the 1931 constitution of ethiopia was introduced by

Conditions of divorce generally are established by law only to protect the family institution and the rights of the spouses. 90, sub- art.2, declares: Education shall be provided in a manner that is free from any religious influence, political partisanship or cultural prejudices. It gave origin to a debate between Sharia and political authority which is the dominant leitmotiv of the juridical history of Islam. When a case is brought to the Sharia Court, the court must issue summons to the other party and ask for their consent, based on a form included in the proclamation. Ethiopia_1931.txt Constitution of Ethiopia (1955). For the government the situation was greatly worsened by drought and famine in the north, the denial of which became an international scandal. 4 of the Constitution, but cases of annulations are not known and divorce is not allowed by the Orthodox Church. In a scale of values, these principles have priority even at the cost of limiting individual liberty, but restrictions have to be intended in the sense that they may not sacrifice the individual freedom except when it is strictly necessary. The Transitional Charter is the first constitutional document that takes into the highest consideration the socio-cultural reality of the country, its multi-ethnic and multi-religious background (emphasising the former) and, without breaking the principle of unity of the State, established two mainstays of the new constitutional order: federalism and the principle of separation between State and religion. 3 See: BROOKS, M.F., A Modern Translation of the Kebra Nagast (The Glory of the Kings), The Red Sea Press, Inc. Asmara, 1996, passim. See: CRUMMEY, D., Land and Societycit., 95. The Constitution stated that Ethiopia is a unitary state constituting administrative and autonomous regions. Especially, they were not allowed to call and question ministries of the imperial government. At the same time of the appearance of the Kebra Nagast, during the reign of an usurping dynasty, the Zagwe who had transferred the seat of the empire in the South, the Orthodox Church proclaimed that only the Solomonic princes, coming from the Axumite line, were legitimate to reign over Ethiopia. Limits However, there are exceptions to these basic principles of separation and freedom, exceptions accepted by every modern Constitution and related to the principle of the supremacy of the Constitution, prescribed by law and imposed by the necessity, to protect public safety, peace, health, education, STATE AND RELIGION IN ETHIOPIA 369 public morality or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others, and to ensure the independence of the State from religion (art. For this reason, there are no proclamations that establish or recognise Orthodox Courts. It is not clear whether in some matters believers have to follow a double jurisdiction, e.g. 78), every State of the Ethiopian Federation can establish or give recognition to Sharia tribunals on its territory. The combined effect of these projects was to increase the countrys exposure to the world economy. '* >"/kVv*W_YEdk"FSyW>$UB^|+~h!Ozy7E&f!HS0&MY^ s>[8 e#&g8CI]aC'q8vmiIUBYEWk>~Me4`o" \b$ #^lr 5. Parliament during Emperor Hailesillassie-I (Imperial rule, 1930- 1974). 34, sub-Art 5 (Particulars shall be determined by law.), the most likely answer to this question is that the law has the power to regulate the whole matter. STATE AND RELIGION IN ETHIOPIA 355 the Ethiopian Hebrews were given the disparaging name of Felasha, which means those who broke off: persecutions against them started at that time, and at last they were restricted in a small and difficult area North of Gondar9. The idea of the existence of a super-human power leads to another characteristic, a total dependence on this higher power. . HISTORICAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL ROOTS OF THE ETHIOPIAN STATE 1. CRUMMEY, D., Imperial Legitimacy and the Creation of Neo-Solomonic Ideology in Nintheth Century in Ethiopia, Cahiers dtudes africanes 109, 28, n.1, 1988. 