Constitution Of Tonga
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Constitution Of Tonga
The Constitution of Tonga is supreme law under which the Government of Tonga operates. It was enacted by King George Tupou I on 4 November 1875. It stipulates the makeup of the Tongan Government and the balance between its executive, legislature, and judiciary. The anniversary of its passage is celebrated annually as Tonga's Constitution Day. The constitution is separated into three parts. Part one is a declaration of rights of the Tongan people. Part two addresses the form of government. Part three provides laws for land ownership, succession, and sale. The Declaration of Rights provides for the basic human rights of the people of Tonga. It firstly established Tonga as a free nation. It prohibits slavery except as a form of punishment for a great crime and establishes Tonga as a haven for those who have escaped slavery in a foreign nation. It establishes equal law for all citizens of Tonga despite their class or ethnicity. The constitution provides the freedoms of worship, pre ...
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Tonga
Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. As of 2021, according to Johnson's Tribune, Tonga has a population of 104,494, 70% of whom reside on the main island, Tongatapu. The country stretches approximately north-south. It is surrounded by Fiji and Wallis and Futuna (France) to the northwest; Samoa to the northeast; New Caledonia (France) and Vanuatu to the west; Niue (the nearest foreign territory) to the east; and Kermadec (New Zealand) to the southwest. Tonga is about from New Zealand's North Island. First inhabited roughly 2,500 years ago by the Lapita civilization, Tonga's Polynesian settlers gradually evolved a distinct and strong ethnic identity, language, and culture as the Tongan people. They were quick to establish a powerful footing acr ...
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George Tupou I
George Tupou I (4 December 1797 – 18 February 1893), originally known as Tāufaʻāhau I, was the first king of modern Tonga. He adopted the name Siaosi (originally Jiaoji), the Tongan equivalent of ''George'', after King George III of the United Kingdom, when he was baptized in 1831. His nickname was ''Lopa-ukamea'' (or Lopa-ʻaione), meaning ''iron cable''. Biography Birth George Tupou I was born around 1797 in Tonga. 4 December is often-quoted as his birthday and is a public holiday in Tonga; however, it was the date of his coronation in 1845 as Tuʻi Kanokupolu, when he took the name Tupou. Tongoleleka and the Niuʻui hospital there (which was destroyed in the 2006 Tonga earthquake) are often stated as his birthplace; however, no evidence supporting this is available, and Lifuka and Tongatapu are also often stated as the birthplace. His father was Tupouto'aʻ, who aspired to be the 17th Tuʻi Kanokupolu, but he was not recognized as such by the high chiefs of Ton ...
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Sabbath
In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as God rested from creation. The practice of observing the Sabbath (Shabbat) originates in the biblical commandment "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy". The Sabbath is observed in Judaism, Sabbatarian forms of Christianity (such as many Protestant and Eastern denominations), and Islam. Observances similar to, or descended from, the Sabbath also exist in other religions. The term may be generally used to describe similar weekly observances in other religions. Biblical Sabbath Sabbath (as the verb שָׁבַת֙ ''shabbat'') is first mentioned in the Genesis creation narrative, where the seventh day is set aside as a day of rest (in Hebrew, ''shabbat'') and made holy by God (). Observation and remembrance of Sabbath ( ''shabbat'') is ...
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Writ Of Habeas Corpus
''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court and request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, to bring the prisoner to court, to determine whether the detention is lawful. The writ of ''habeas corpus'' was described in the eighteenth century by William Blackstone as a "great and efficacious writ in all manner of illegal confinement". It is a summons with the force of a court order; it is addressed to the custodian (a prison official, for example) and demands that a prisoner be brought before the court, and that the custodian present proof of authority, allowing the court to determine whether the custodian has lawful authority to detain the prisoner. If the custodian is acting beyond their authority, then the prisoner must be released. Any prisoner, or another person acting on their behalf, may petition the court, or a judge, for a w ...
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Double Jeopardy
In jurisprudence, double jeopardy is a procedural defence (primarily in common law jurisdictions) that prevents an accused person from being tried again on the same (or similar) charges following an acquittal or conviction and in rare cases prosecutorial and/or judge misconduct in the same jurisdiction. Double jeopardy is a common concept in criminal law. In civil law, a similar concept is that of . Variation in common law countries is the peremptory plea, which may take the specific forms of ('previously acquitted') or ('previously convicted'). These doctrines appear to have originated in ancient Roman law, in the broader principle ('not twice against the same'). Availability as a legal defence If a double-jeopardy issue is raised, evidence will be placed before the court, which will typically rule as a preliminary matter whether the plea is substantiated; if it is, the projected trial will be prevented from proceeding. In some countries certain exemptions are ...
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Constitutional Monarchy
A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies differ from absolute monarchies (in which a monarch is the only decision-maker) in that they are bound to exercise powers and authorities within limits prescribed by an established legal framework. Constitutional monarchies range from countries such as Liechtenstein, Monaco, Morocco, Jordan, Kuwait, and Bahrain, where the constitution grants substantial discretionary powers to the sovereign, to countries such as Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, and Japan, where the monarch retains significantly less personal discretion in the exercise of their authority. ''Constitutional monarchy'' may refer to a system in which the monarch acts as a non-party political head of ...
