THE CONSTITUTION

The Laws of Jamaica exist under the Constitution of 1962. Except for the entrenched sections, the Constitution may be altered by a majority of all the members of each of the two Houses of Parliament. The Constitution states the rules regarding the executive, the legislature, a judicature and the public service. It contains provisions relating to Jamaican citizenship and to the fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual.

The Jamaican Constitution provides protection of the right to life; protection from arbitrary arrest or detention; protection of freedom of movement; protection from inhuman treatment; protection from arbitrary and unjust deprivation of property; protection for privacy of home and other property; provision to secure the protection of the law; protection from discrimination on the grounds of race, religion, place of origin, political beliefs, colour, creed or sex.

Some sections of the Constitution are entrenched, or specially entrenched, because they are considered extremely important. These sections can only be amended in special ways. Entrenched sections may be amended in the following ways:

• The Bill for amendment must be passed by a two-thirds majority of all the members of each House.
• A period of three months must pass between the introduction of the Bill in the House and the start of the debate on it.
• Another three-month period must pass between the end of the debate and the passing of the Bill in the House.
• If the Senate refuses to pass the Bill after the House has sent it up on two occasions, a referendum may be held. If the amendment is then approved by three-fifths of the electorate voting the Bill may be sent to the Governor General for his assent.
• The same procedure must be followed in amending a specially entrenched section. In addition, the Bill for amendment must be put before the voters in a referendum, after passage through both Houses. If it then receives a majority vote of the electors, the Bill may be sent to the Governor-General for his assent.
• If the Senate refuses to pass the Bill after it has been twice sent to the House of Representatives, the Bill may again be put before the voters in a referendum. If it is approved by two-thirds of the electors it may be presented to the Governor-General for his assent.

In July 1977, a Constitutional Reform Programme was launched to review certain aspects of the Jamaican Constitution. As a result of a decision to widen the scope of a reform programme to encompass all aspects of the Constitution, a Constitutional Commission was launched in 1991 to undertake a systematic review of the Constitution. The Commission will hear submissions from various interest groups and members of the public, in order to achieve a fair representation of the wished and aspirations of the Jamaican people, with regard to the amendments to be made to the Constitution.

Source: Political Database of the Americas / OAS

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