Article 41: Duties, Immunities and Privileges of Members of the National Assembly

1.       All members of the National Assembly shall maintain the high image of the National Assembly. They shall regard themselves as humble servants of the people and maintain close contact with them.

2.       No member of the National Assembly or of its committees may be arrested or charged for any crimes he commits during the session of the National Assembly, unless he be apprehended in flagrant violation. Nevertheless, where the National Assembly, by a majority vote of those present and voting, revokes his immunity, the member may be charged.

3.       No member of the National Assembly may be arrested or charged for words uttered or written statements submitted by him at any meeting of the National Assembly or any meeting of its committees or any utterance or statement made outside the National Assembly in connection with his duty as member thereof.

4.       The duties, responsibilities, immunities and compensation of the members of the National Assembly shall be determined by law; and all members shall be entitled to the protection of such immunities and shall perform the duties enumerated therein.

CHAPTER V: THE EXECUTIVE

Article 42: The President: Head of State and Government

1.       The President of Eritrea is Head of State and Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Eritrea.

2.       The executive authority is vested in the President, and shall be exercised, in consultation with the Cabinet, pursuant to the provisions of this Constitution.

3.       The President shall ensure the respect of the Constitution; the integrity of the State; the efficiency and effectiveness of the public service; the interests and safety of all citizens, including the enjoyment of their fundamental rights and freedoms recognized under this Constitution.

Article 43: The Vice President: Deputy Head of State and Government

1.       The Vice President shall assume the office of the President in case of his or her absence.

2.       The Vice President shall assume the duties of the President in the event of the post of the President become vacant for any reason whatsoever. The National Assembly must elect a new President within a period not to exceed ten days from the date of the vacancy.

3.       In the case the post of the President becomes vacant, the Speaker of the National Assembly shall replace the President in case he does not have a Vice President, on the condition that a new President is elected during a period not to exceed ten days from the date of the vacancy and in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.

Article 44: Qualifications to be a Candidate to the Office of the President

1.       Any member of the National Assembly to be elected President of Eritrea shall be a citizen of Eritrea by birth.

Article 45: Election and Term of Office of the President

1.       The President shall be elected from amongst the members of the National Assembly by a vote of the majority of its members. A candidate for the office of the President must be nominated by at least 20 percent vote of all the members of the National Assembly.

2.       The term of office of the President shall be one year, equal to the term of office of the National Assembly that elects him.

3.       No person shall be elected to hold office of the President for more than two terms.

4.       When the office of the President becomes vacant due to death or resignation of the incumbent or due to the reasons enumerated in Sub-Article 6 of this Article, the Chairman of the National Assembly shall assume the office of the President. The Chairman shall serve as acting President for not more than thirty days, during which time, the National Assembly shall elect another President to serve the remaining term of his predecessor.

5.       The term of office of the person elected to serve as President under Sub-Article 4 of this Article shall not be considered as a full term for purposes of Sub-Article 3 of this Article.

6.       The President may be removed from office by two-thirds majority vote of all members of the National Assembly for the following reasons:
a) violation of the Constitution or grave violation of the law; b) conducting himself in a manner which brings the authority or honor of the office of President into ridicule, contempt and disrepute; c) being incapable of performing the functions of his office by reason of physical or mental incapacity.

7.       The procedures for the election and removal of the President from office shall be determined by law.

Article 46: Powers and Duties of the President

The President shall have the following powers and duties:

1.       once every year, deliver a speech in the National Assembly on the state of the country and the policies of his government;

2.       subject to the provisions of Article 27 hereof, declare state of emergency, and when the defense of the country requires, state of war;

3.       summon the National Assembly to an emergency meeting and present his views to it;

4.       sign and publish in the Gazette of Eritrean Laws draft laws approved by the National Assembly;

5.       ensure the execution of laws and resolutions of the National Assembly;

6.       negotiate and sign international agreements and delegate such power;

7.       appoint with the approval of the National Assembly, ministers, commissioners, the Auditor-General, head of the National Bank, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and any other person or persons who are required by any other provisions of this Constitution or other laws to be appointed by the President;

8.       appoint justices of the Supreme Court upon proposal of the Judicial Service Commission and approval of the National Assembly;

9.       appoint judges of the lower courts upon proposal of the Judicial Service Commission;

10.    appoint and receive ambassadors and diplomatic representatives;

11.    appoint high ranking members of the Armed and the Security Forces;

12.    pardon, grant amnesty or reprieve offenders;

13.    establish and dissolve such government ministries and departments necessary or expedient for the good governance of Eritrea, in consultation with the Public Service Administration;

14.    preside over meetings of the Cabinet and coordinate its activities;

15.    present legislative proposals to the National Assembly;

16.    confer medals or other honors on citizens, residents and friends of Eritrea in consultation with relevant persons and institutions;

17.    pursuant to the provisions of this Constitution, remove any person appointed by him.

