The National Assembly ( ti, ሃገራዊ ባይቶ, translit=Hagerawi Baito) of the

State of Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopi ...

has 150 members, 75 members appointed (consisting mostly of representatives elected by the general population, of whom at least 11 must be women, and 15 members representing Eritreans living abroad) and 75 members representing the members of the Central Committee of the

People's Front for Democracy and Justice The People's Front for Democracy and Justice ( ti, ህዝባዊ ግንባር ንደሞክራስን ፍትሕን, PFDJ) is the founding, ruling, and sole legal political party of the State of Eritrea. The successor to the left-wing nationalist ...

(PFDJ), the sole legal political party of Eritrea. According to the

IPU Ipu is a percussion instrument made from gourds that is often used to provide a beat for hula dancing. There are two types of ipu, the ipu heke (), which is a double gourd made by taking two gourds of different sizes, cutting them and joining t ...

, the National Assembly has 150 indirectly elected members. The National Assembly was composed in 1994, and its meeting place is located in

Asmara Asmara ( ), or Asmera, is the capital and most populous city of Eritrea, in the country's Central Region. It sits at an elevation of , making it the sixth highest capital in the world by altitude and the second highest capital in Africa. The c ...

. AFP reported that Eritreans have elected 399 representatives in the country's six regions in a lengthy process that would lead to the formation of a constituent assembly, with the regional elections beginning on 4 January 1997 in some parts of the country and completed in others by 1 March 1997. , direct elections had never been held: elections planned for 2001 were continuously postponed before being cancelled altogether. , the National Assembly was described by the

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, commonly known as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) or the United Nations Human Rights Office, is a department of the Secretariat of the United Nat ...

as non-existent, having not convened since January 2002. In practice, President

Isaias Afwerki Isaias Afwerki ( ti, ኢሳይያስ ኣፍወርቂ, ; born 2 February 1946) is an Eritrean politician and partisan who has been the president of Eritrea since shortly after he led the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) to victory in ...

exercises legislative powers in addition to the executive functions granted by the

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 pr ...

Background

While

Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopi ...

was federated to Ethiopia, and later annexed from 1952–1962, the Eritrean Assembly was the legislative body. Eritrea has a one-party national Assembly governed by

(PFDJ) (originally the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF)). From the time of independence since May 1991, the country has been continuing with a transitional government elected during the elections in June 1993; the scheduled elections from 2001 have been postponed indefinitely. The regional and local elections are conducted on a periodic basis on a restricted framework, with all men and women of any ethnic or religious background are eligible to vote. Only individuals, not parties, are allowed to contest the elections, which are presided over by representatives from PDFJ. Policy decisions must be focused on the party mandate.

Qualification

The composition of the 150 members of the National Assembly is members from the Central Committee members of the ruling PFDJ and 75 others elected from the 527 member Constituent Assembly in 1997. The elections were held for a transitional government to discuss and ratify the new constitution. The stipulation set for the 75 elected members were: a minimum of 11 women members and minimum of 15 members representing expat Eritreans.

Constitutional powers

The President was to be

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

by the members of the National Assembly for a five-year term, and a maximum of two terms, while the members of the National Assembly were to be elected directly by popular vote. In May 1997, a new constitution was adopted, which enabled only the 75 elected members needed in the Assembly, while 75 others from the PFDJ were nominated from the Central Committee; the members of the transitional assembly were allowed to continue until next elections were held. The National Assembly was scheduled to meet every six months, or at points of emergency at the behest of President and two-thirds of the members. The Council of State reports to the Assembly, which was set as the top most legislative body of the Constitution of Eritrea that needs to assure the fundamental rights of the citizens of the country and to ensure justice, peace and stability. The National Assembly was also set to oversee the Executive branch of the constitution during the regime of the transitional government. The other major functions of the National Assembly include approval of budgets, governing domestic and foreign policies, and regulating the policies of the council.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:National Assembly Of Eritrea 1992 establishments in Eritrea

Government of Eritrea