Parliamentary_republic

Parliamentary republic

Parliamentary republic

Form of government

A parliamentary republic is a republic that operates under a parliamentary system of government where the executive branch (the government) derives its legitimacy from and is accountable to the legislature (the parliament). There are a number of variations of parliamentary republics. Most have a clear differentiation between the head of government and the head of state, with the head of government holding real power and the head of state being a ceremonial position, similar to constitutional monarchies. In some countries the head of state has reserve powers to use at their discretion as a non-partisan "referee" of the political process.[1][2] Some have combined the roles of head of state and head of government, much like presidential systems, but with a dependency upon parliamentary confidence.

World's states coloured by systems of government:
Parliamentary systems: Head of government is elected by and is accountable to the legislature
  Constitutional monarchy with a ceremonial monarch
  Parliamentary republic with a ceremonial president
  Parliamentary republic with an executive president
Presidential system: President is the head of government and is independent of the legislature
  Presidential republic
Hybrid systems:
  Semi-presidential republic: President is independent of the legislature; head of government is appointed by the president and is accountable to the legislature
  Assembly-independent republic: President or directory is the head of government and is elected by the legislature, but is independent of and not accountable to it
  Semi-constitutional monarchy: Monarch holds significant executive or legislative power
  Absolute monarchy: Monarch has unlimited power
  One-party state: Power is constitutionally linked to a single political party
  Military junta: Committee of military leaders controls the government; constitutional provisions are suspended
  Provisional government: No constitutionally defined basis to current regime
  Dependent territories and places without governments
Note: this chart represent de jure systems of government, not the de facto degree of democracy.[citation needed]

Powers

In contrast to republics operating under either the presidential system or the semi-presidential system, the head of state usually does not have executive powers as an executive president would (some may have reserve powers or a bit more influence beyond that), because many of those powers have been granted to a head of government (usually called a prime minister).[3][4][clarification needed]

However, in a parliamentary republic with a head of state whose tenure is dependent on parliament, the head of government and head of state can form one office (as in Botswana, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, and South Africa), but the president is still selected in much the same way as the prime minister is in most Westminster systems. This usually means that they are the leader of the largest party or coalition of parties in parliament.

In some cases, the president can legally have executive powers granted to them to undertake the day-to-day running of government (as in Iceland) but by convention they either do not use these powers or they use them only to give effect to the advice of the parliament or head of government. Some parliamentary republics could therefore be seen as following the semi-presidential system but operating under a parliamentary system.

Historical development

Typically, parliamentary republics are states that were previously constitutional monarchies with a parliamentary system.[5]

Following the defeat of Napoleon III in the Franco-Prussian War, France once again became a republic – the French Third Republic – in 1870. The President of the Third Republic had significantly less executive powers than those of the previous two republics had. The Third Republic lasted until the invasion of France by Nazi Germany in 1940. Following the end of the war, the French Fourth Republic was constituted along similar lines in 1946. The Fourth Republic saw an era of great economic growth in France and the rebuilding of the nation's social institutions and industry after the war, and played an important part in the development of the process of European integration, which changed the continent permanently. Some attempts were made to strengthen the executive branch of government to prevent the unstable situation that had existed before the war, but the instability remained and the Fourth Republic saw frequent changes in government – there were 20 governments in ten years. Additionally, the government proved unable to make effective decisions regarding decolonization. As a result, the Fourth Republic collapsed and Charles de Gaulle was given power to rule by decree, subsequently legitimized by approval of a new constitution in a referendum on 28 September 1958 that led to the establishment of the French Fifth Republic in 1959.

Chile became the first parliamentary republic in South America following a civil war in 1891. However, following a coup in 1925 this system was replaced by a presidential one.[original research?]

Commonwealth of Nations

Main article: Commonwealth of Nations

Since the London Declaration of 29 April 1949 (just weeks after Ireland declared itself a republic, and excluded itself from the Commonwealth) republics have been admitted as members of the Commonwealth of Nations.

In the case of many republics in the Commonwealth of Nations, it was common for the Sovereign, formerly represented by a Governor-General, to be replaced by a non-executive head of state. This was the case in South Africa (which ceased to be a member of the Commonwealth immediately upon becoming a republic, and later switched to having an executive presidency), Malta, Trinidad and Tobago, India, Vanuatu, and most recently Barbados. In many of these examples, the last Governor-General became the first president. Such was the case with Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Other states became parliamentary republics upon gaining independence.

