...history—and nowhere is the contestation more prevalent than in the formation of the Constitution in the late 18th century. During the Revolutionary period, both common and elite Americans alike sought to define the ideals of liberty that would be incorporated into the new nation. But the realization of these ideals of equality in politics and universal rights necessitated the formation of a centralized Republican government in order to become a practical reality, thereby ensuring the success of the nation by implementing basis of lasting, effective systems of maintaining political order. In doing so, the constitution realizes revolutionary aspirations for independent government that guarantees the rights and common good of its citizens. The ratification of the US Constitution and Bill of Rights ensured that the ideals of independence, accurate representation in politics via a republican system, and the protection of natural liberties birthed during the Revolution could survive practically within the new nation. The ratification of the Constitution was critical for the success of the nation, thus realizing the revolutionary dream of...
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...Two sides formed during the debate on whether to ratify the U.S. Constitution or not; those who understood the necessity of a national government and those who feared another tyrannical central government. After leaving British rule, the colonists were fearful of another dictatorship and unrepresentative government. Because of this, they created the Articles of Confederation. However, the structure failed to provide the national government enough authority to successfully govern all thirteen states, because none of the state's trusted it. A group called Federalists, led by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Adams supported ratification of the Constitution. The Constitution would replace the weak Articles and enforce a stronger national...
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...Alexander Hamilton was a prominent figure during the forming of the United States government. He was a member of the Federalist Party, whose ideals revolved around the premise of a strong, centralized government. Hamilton builds a strong foundation of truth to establish ethos, or author credibility. The Constitution was written by Federalists and therefore advocated this form of government. In order to institute it, the Constitution needed the support of all. Hamilton uses his work “Federalist No. 1” to argue for the ratification of the United States Constitution. Hamilton anticipated many adverse reactions to the Federalist Papers and the ratification of the Constitution. He holds concerns to the people and their benefits as to what the...
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...James Madison and Patrick Henry had very different opinions when it came to whether or not they believed the constitution should be ratified or not. Patrick Henry’s biggest concern was the central government gaining so much power and control that it would eventually strip the rights of the citizens who had just fought a huge war to claim it. Patrick Henry felt as though majority of the power should lie within the hands of the states, and worried that in not doing so the South would pay the ultimate price because the North and the South were somewhat divided in their political views. With the North being more established, his worry was that they would hold more power in relation to the South and carry more input and voice into how the government...
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...Article 38(1) of the Statute of the International Court of Justice is generally regarded as setting out the sources of international law. International treaties and conventions is one of the sources of international law in terms of that Article. According to the 1969 Vienna Convention on the law of treaties; part 1, Article 2 on the use of terms- defines the term “treaty” as an international agreement concluded between States in written form and governed by international law, whether embodied in a single instrument or in two or more related instruments and whatever its particular designation. It also includes international agreements involving international organizations as parties. In order to speak of a “treaty” in the generic sense, an instrument has to meet various criteria- first of all, it has to be a binding instrument, which means that the contracting parties intended to create legal rights and duties. Secondly, the instrument must be concluded by states or international organizations with treaty-making power; thirdly, it has to be governed by international law and finally the engagement has to be in writing. Convention as a generic term according to Article 38 (1) (a) of the Statute of the International Court of Justice refers to “international conventions, whether general or particular” as a source of law, apart from international customary rules and general principles of international law and- as a secondary source- judicial decisions and the teachings of the most...
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...For other uses, see Constitution (disambiguation). A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed.[1] These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is. When these principles are written down into a single document or set of legal documents, those documents may be said to embody a written constitution; if they are written down in a single comprehensive document, it is said to embody a codified constitution. Constitutions concern different levels of organizations, from sovereign states to companies and unincorporated associations. A treaty which establishes an international organization is also its constitution, in that it would define how that organization is constituted. Within states, a constitution defines the principles upon which the state is based, the procedure in which laws are made and by whom. Some constitutions, especially codified constitutions, also act as limiters of state power, by establishing lines which a state's rulers cannot cross, such as fundamental rights. An example is the constitution of the United States of America. George Washington at Constitutional Convention of 1787 signing of the U.S. Constitution. The Constitution of India is the longest written constitution of any sovereign country in the world,[2] containing 444 articles in 22 parts,[3][4] 12 schedules and 118 amendments, with 117,369 words in its English-language translation,[5]...