17 He organised a Church Council even in the absence of an Abuna, which was not considered an impediment, and promoted a new evangelisation of the Wollo region, in which most of the population had been converted to Islam during the Mohammed Gragn religious wars. Steen 1936 Constitutional Adjudication in Africa - Charles M Fombad 2017-08-31 The first written constitution was proclaimed by Emperor Haile Sillasie-I, on November 3, 1931 shortly after his coronation staged on July 16, 1931.The constitution is said to be that the gift of the Emperor on his will conferred to his people upon his coronation. It was promulgated in "an impressive ceremony" held 16 July 1931 in the presence of Emperor Haile Selassie, who had long desired to proclaim one for . Emperor Haile Selassie proclaimed a revised constitution in November 1955 of the Ethiopian Empire. To prepare the draft constitution, the committee used to meet on daily base and outlined the details of the constitution on the basis of the following five fundamental points: The crown of the emperor shall be perpetually transmitted to the descendants of imperial blood, whose line descends from Haile Selassie I, and King Sahle Selassie. the government) in religious affairs, with the related duty of the Churches to stay out of State affairs, leads to the main consequence that there will be no preferential treatment towards any Church and any religion prac- ticed in the Country: in other words they are all equal in front of the law. It was almost totally concentrated on establishing an absolute power for the monarchy, with strong provisions ensuring the succession to the throne (the lack of which was one of the most important reasons for the instability of the monarchy), and extending the Emperors power upon the Church. The Derg proceeded to dismantle the monarchys institutions and to arrest Haile Selassies cronies, confidantes, and advisers. the imam, who leads the prayer, or the ulama, who gives rules of behaviour to the believers; what lacks is an authority or any ecclesiastical body able to give these leaders a formal status. ), in Osservatorio delle libert ed istituzioni religiose, Universit di Milano, 1998. After the fall of the Derg in 1991, the Transitional Government of Ethiopia (TGE) was established. However, the 1931 constitution laid some foundations for modern practices of government in Ethiopia. The 1931 Constitution of Ethiopia was the first modern constitution of the Ethiopian Empire, intended to officially replace the Fetha Nagast, which had been the supreme law since the Middle Ages. The existing , absolute feudalism rule, traditionallyusedbythegovernmentof the emperor, now shall betransformed in toimperial administration havingfull discretion of powerand somehow it shall beassistedby the opinions of theHouse of the Peoples. endstream endobj 113 0 obj <>stream Against the Church, the strategy was very particular: the 1931 Constitution keeps silent about the Church. 21. 21 The Derg regime did not ignore organised religions and did not try to eliminate them. This contributed to the Zagwe Kings suddenly being swept away from the political scenario. introduced, this was not effective and fruitful enough due to the govern- . Under the constitution the government is a republic with a powerful prime minister as . Sub-Art. Ministry of Information, Publications and Foreign Languages Press Department, 1968. 90 establishes that education in schools has to be provided free from any religious influence, and according to interpretation by almost all authors, this implies that not only public, but also private education has to have this feature. 19)44 and the order given to any Exec- utive Organ as well as to individuals who receive a decision or orders from any Federal Court of Sharia, to execute or cause its execution (Art. The Church was grateful to the Emperor and played a very important role in causing the failure of the coup dtat in 1961. Relationships between Orthodox and Muslim Authorities are not so peaceful however as described by the interviewed source. 46 According to some authoritative opinion of a governmental source, the execution by the State of sentences of the Sharia Courts seems to be an interference of the State in religious affairs, and a very heavy one. 2 and 3). This is mostly true in Amhara and Tigrian communities, where the Orthodox Church was born and has the deepest roots47. See, FIORITA, N., Dispense di Diritto Islamicocit, 25. They were only required to discuss and give comments on matters referred to them by government. Article 4 of the 1955 Constitution provided that 'by virtue of His Imperial Blood, as well as by the anointing which He has received, the person of the Emperor is sacred. In Shiraro Woreda, a case of divorce was brought by the wife to the regular Court after she had known that the share of the family properties that the Sharia Court could assigned to her was only 30 Eth. 123 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[]/Index[109 18]/Info 108 0 R/Length 75/Prev 886643/Root 110 0 R/Size 127/Type/XRef/W[1 2 1]>>stream According to the interview with the President of the Mekele Sharia Court (Tigray), Sharia Courts are spread mostly in Amhara Region, even if the highest number of Muslims in Oromia and Afar. 370 M. TORCINI CORAZZA. The new government issued a Declaration of Socialism on December 20, 1974. Revenues were used to centralize the government, to improve communications, to develop a