Main article: List of countries by system of government § Parliamentary and related systems
More information Full parliamentary republics, Country/territory ...
More information Country, Became aparliamentary republic ...

See also

Notes

  1. [N 1]
    Changed after the 2015 referendum.
  2. [N 2]
    Was, previously, a parliamentary republic between 1972 and 1975.
  3. [N 3]
    The Constitution of the Republic of China went into effect on 25 December 1947 as the Chinese Civil War was underway. On 1 October 1949, the Kuomintang-led Republic of China (ROC) was succeeded in Mainland China by the People's Republic of China, a single-party state governed by the Chinese Communist Party. The ROC government was then confined to the island of Taiwan from 7 December. The provisions establishing a parliamentary republic remain in the Constitution but are suspended by the Additional Articles, which established direct presidential elections since 1996.
  4. [N 4]
    Under the Additional Articles, the Control Yuan ceased to be a parliamentary chamber in 1993 and the National Assembly was dissolved in 2005 leaving the Legislative Yuan as the unicameral chamber. Functions of the National Assembly were transferred to the Legislative Yuan and nationwide referendums. According to Judicial Yuan Interpretation no. 76, Shall the National Assembly, the Legislative Yuan and the Control Yuan be considered en masse as equivalent to the parliaments of democratic nations? issued on May 3, 1957: The Constitution was enacted according to the exhortation of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen. In addition to the National Assembly, five Yuans have been established, the concept of which is not really analogous to the separation of powers system. The National Assembly representing all the nationals exercises the political power, the Legislative Yuan is the highest legislative institution of the nation and the Control Yuan is the highest monitoring institution of the nation. All of them are composed of representatives or members that are directly or indirectly elected by the people. Their functions and powers are similar to those important powers exercised by the parliaments of democratic nations. Although some of their approaches to the exercise of power, such as a regular annual assembly, quorum and resolution by the majority are not the same as those of parliaments of democratic nations, the National Assembly, the Legislative Yuan and the Control Yuan, from the perspective of the nature of their statuses and functions in the Constitution, should be considered as equivalent to the parliaments of democratic nations.
  5. [N 5]
    Estonia was previously a parliamentary republic between 1918 and 1934 when the system was changed to a presidential system which was thereafter overthrown by a coup d'état. In 1938, Estonia finally adopted a presidential system and in June 1940 was illegally occupied by the Soviet Union. Became a parliamentary republic again in 1990 with the implementation of an interim period to restore full independence, which was achieved by 1991.
  6. [N 6]
    Formerly a semi-presidential republic, it is now a parliamentary republic according to David Arter, First Chair of Politics at Aberdeen University. In his "Scandinavian Politics Today" (Manchester University Press, revised 2008 ISBN 9780719078538), he quotes Nousiainen, Jaakko (June 2001). "From semi-presidentialism to parliamentary government: political and constitutional developments in Finland". Scandinavian Political Studies. 24 (2): 95–109. doi:10.1111/1467-9477.00048. as follows: "There are hardly any grounds for the epithet 'semi-presidential'." Arter's own conclusions are only slightly more nuanced: "The adoption of a new constitution on 1 March 2000 meant that Finland was no longer a case of semi-presidential government other than in the minimalist sense of a situation where a popularly elected fixed-term president exists alongside a prime minister and cabinet who are responsible to parliament (Elgie 2004: 317)". According to the Finnish Constitution, the president has no possibility to rule the government without the ministerial approval, and does not have the power to dissolve the parliament under his or her own desire. Finland is actually represented by its prime minister, and not by its president, in the Council of the Heads of State and Government of the European Union. The 2012 constitutional amendments reduced the powers of the president even further.
  7. [N 7]
    "Salome Zurabishvili Wins Georgia Presidential Runoff". The New York Times. The Associated Press. 29 November 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  8. [N 8]
    The Bundesrat is sometimes referred to as an upper chamber of the German legislature. This is technically incorrect, since the German Constitution defines the Bundestag and Bundesrat as two separate legislative institutions. It describes the Bundesrat as the constitutional organ which is representing the 16 Länder (States) of Germany. Hence, the federal legislature of Germany consists of two unicameral legislative institutions, not one bicameral parliament. However the Federal Constitutional Court itself referred to the Bundesrat in the English translation of this decision.
  9. [N 9]
    In the case of the former West German states, including former West Berlin, the previous one-party state is Nazi Germany, but in the case of the New Länder and former East Berlin it is East Germany. German reunification took place on 3 October 1990, when the five re-established states of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) joined the Federal Republic of Germany, and Berlin was united into a single city-state. Therefore, this date applies to today's Federal Republic of Germany as a whole, although the area of former East Germany was no part of that parliamentary republic until 1990.
  10. [N 10]
    Officially bicameral, upper house never entered into functions, to present day.
  11. [N 11]
    The head of state was ambiguous from 1936 until the Republic of Ireland Act came into force on 18 April 1949. A minority of Irish republicans assert that the Irish Republic proclaimed in 1919 is still extant.
  12. [N 12]
    Latvia was previously a parliamentary republic between 1921 and 1934 when the then prime minister Kārlis Ulmanis took power in a coup d'état. In June 1940 Latvia was occupied and annexed by the Soviet Union.
  13. [N 13]
    Under a transitional government between 2006 and 2015; this Transitional Government was responsible to an elected Constituent Assembly, which resolved to establish a republic in 2008.
  14. [N 14]
    Had a transitional government between 1991 and 2012.
  1. The Federal Convention is made up of all the members of the Bundestag. The other half is distributed to the 16 Länder, that then each elect Members to elect the President of Germany. Often German celebrities are chosen by the state parliaments.

