922 as a provisional parliament to which the Provisional Government established in January 1922 was responsible. When the Free State Constitution came into force in December 1922, the Third Dáil continued as the lower house of the Free State Oireachtas. Whether the Oireachtas had unlimited power to amend the Constituent Assembly's enactment became a matter of legal and political controversy in the 1930s.The 8th Dáil, elected in 1933, finalised the draft Constitution of Ireland in 1937, although the Dáil was seldom described in this context as a "constituent assembly". Éamon de Valera, the instigator of the 1937 Constitution, stated, "The only way in which you can get a Constitution is to get the people themselves to enact it or get them to elect a Constituent Assembly to enact it". In his view, "the people themselves" enacted the constitution when the Dáil's draft was approved by a plebiscite on 1 July 1937.
Other Irish constitutional conventions have met. The 2012–2014 Constitutional Convention was a quasi citizens' assembly which proposed various changes to law; of those involving amending the constitution, the then government accepted six, three of which were put to referendum, of which two passed.
India
The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to write the Constitution of India, and served as its first Parliament as an independent nation. It was set up as a result of negotiations between the leaders of the Indian independence movement and members of the British Cabinet Mission. The constituent assembly was elected indirectly by the members of the Provincial legislative assembly, which existed under the British Raj. It first met on December 9, 1946, in Delhi. On August 15, 1947, India became an independent nation, and the Constituent Assembly started functioning as India's Parliament. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar drafted the Constitution of India in conjunction with the requisite deliberations and debates in the Constituent Assembly. The Assembly approved the Constitution on November 26, 1949, and it took effect on January 26, 1950 — a day now commemorated as Republic Day in India. Once the Constitution took effect, the Constituent Assembly became the Provisional Parliament of India.Indonesia
The Constitutional Assembly of Indonesia was established to draw up a permanent constitution. Its membership was elected in November 1955, and it met for the first time in November 1956. After four sessions, it failed to agree on the fundamental basis for the state. It was dissolved in 1959, and the original constitution imposed by presidential decree.Italy
The Constituent Assembly of Italy was established in 1946 in the wake of Fascist Italy's defeat during World War II. It was elected with universal suffrage, simultaneously with a referendum about the adoption of Republic or the continuation of monarchy. Voters chose Republic, and the new assembly had the task to approve the new republic governments, as well as to write a new constitution. This was approved on 22 December 1947.It was dissolved on 31 January 1948, to be replaced by the new Parliament of Italy.