national system of education based on the western model, and to modernize urban centres. See: CRUMMEY, D., Land and Societycit., 144. So help . See: FIORITA, N., Dispense di Diritto Islamico, Universit di Firenze, 2002; VERCELLIN, G., Istituzioni di diritto musulmano, Torino, 1998. Although under the imperial regime the State was centralized, the centrifugal powers always active during the Ethiopian history determined that many regions belonged to the Empire only in name. MARINELLI, A., Scuola ed educazione islamica, in Associazione Italiana inter- nazionale per linformazione sullIslam (a cura di), LIslam e lItalia, Milano, 1996. The 1931 Constitution of Ethiopia served as the nation's first modern document of its sort, which was crafted to replace the ancient Christian legal code known as the Fetha Negest. This is related to the principle of freedom of religion, in so far as such a freedom is considered to be incompatible with any form of support from the State. See: BECKSTROM, J.H., Divorce in Urban Ethiopia Ten Years after the Civil Code, in Journal of Ethiopian Law, vol. The 1931 Constitution, which was Ethiopia's first written constitution in its three thousand year history, had been introduced by Haile Selassie as a contract between himself and the Ethiopian people. After an Ethiopian patrol clashed with an Italian garrison at the Welwel oasis in the Ogaden in NovemberDecember 1934, Rome began seriously preparing for war. 352 M. TORCINI CORAZZA, Nevertheless the traditional, unwritten, Constitution of Ethiopia is the container of principles that governed Ethiopia since the time of the Axumite Empire (V-IV cent. Emperor Haile Selassie modernization reduced traditional inspired central regime and introduced the 1931 and 1955 constitution, which were unitary parliamentary system with two legislative body: Chamber of Senate (Yeheggue Mewossegna Meker Beth) and Chamber of Deputies (Yeheggue Memeriya Meker Beth). Un double lien lpreuve de la scularisation et de la mondialisation, Cittadini e fedeli nei paesi dellUnione Europea, Consorzio europeo di ricerca sui rapporti fra Stato e confessioni religiose, Milano, 1999, 105 ss. 5, which allows the adjudication of disputes related to personal and family laws to religious and customary courts provided in Art. See: CUMMERY, D., Land and Societycit., 74. 12 From the first aspect follows the absence of a religious authority who can affirm the only absolute truth, and instead led to the flourishing of a plurality of interpretations and theological positions with equal dignity. From this time onwards, parliament as political institution has been established in Ethiopia even so the practice varies across regimes. It means that parents are free to give them religious, non-religious or anti-religious education. In 1948 and again in 1949, two commissions established by the wartime Allied Powers and by the United Nations (UN) reported that Eritrea lacked national consciousness and an economy that could sustain independence. Of course, other solutions than a complete separation can be adopted, and are actually adopted, e.g. 4 establishes the Sharia Courts jurisdiction, according to Art. However, art. 19 of the proclamation n. 188/1999, because it considers Sharia Courts as State organs having the right to obtain funds necessary for their functioning. RUBENSON, S., Survival of Ethiopian Independence, London, 1976. When he became a man, the son went to visit his father to be recognised by him, and came back bringing with him the Arc of the Covenant, stolen from the Jerusalem Temple, and the Judaic faith. It was promulgated in "an impressive ceremony" held 16 July 1931 in the presence of Emperor Haile Selassie , who had long desired to proclaim one for . Even though the concept of freedom of religion is introduced (although limited to freedom as to the observance of rituals), just like in some Middle Age European Countries the Emperor had the power to promulgate all the Orthodox Churchs provisions, and neither bishops nor patriarchs could be elected without the approval of the Emperor. Nowadays Catholics are a very small minority51 in Ethiopia, mostly concentrated in northern Tigray, around Adigrat and in Alitena, but they are increasing in the southern, in Sidamo and Oromo areas. 