Chronology of Events related to the Constitutional Amendment

in Relation to the Election and Qualification of Senators

April - September 2013

Several parties submitted their requests to the Constitutional Court to consider the constitutionality of the amendment of the Constitution in relation to the election and qualification of Senators.

28 September 2013

The House of Representatives passed the Amendment Bill related to the election and qualification of Senators in its third reading.

20 November 2013

- In a 6:3 decision, the Constitutional Court ruled that the amendment of the Constitution and the process thereof in relation to the issue of election and qualification of Senator are acts which are unconstitutional under Sections 122, 125 paragraphs1 and 2, 126 paragraph 3, 291 as well as Section 3 paragraph 2.  In a 5:4 decision, the Constitutional Court also ruled that the amendment of the substance that formed the essence was inconsistent or contradicted the basic principle and spirit of the Constitution which was an act to acquire the power to rule the country and was inconsistent with Section 68 paragraph 1.  The request to dissolve the related political parties and suspend the right to vote of the President and the executive board of directors of the related political parties was dismissed.

- The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) announced that it had decided to consider five petitions seeking the removal from office of 312 MPs and Senators who backed the Constitutional Amendment Bill on the issue of the election and qualification of Senators.  The various petitions would be combined and dealt with as a single case.  It is expected that the proceedings of the NACC would be lengthy.

22 November 2013

The Prime Minister assigned the Council of State to study the ruling of the Constitutional Court delivered on 20 November 2013 to determine how to proceed because this kind of ruling has never been made by the Court before so there is no precedent to follow.

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                                                                                    2 December 2013