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Tongan Cabinet
The Cabinet of Tonga is the cabinet ( executive branch) of the government of the Kingdom of Tonga. It is composed primarily of the ministers of government. The latter, including the Prime Minister, are appointed by the monarch. The Governor of Ha'apai and the Governor of Vava'u also serve on the Cabinet ''ex officio''. When in session and presided over by the monarch, the Cabinet is known as the Privy Council. Current Cabinet The current Cabinet was appointed by Siaosi Sovaleni on 28 December 2021. It consisted of ten elected people's representatives, one noble, and one minister outside cabinet - long-serving diplomat Fekitamoeloa ʻUtoikamanu as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism. In addition, Pita Faiva Taufatofua was named Governor of Haʻapai, while Lord Fakatulolo was reappointed as Governor of Vavaʻu. Agriculture Minister Viliami Hingano died in June 2022. Sione Siale Fohe was appointed to replace him on 2 August 2022. The elections of Tatafu Moeaki, Poasi T ...
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Legislative Assembly Of Tonga
The Legislative Assembly of Tonga ( to, Fale Alea ʻo Tonga) is the unicameral legislature of Tonga. The assembly has 26 members in which 17 members elected by majority of the people for a 5-year term in multi-seat constituencies via the single non-transferable vote system. There are 9 members elected by the 33 hereditary nobles of Tonga. The Assembly is controlled by the speaker of the House who is elected by majority of the elected members of Parliament and constitutionally appointed by the king. History A Legislative Assembly providing for representation of nobles and commoners was established in 1862 by King George Tupou I. This body met every four years and was continued in the 1875 Constitution. Originally the Legislative Assembly consisted of all holders of noble titles, an equal number of people's representatives, the governors for Ha’apai and Vava’u, and at least four Cabinet Ministers chosen by the monarch. An increase in the number of nobles from twenty to th ...
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Privy Council (Tonga)
The Privy Council of Tonga is the highest ranking council to advise the Monarch in the Kingdom of Tonga. It is empowered to advise the King in his capacity as Head of State and Fountain of Justice under the provisions of Clause 50 ( 1 ) of the Constitution of Tonga: " Clause 50 (1) The King shall appoint a Privy Council to provide him with advice. The Privy Council shall be composed of such people whom the King shall see fit to call to his Council." Membership Members of the Privy Council of Tonga are appointed by the King of Tonga who is its Chairman. The Council has three types of members: * Regular Members-these are the majority. * Members who hold their position by virtue of an office they occupy * The Law Lords The Lord Chancellor, the Lord President of the Supreme Court and the Attorney General are automatically members of the Privy Council. The constitution doesn't set a limit on the number of members who sit on the Council and this is left to the discretion of the Monarch ...
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Flag Of Tonga
The flag of Tonga consists of a red field with a white canton charged with a red couped cross. Adopted in 1875 after being officially enshrined into the nation's constitution, it has been the flag of the Kingdom of Tonga since that year. The constitution stipulates that the national flag can never be changed. History The British first arrived in Tonga in the late-18th century, when Captain James Cook made three visits to the islands between 1773 and 1777. Approximately fifty years later, English Wesleyan Methodist missionaries came to Tonga and began converting the islanders to Christianity. In 1831, they succeeded in converting "paramount chief" Taufa'ahau Tupou, who became King George Tupou I in 1845. It was during this time (circa 1840s) that the first Tongan flag was adopted. It consisted of a white field with a cross (either red or blue in colour) at all four corners, and the letters "A" (in red) and "M" (in blue) at the centre that symbolise the king. Upon his acces ...
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Politics Of Tonga
The politics of Tonga take place in a framework of a constitutional monarchy, whereby the King is the Head of State and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. Tonga's Prime Minister is currently appointed by the King from among the members of Parliament after having won the support of a majority of its members. Executive power is vested in the Cabinet of Ministers. Legislative power is vested in the King in Parliament, and judicial power is vested in the supreme court. Tonga joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970, and the United Nations in 1999. While exposed to colonial forces, Tonga has never lost indigenous governance, a fact that makes Tonga unique in the Pacific and boosts confidence in the monarchical system. The British High Commission in Tonga closed in March 2006. Tonga's current king, Tupou VI, traces his line directly back through six generations of monarchs. The previous king, George Tupou V, born in 1946, continued to have ultimate control of the governmen ...
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Government Of Tonga
The politics of Tonga take place in a framework of a constitutional monarchy, whereby the King is the Head of State and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. Tonga's Prime Minister is currently appointed by the King from among the members of Parliament after having won the support of a majority of its members. Executive power is vested in the Cabinet of Ministers. Legislative power is vested in the King in Parliament, and judicial power is vested in the supreme court. Tonga joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970, and the United Nations in 1999. While exposed to colonial forces, Tonga has never lost indigenous governance, a fact that makes Tonga unique in the Pacific and boosts confidence in the monarchical system. The British High Commission in Tonga closed in March 2006. Tonga's current king, Tupou VI, traces his line directly back through six generations of monarchs. The previous king, George Tupou V, born in 1946, continued to have ultimate control of the governmen ...
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