References

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  2. [2]
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  12. [12]
    Constitution of Nepal Archived December 23, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  13. [13]
    Kiran Khalid (9 April 2010). "Pakistan lawmakers approve weakening of presidential powers". CNN. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
  14. [14]
    "'18th Amendment to restore Constitution'". Nation.com.pk. Archived from the original on 14 April 2010. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
  15. [15]
    Veser, Ernst [in German] (23 September 1997). "Semi-Presidentialism-Duverger's Concept — A New Political System Model" (PDF) (in English and Chinese). Department of Education, School of Education, University of Cologne. pp. 39–60. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 April 2021. Retrieved 21 August 2017. Duhamel has developed the approach further: He stresses that the French construction does not correspond to either parliamentary or the presidential form of government, and then develops the distinction of 'système politique' and 'régime constitutionnel'. While the former comprises the exercise of power that results from the dominant institutional practice, the latter is the totality of the rules for the dominant institutional practice of the power. In this way, France appears as 'presidentialist system' endowed with a 'semi-presidential regime' (1983: 587). By this standard he recognizes Duverger's pléiade as semi-presidential regimes, as well as Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and Lithuania (1993: 87).
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    Shugart, Matthew Søberg (September 2005). "Semi-Presidential Systems: Dual Executive and Mixed Authority Patterns" (PDF). Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 August 2008. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
  17. [17]
    Shugart, Matthew Søberg (December 2005). "Semi-Presidential Systems: Dual Executive And Mixed Authority Patterns" (PDF). French Politics. 3 (3): 323–351. doi:10.1057/palgrave.fp.8200087. Retrieved 21 August 2017. Even if the president has no discretion in the forming of cabinets or the right to dissolve parliament, his or her constitutional authority can be regarded as 'quite considerable' in Duverger's sense if cabinet legislation approved in parliament can be blocked by the people's elected agent. Such powers are especially relevant if an extraordinary majority is required to override a veto, as in Mongolia, Poland, and Senegal. In these cases, while the government is fully accountable to parliament, it cannot legislate without taking the potentially different policy preferences of the president into account.
  18. [18]
    McMenamin, Iain. "Semi-Presidentialism and Democratisation in Poland" (PDF). School of Law and Government, Dublin City University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 February 2012. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
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  20. [20]
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  24. [24]
    "Executive". www.gov.fm. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
  25. [25]
    Every list of candidates for Parliament must also have a candidate for President, and the having the most votes automatically has its candidate elected President
  26. [26]
    Esengeldiev, Almaz. "Kyrgyzstan's 2016 Constitutional Referendum". Freedom House. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
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