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...1. constitutionalism, constitutional supremacy and the rule of law 1. constitutionalism a. Constitution without constitutionalism? Keith E Whittington, constitutionalism [5] * Constitutionalism = the constraining of government in order to better effectuate the fundamental principles of the political regime. i.e. A system of effective restrains on governmental action. * Constitution (often) = the written document that formalizes the framework of government * => Constitutionalism should be distinguished from the mere possession of a constitution * Written constitutions may provide few effective constraints on government or may be ignored, and governments may be effectively constrained w/o a written constitution (e.g. Britain) * Constitutionalism often (does not mean it necessarily equals to) associated specifically with liberalism, protection of individual rights against the state. * => constitutional state identified not by possession of a constitution but by its effective protection of individual rights. * (but individual rights only one set of fundamental principles that might impose meaningful limits on power of the state) * Constitutionalism also used to constrain power holders to care for the common weal or adhere to particular conceptions of national identity or religious law * 3-fold classification of province of constitutionalism * Normative Constitutionalism (most touched-on area) * Concerned with...
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...consists!of!two!chambers!or!houses! Minister)–!A!minister!is!both!a!member!of!parliament!and!a!member!of!the!executive.!This!means!a!minister!is!usually!in!charge!of!a!government! department!that!is!responsible!for!enacting!the!law! ! Australian Parliamentary System Under!the!Australian!federal!system!of!government,!the!country!is!divided!into!states!and!territories!each!with!its!own!parliament!–!making!a!total!of!9! parliaments.! • Commonwealth,)6)States,)2)Territories! They! are! elected! by! the! people! and! represent! the! needs! of! the! people.! Members! are! also! responsible! to! the! parliament! and! the! people! for! their! actions.!The)APS)is)based)on)the)Westminster)system)that)was)adopted)by)the)Commonwealth)constitution)in)1900,)as)originally)Australia)and)its) states) were) British) Colonies.! The! Commonwealth! and! State! Parliaments! operate! on! a! bicameral! structure! –! 2! Houses! –! Upper! and! Lower! houses.! Exception:!QLD!and!territories!have!only!one!house!–!Lower!House.! ! Bicameral Structure Upper)House) Lower)House) Federal!Commonwealth!Parliament!–!...
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...Section III: Ratification of Conventions and acceptance of obligations (ILS Handbook of Procedures) Handbook of procedures relating to international labour Conventions and Recommendations III. Ratification of Conventions and acceptance of obligations 18. Procedure. Article 19 of the Constitution provides: 5(d) (I)f the Member obtains the consent of the authority or authorities within whose competence the matter lies, it will communicate the formal ratification of the Convention to the Director-General and will take such action as may be necessary to make effective the provisions of such Convention. 19. Form of communication of ratification. No specific requirements as to form are laid down in the Constitution. Each State will have its own constitutional provisions and practice. In order to be registered, an instrument of ratification nevertheless must (Endnote 1): (a) clearly identify the Convention being ratified; (b) be an original document (on paper, not a facsimile or photocopy) signed by a person with authority to engage the State (such as the Head of State, Prime Minister, Minister responsible for Foreign Affairs or Labour); (c) clearly convey the Government's intention that the State should be bound by the Convention concerned and its undertaking to fulfil the Convention's provisions, preferably with a specific reference to article 19(5)(d) of the ILO Constitution. 20. Compulsory declarations to be included in or to accompany ratifications. Several Conventions...
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...Writing an Outline | An outline is a “blueprint” or “plan” for your paper. It helps you to organize your thoughts and arguments. A good outline can make conducting research and then writing the paper very efficient. Your outline page must include your: * Paper Title * Thesis statement * Major points/arguments indicated by Roman numerals (i.e., I, II, III, IV, V, etc.) * Support for your major points, indicated by capital Arabic numerals (i.e., A, B, C, D, E, etc.) Roman numeral I should be your “Introduction”. In the introduction portion of your paper, you’ll want to tell your reader what your paper is about and then tell what your paper hopes to prove (your thesis). So an Introduction gives an overview of the topic and your thesis statement. The final Roman numeral should be your “Conclusion”. In the conclusion, you summarize what you have told your reader. Following are 3 sample outlines, from actual student papers. YOUR outline can be MORE detailed, or might be LESS detailed. Remember that a good outline makes writing easier and more efficient. Sample Outline #1 Title: Frederick Douglass Thesis: Frederick Douglass played a crucial role in securing the abolition of slavery and equality of African-American rights through his actions, ideas, and efforts as a lecturer, author/publisher, and politician. I. Introduction A. Thesis B. Roles/Arguments II. Douglass as Lecturer A. History as slave and acquisition...