Article 47: Immunity from Civil and Criminal Proceedings

1.       Any person holding the office of the President may not be sued in any civil proceedings or charged for a crime, save where such proceedings concern an act done in his official capacity as President or proceedings involving Sub-Article 6(a) and (b) of Article 41 hereof.

Article 48: Privileges to be Given to Former Presidents

1.       Provisions shall be made by law for the privileges that shall be granted to former Presidents.

Article 49: Oath

Upon his election, the President shall take the following oath: "I, ...,solemnly swear that I will uphold and defend the Constitution of Eritrea and that I will strive with the best of my ability and conscience to serve the people of Eritrea."

Article 50: The Cabinet

1.       There shall be a ministerial Cabinet, which shall be presided by the President.

2.       The President may select ministers from among members of the National Assembly or from among persons who are not members of the National Assembly.

3.       The Cabinet shall assist the President in:

a) directing, supervising and coordinating the affairs of government;
b) conducting study on and preparing the annual budget;
c) conducting study and preparing draft laws to be presented to the National Assembly;
d) conducting study on and preparing policies and plans of government.

4.       The President may issue rules and regulations for the organization, functions and operation of his office, the Cabinet or other government institutions, and for the code of ethics involving officials of the executive branch of government.

Article 51: Ministerial Accountability

1.       All ministers shall be accountable:

a) individually to the President for the administration of their own ministries; and
b) collectively to the National Assembly, through the President, for the administration of the work of the Cabinet.

2.       The National Assembly or its committees may, through the Office of the President, summon any minister to appear before them to question him concerning the policies or operation of his ministry.

CHAPTER VI THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

Article 52: The Judiciary

1.       The judicial power shall be vested in a Supreme Court and in such other lower courts as shall be established by law and shall be exercised in the name of the people pursuant to this Constitution and laws issued there under.

2.       In exercising their judicial power, courts shall be free from direction, control and supervision of any person or authority. Judges shall be subject only to the law, to a judicial code of ethics determined by law and to their conscience.

3.       A person exercising judicial power shall not be liable to any suit for any act or omission in the course of exercising that judicial power.

4.       All organs of the State shall accord to the courts such assistance as they may require to protect their independence and dignity so that they may exercise their judicial power appropriately and effectively pursuant to the provisions of this Constitution and laws issued there under.

Article 53: The Supreme Court

1.       The Supreme Court shall be the court of last resort; and shall be presided by the Chief Justice.

2.       The Supreme Court shall have the power of:

a) sole jurisdiction of interpreting this Constitution and the constitutionality of any law enacted or any measure undertaken by government;
b) sole jurisdiction of hearing and adjudicating upon charges against a President who has been impeached by the National Assembly pursuant to the provisions of Sub-Article 6 (a) and (b) of Article 41 hereof; and c) hearing and adjudicating cases appealed from lower courts pursuant to law.

3.       the organization and operation of the Supreme Court shall be determined by law.

4.       The tenure of justices of the Supreme Court shall be determined by law.

Article 54: Lower Courts

1.       The organization, jurisdiction and the procedures of lower courts and the tenure of their judges shall be determined by law.

Article 55: Oath

Every judge shall take the following oath: "I, ..., solemnly swear that I will adjudicate in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and laws enacted there under and I will exercise the judicial authority vested in me, subject only to the law and my conscience, without seeking or being enticed by any private gain."

Article 56: Removal of Judges from Office

1.       A judge may be removed from office before the expiry of his tenure of office by the President only, acting on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission, pursuant to the provisions of Sub-Article 2 of this Article for physical or mental incapacity, violation of the law or judicial code of ethics.

