The politics of Palau take place in a
presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the
President of Palau
The president of the Republic of Palau is the head of state and head of government of Palau. The president is directly elected to a four-year term, and can be reelected once in a consecutive manner.
List of presidents
Latest election
...
is both
head of state
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
and
head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, ...
. Palau currently has no political parties and is a ''de facto'' non-partisan democracy although there is no law preventing the formation of political parties.
Executive power
The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a state.
In political systems b ...
is exercised by the government.
Legislative power
A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government.
Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known a ...
is vested in both the
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...
and the
Palau National Congress
Palau has a bicameral legislature, the Palau National Congress (''Olbiil era Kelulau''), consisting of the House of Delegates and the Senate of Palau, which both sit at the capitol complex in Ngerulmud, Melekeok State. The House of Delegates h ...
. The
judiciary of Palau is independent of the executive and the legislature.
History
Palau adopted a
constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princ ...
on January 1, 1981.
While calm in recent years, Palau witnessed several instances of political violence in the 1980s. The republic's first president,
Haruo I. Remeliik, was assassinated in 1985; the Minister of State was found to be complicit in the crime. Palau's third president,
Lazarus Salii
Lazarus Eitaro Salii (17 November 1936 – 20 August 1988) was a politician from Palau. He served as the second elected President of Palau from 25 October 1985 until he committed suicide on 20 August 1988, amid bribery allegations.
Salii was e ...
, committed suicide in August 1988 amid bribery allegations. Salii's personal assistant had been imprisoned several months earlier after being convicted of firing shots into the home of the Speaker of the House of Delegates.
Palau gained
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
from the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
trusteeship administered by the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
on 1 October 1994 and entered a
Compact of Free Association
The Compact of Free Association (COFA) is an international agreement establishing and governing the relationships of free association between the United States and the three Pacific Island sovereign states of the Federated States of Micronesia (F ...
with the United States.
The Senate passed legislation making Palau an "offshore" financial center in 1998. Opponents to the legislation voiced fears that the country would become a haven for
money launderers
Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...
and other sorts of criminal activity. In December 1999, a group of major international banks banned U.S. dollar-denominated transactions involving Palau and the other Pacific island states of
Vanuatu
Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...
and
Nauru.
Executive branch
Presidential elections take place every four years, when the president and vice president run on separate tickets. The
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
, who is the
head of state
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
and
head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, ...
, is currently
Surangel Whipps Jr.
Cabinet
The President is advised and assisted in governing by his/her Cabinet, composed of the Vice President and ministers responsible for the eight government ministries.
Legislature
![Capitol, Melekeok, Palau](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Capitol%2C_Melekeok%2C_Palau.jpg)
The
Palau National Congress
Palau has a bicameral legislature, the Palau National Congress (''Olbiil era Kelulau''), consisting of the House of Delegates and the Senate of Palau, which both sit at the capitol complex in Ngerulmud, Melekeok State. The House of Delegates h ...
(''Olbiil era Kelulau'') is a
bicameral legislature
A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...
consisting of the
House of Delegates and the
Senate of Palau
The Senate of Palau is the upper house of the Palau National Congress (''Olbiil era Kelulau''). The Senate has 13 members serving four-year terms in multi-seat constituencies. No political parties exist. The most recent election was held on 3 N ...
, which both sit at the Capitol Complex in
Ngerulmud
Ngerulmud () is the seat of government of the Republic of Palau, an island nation in the Pacific Ocean. It replaced Koror City, Palau's largest city, as the capital in 2006. The settlement is located in the state of Melekeok on Babeldaob, the ...
,
Melekeok State
Melekeok is a state of the Republic of Palau located on the central east coast of Babeldaob Island. The seat of government of the country, Ngerulmud, is located in the state. The state consists of long beaches, hills, steep ridges, rivers, and t ...
.
* The House of Delegates has 16 members, each serving four-year terms from single-seat
constituencies
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
.
* The Senate has 13 members, also serving four-year terms in multi-seat constituencies.
In the last elections, held on 1 November 2016, only non-partisans were elected; no
political parties exist.
Elections
Judiciary
![Palau Capitol Complex, Judiciary Building](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Palau_Capitol_Complex%2C_Judiciary_Building.JPG)
The
judiciary of Palau interprets and applies the laws of Palau, as modified by custom and tradition, to ensure
equal justice under law
Equal justice under law is a phrase engraved on the West Pediment, above the front entrance of the United States Supreme Court building in Washington D.C. It is also a societal ideal that has influenced the American legal system.
The phrase wa ...
, and to provide a mechanism for
dispute resolution. The judiciary comprises a four-member
Supreme Court, a
Court of Common Pleas
A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...
, and a Land Court. The Supreme Court has a trial division and an appellate division and is presided over by the
Chief Justice, assisted by three
Associate Justice
Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some sta ...
s and a number of ''ad hoc'' part-time Associate Justices.
Council of Chiefs
The Council of Chiefs consists of one traditional leader from each of the sixteen
States of Palau
Palau is divided into sixteen administrative regions, called states. Palau has a high ratio of government offices to citizens, with 16 states and both a tribal chiefdom and elected legislature in each state, for 20,000 people.''Patterson, Carolyn ...
. It exists to ensure that traditional ways of life are preserved in Palau. The Council has an official advisory role to the President, specifically on issues relating to the tradition laws and customs and how they relate to Palau's Constitution and laws. The sixteen members each have a unique title.
The current Chairman of the Council was
Yutaka Gibbons of
Koror.
Agencies
The executive branch also has some independent agencies, including the Environmental Quality Protection Board, created in 1981 and tasked with protecting the "unique and aesthetically beautiful environment while promoting sustainable economic and social development".
COFA Trust Fund Board
To manage the funds appropriate to Palau from the United States through the Compact of Free Association (COFA), the COFA Trust Fund Board was reestablished in 2014. The Board meets monthly to review the trust fund's performance and meets annually with the investment advisor (currently
Raymond James & Associates' Asia-Pacific Group, based in
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
).
References
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