Constitution of the Philippines
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The Constitution of the Philippines (Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas in Filipino) is the supreme law of the Philippines.
The 1987 Constitution is the one currently in effect and was created following the ascendancy of Corazon Aquino to the presidency in 1987. She formed a commission to frame a new constitution to replace the 1973 Constitution which took effect during the martial law regime imposed by her predecessor Ferdinand Marcos.
The commission finished the draft charter within four months and a majority of voters approved it in a plebiscite in February 1987.
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[edit] Preamble
The Preamble reads:
| We, the sovereign Filipino people, imploring the aid of Almighty God, in order to build a just and humane society and establish a government that shall embody our ideals and aspirations, promote the common good, conserve and develop our patrimony and secure to ourselves and our posterity the blessings of independence and democracy under the rule of law and a regime of truth, justice, freedom, love, equality, and peace, do ordain and promulgate this Constitution. |
[edit] Historical constitutions
[edit] Malolos Congress
It is known as the Constitución política de Malolos and it was written in Spanish. Following the declaration of independence from Spain, by the Revolutionary Government, a congress was held in Malolos, Bulacan in 1899 to draw up a constitution. It was the first republican constitution in Asia. The document states that the people has exclusive sovereignty. It states basic civil rights, separated the church and state, and called for the creation of an Assembly of Representatives which would act as the legislative body. It also calls for a Presidential form of government with the president elected for a term of four years by a majority of the Assembly. The Malolos Constitution established Spanish as the official language of the Philippines.
The Preamble reads:
| "Nosotros los Representantes del Pueblo Filipino, convocados legítimamente para establecer la justicia, proveer a la defensa común, promover el bien general y asegurar los beneficios de la libertad, implorando el auxilió del Soberano Legislador del Universo para alcanzar estos fines, hemos votado, decretado y sancionado la siguiente" |
- (We, the Representatives of the Filipino people, lawfully covened, in order to establish justice, provide for common defense, promote the general welfare, and insure the benefits of liberty, imploring the aid of the Sovereign Legislator of the Universe for the attainment of these ends, have voted, decreed, and sanctioned the following)
[edit] Commonwealth and Third Republic (1935)
The 1935 Constitution was written in 1934, approved and adopted by the Commonwealth of the Philippines (1935-1946) and later used by the Third Republic of the Philippines (1946-1972). It was written with an eye to meeting the approval of the United States Government as well, so as to ensure that the U.S. would live up to its promise to grant the Philippines independence and not have a premise to hold onto its "possession" on the grounds that it was too politically immature and hence unready for full, real independence.
The Preamble reads:
| "The Filipino people, imploring the aid of Divine Providence, in order to establish a government that shall embody their ideals, conserve and develop the patrimony of the nation, promote the general welfare, and secure to themselves and their posterity the blessings of independence under a regime of justice, liberty, and democracy, do ordain and promulgate this constitution." |
The original 1935 Constitution provided for unicameral Congress. It was amended in 1940 to have a bicameral Congress composed of a Senate and House of Representatives, as well the creation of an independent electoral commission. The Constitution limited the President to a four-year term with a maximum of two consecutive terms in office.
A Constitutional Convention was held in 1971 to rewrite the 1935 Constitution. The convention was stained with manifest bribery and corruption. Possibly the most controversial issue was removing the presidential term limit so that Ferdinand E. Marcos could seek election for a third term, which many felt was the true reason for which the convention was called. In any case, the 1935 Constitution was suspended in 1972 with Marcos' proclamation of martial law, the rampant corruption of the constitutional process providing him with one of his major premsies for doing so.
[edit] Second Republic (1943)
The 1943 Constitution was adopted by the Second Republic (1943-1945) during the Japanese occupation in World War II. José P. Laurel was appointed as President by the Japanese occupation authorities because he was highly looked upon by them for having openly criticised the US for the way they ran the Philippines and because he had a degree from Tokyo International University.
The Preamble reads:
| "The Filipino people, imploring the aid of Divine Providence and desiring to lead a free national existence, do hereby proclaim their independence, and in order to establish a government that shall promote the general welfare, conserve and develop the patrimony of the Nation, and contribute to the creation of a world order based on peace, liberty, and moral justice, do ordain this Constitution." |
The 1943 Constitution provided strong executive powers. The Legislature consisted of a unicameral National Assembly and only those considered as anti-US could stand for election, although in practice most legislators were appointed rather than elected.
[edit] Fourth Republic (1973)
The 1973 Constitution, promulgated after Marcos' declaration of martial law, introduced a parliamentary-style government. Legislative power was vested in a National Assembly whose members were elected for six-year terms. The President was elected as the symbolic head of state from the Members of the National Assembly for a six-year term and could be re-elected to an unlimited number of terms. Upon election, the President ceased to be a member of the National Assembly. During his term, the President was not allowed to be a member of a political party or hold any other office. Executive power was exercised by the Prime Minister who was also elected from the Members of the National Assembly. The Prime Minister was the head of government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. This constitution was subsequently amended three times.
The 1973 Constitution was amended in 1976 to allow the incumbent president to hold the position of prime minister and to exercise legislative powers as well. This allowed Marcos to further consolidate his power. Amendments were done again in 1981 which re-established a parliamentary form of government with a president elected by direct vote of the people. In reality, these amendments had little effect at the time due to the ongoing Marcos dictatorship; however, Marcos did, at least in name, dissolve martial law at about this time and conduct (highly questionable) elections, which he unsurprisingly "won". Presidential Proclamation No. 3, nicknamed the 1986 Freedom Constitution was the most far reaching set of amendments to the 1973 constitution that it was almost a constitution in its own right. However, it is really a large set of amendments which superseded and abolished certain provisions from the constitution. It granted the President certain powers to remove officials from office, reorganise the government and hold a new constitutional convention to draft a new constitution.
Following the EDSA People Power Revolution that removed President Ferdinand E. Marcos from office, the new President, Corazon C. Aquino issued Proclamation No. 3 and the adoption of a provisional constitution that would prepare for the next constitution which became the 1987 constitution.