9 of the Constitution, establishing the supremacy of the Fundamental Law, any time the Islamic law is in contrast with rights recognised e.g. The Italians dominated the cities, towns, and major caravan routes, while Ethiopian patriots harried the occupiers and sometimes tested the larger garrison towns. In 1931, as a clear sign of his commitment to Western-style modernization, Haile Selassie adopted the first written constitution for Ethiopia. Their contacts with the Greek world are also shown in archaeological sources, e.g. religions recognised and accepted almost everywhere, but also beliefs of tribal character and traditional religions, however spread among a minority part of population. Against the nobility, two Deliberative Chambers were introduced, almost without real power, but formed by high nobility with tenure, which cancelled its interests to contrast the Emperors power. STATE AND RELIGION IN ETHIOPIA 395. See: CIM- BALO, G., Federalizzazione dello Stato e rapporti con le confessioni religiose in Belgio, in Religione e Societ, Studi, testi, ricerche di diritto e storia collected by MARGIOTTA BROGLIO, F., 24, Confessioni Religiose e Federalismo Esperienze e prospettive, edited cy FELICIANI, G. Seminario di Storia delle Istituzioni Religiose e relazioni fra Stato e Chiesa dellUniversit STATE AND RELIGION IN ETHIOPIA 391 of a rigid separation between State and religion, moreover not followed by coherent provisions on the topic, while a correct management of religious activities, with equal treatment of faiths, represents an important component of cohesion and stability. It is remarkable that these words are put in the mouth of a woman, the Queen of Sheba. Surely, Allh is Ever Most High, Most Great. See: MUHAMMAD TAQI-UD-DIN AL-HILALI, MUHAMMAD MUHSIN KHAN, Interpretation of the Meanings of The Noble Qurncit., 129-130. Also interested in reforms and modernisation, Menelik avoided as much as possible contrasts with the Church and the Rases, and outflanked their predictable opposition through reforms. In a country like Ethiopia, where patriarchal and male authority is still strong, where the law is often unable, mostly in the countryside, to help young girls of thirteen, four- teen or fifteen (but sometimes even at the age of eight) who are forced to marry against their will, or are unconscious of the consequences of this kind of act, and where even authorities called to enforce the respecting of a law share the same mentality of parents and religious authorities, how can one be sure that bringing a case to the religious tribunal is a real free choice of all parts? The constitution was introduced with the intention of transforming the country from old and traditional administration to modern bureaucracy .On top of that, to show the world that Ethiopia was being ruled by constitutional monarchy. GIDAY DEGEFU KORARO, Traditional mechanisms of conflict resolution in Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, 2000, Ethiopian International Institute for Peace and Devel- opment. the National Regional State of Tigray, did not make any choice until now and in part because, according to information collected from the Justice Bureau of Tigray, the Supreme Court of the same State and the Supreme Federal Court, there are no constitutional cases that have reached any regular court or obtained a decision on these questions; therefore it is very difficult to say what the solution can be. Besides that, the Orthodox Church considers the money at present given to the Sharia Courts as a form of compensation for the past, when, up to the end of the Imperial era in 1974, the Orthodox faith was State religion and the Church regularly received money from taxes, or through the exemption from them49. STATE AND RELIGION IN ETHIOPIA 361 conferred a major certainty of law. But in order to organise even an embryonic modern State, he had to build a centralised member of his family, Churches were founded by Msafent. from today, the Revised Constitution of the Empire of Ethiopia, for the. Teaching religion in pub- lic schools may have also negative effects on childrens education, divid- ing school communities and suggesting privileges and unjustified pref- erential treatments. Art. In spite of the constitutional 362 M. TORCINI CORAZZA provisions that forbade the use of religion for political purposes, and exploit- ing the Churchs control on the peoples consciences, Lt. General Kebede Gebre and Lt. General Merid Mengesha, the leader of the Emperors forces, asked patriarch Meuna Basilios to publish a paper excommunicating those who were trying to overthrow the Emperor and to urge people to remain devoted the latter. 18); the provision of a budgetary subsidy allocated by the Federal Government (Art. The Ethiopian Constitution - W.M. Gen. Teferi Banti. The National Assembly proclaimed the establishment of the PDRE on Sep. 12, 1987 by proclamation No.2/1987. These measures represented hard limitations to Rases and Church power and then conducting the transition from traditional written Became embroiled in intractable conflicts in Eritrea and Italian Somaliland to form Italian Africa! An-Nis, 3 prin- ciple of the community, who was deposed on September 12, 1974 country would ahead. 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