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...William and Mary Law Review Volume 49 | Issue 4 Article 16 Constitution Writing in Post-conflict Settings: An Overview Jennifer Widner Repository Citation Jennifer Widner, Constitution Writing in Post-conflict Settings: An Overview, 49 Wm. & Mary L. Rev. 1513 (2008), http://scholarship.law.wm.edu/wmlr/vol49/iss4/16 Copyright c 2008 by the authors. This article is brought to you by the William & Mary Law School Scholarship Repository. http://scholarship.law.wm.edu/wmlr CONSTITUTION WRITING IN POST-CONFLICT SETTINGS: AN OVERVIEWt JENNIFER WIDNER* During the past forty years, over 200 new constitutions have emerged in countries at risk of internal violence. Internationally brokered peace accords have entailed the development of constitutions not only in the Balkans but also in Cambodia, Lebanon, East Timor, Rwanda, Chad, Mozambique, Bougainville-Papua New Guinea, Nepal, the Comoros, and other places.' New constitutions have heralded the adoption of multiparty systems from Albania to Zambia. 2 Policymakers have started to ask what we have learned and specifically whether some constitutional reform processes are more likely than others to deliver a reduction in violence or more rights-respecting fundamental documents. For example, over the past decade, the Commonwealth, the U.S. Institute of Peace, and t This Article draws in part on WIDER Research Paper 2005/51 and is published with the kind permission of the UNU-WIDER. * Professor of Politics and International Affairs, Princeton...
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...George Washington, after being convinced to attend the convention, was made the first president of the United States. He had a unanimous vote in his favor and began his first term. Washington’s position as president gave him great influence over the people of the United States. His decision to support the ratification of the constitution influenced many others to ratify, and among all of the precedents that were established in the new nation’s first eight years, the most important was the careful and thoughtful manner by which he acted in areas where the new Constitution was vague or silent. It was from the implications of what was written and, in some cases, not written in the Constitution that the role and power of the presidency was largely derived, and it was Washington’s actions that established precedents, many of which still guide presidents today. One of which is that a president should only be able to serve two terms of four years each. Although Washington remained mostly silent during the Constitutional Convention, he had huge influence on the people of the United States in his support of a strong central government and the ratification of the constitution. He showed that a...
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...succeeded in unifying the independent colonies after the maelstrom of the American Revolution, the unification was not a strong one, nor was the Articles of Confederation adequately suited to govern the newly-independent nation that was philosophically different from other European nations. In effect, the constitutional Convention not merely revised the Articles, but rather rewrote the Constitution that was radically and to a great extent different from the Articles in the realms of not only political and economic significance, but also in those of social and cultural. Without a doubt, the most radically different ideals...
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......The reason and spirit of a law are to be understood only by an inquiry into the circumstances of its enactment. The underlying purposes of the Constitution, therefore, are to be revealed only by a study of the conditions and events which led to formation and adoption. At the outset it must be remembered that there were two great parties at the time of the adoption of the Constitution -- one laying emphasis on strength and efficiency in government and the other on its popular aspects. Quite naturally the men who led in stirring up the revolt against Great Britain and in keeping the fighting temper of the Revolutionaries at the proper heat were the boldest and most radical thinkers -- men like Samuel Adams, Thomas Paine, Patrick Henry, and Thomas Jefferson. They were not, generally speaking, men of large property interests or of much practical business experience. In a time of disorder, they could consistently lay more stress upon personal liberty than upon social control; and they pushed to the extreme limits those doctrines of individual rights which had been evolved in England during the struggles of the small landed proprietors and commercial classes against royal prerogative, and which corresponded to the economic conditions prevailing in America at the close of the eighteenth century. They associated strong government with monarchy, and came to believe that the best political system was one which governed least. A majority of the radicals viewed all government, especially...
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...Using ideas from two brilliant plans proposed beforehand, the Virginia Plan and New Jersey Plan, our Constitution had an idea of how we wanted to address slavery, slave trading, taxing on slaves, tyranny, and voting. Our first discussion led to the Great Compromise. The Great Compromise calls for the creation of a national bicameral legislature. The legislature would consist of the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives will give each state votes according to population. The other house, the Senate, will give two votes to each of the thirteen states, meaning each state will have an equal vote. By approving the Constitution, we are benefitting. In the Senate, we have an equal vote, so our population will not be taken into account, thus we are not advantageous. On the contrary, in the House of Representatives, we have more votes as we are a larger state population wise, meaning we have a greater say when voting on controversial issues. By accepting the Constitution and signing off, we can greatly benefit as we are a populous...
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