2.       The Judicial Service Commission shall investigate whether or not a judge should be removed from office on grounds of those enumerated in Sub-Article 1 of this Article. In case the Judicial Service Commission decides that a judge should be removed from office, it shall present its recommendation to the President.

3.       The President may, on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission, suspend from office a judge who is under investigation.

Article 57: The Judicial Service Commission

1.       There shall be established a Judicial Service Commission, which shall be responsible for submitting recommendations for the recruitment of judges and the terms and conditions of their services.

2.       The powers, organization and duties of the Judicial Service Commission shall be determined by law.

CHAPTER VII MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Article 58: Auditor General

1.       There shall be an Auditor General who audits the revenues and expenditures and other financial operations of government and who reports annually his findings to the National Assembly.

2.       The Auditor General shall be appointed for one year by the President with the approval of the National Assembly. He shall be accountable to the National Assembly.

3.       The detailed powers, duties and organization of the Auditor General shall be determined by law.

Article 59: National Bank

1.       There shall be a National Bank, which performs the functions of a central bank, regulates the financial institutions and manages the national currency.

2.       The National Bank shall have a Governor appointed by the President with the approval of the National Assembly. There shall be a Board of Directors presided by the Governor and whose members shall be appointed by the President and confirmed by the National Assembly.

3.       The National Bank shall have operational independence to set monetary policies and shall be limited only to pursuit the government annual inflation target and managing public debt and not to compete with private banks and financial institutions.

4.       The detailed powers, duties and organization of the National Bank shall be determined by law.

5.       The regulatory framework by which the National Bank will regulate private banks and financial institutions shall be determined by law.

Article 60: Public Service Administration

1.       There shall be established a Public Service Administration, which shall be responsible for recruitment and selection of civil servants as well as for determining the terms and conditions of their employment including their rights and duties.

2.       The Public Service Administration shall set competitive and selective hiring criteria with the aim of a creating a responsive, competent, and highly skilled and professional civil servants that that, in due time, will reflect the diverse segments of the Eritrean society.

3.       The detailed powers, duties and organization of the Public Service Administration to   gradually achieve functional equality in the public sector shall be mandated by law.

Article 61: Electoral Commission

1.       There shall be established an Electoral Commission, operating independently, without interference, which shall, on the basis of the electoral law, ensure that free and fair elections are held and manage their implementation; decide on issues raised in the course of the electoral process; and formulate and implement civic educational programs relating to elections and other
democratic procedures.

2.       An Electoral Commissioner shall be appointed by the President with the approval of the National Assembly.

3.       The detailed powers, duties and organization of the Electoral Commission shall be determined by law.

Article 62: Human and Peoples Rights Commission

1.       There shall be a established a Human and Peoples Rights Commission, operating independently, without interference from any braches of the government, ensure to protect the right to be free from right to be free from discrimination because of   race, ethnicity, nationality, creed, color, gender, physical disability, age.

2.       The Commission shall be created with powers with respect to elimination and prevention of  discrimination in employment, access to education and medical treatment, and public accommodation because  race, ethnicity, nationality, creed, color, gender, physical disability, age.

3.       The Commission will ensure that Eritrea adheres to the African Declaration of Human and People Rights.

Article 63: Amendment of the Constitution

1.       A proposal for the amendment of any provision of this Constitution may be initiated and tabled by the President or 50 percent of all the members of the National Assembly.

Any provision of this Constitution may be amended as follows:

a) where the National Assembly by a three-quarters majority vote of all its members proposes an amendment with reference to a specific Article of the Constitution tabled to be amended; and
b) where, one year after it has proposed such an amendment, the National Assembly, after deliberation, approves again the same amendment by four-fifths majority vote of all its members.

Annex IV

Eritrean Covenant Links:

http://eritreancovenant.com/tigrigna/

http://eritreancovenant.com/arabic/

http://eritreancovenant.com/  

List of Eritreans Graduates from QAC in July 2010

Since 1991, it is estimated that the PFDJ regime sent some 500 students to South Africa, and about 300 to UK, and more than 1000 to US for training and graduate studies. The majority of them never went back after completing their studies. The regime never published their names; however, anecdotal evidence and random sampling suggests that less than 1% were Muslims. This time, out of 14 people who were sent to Qatar for training, there is not a single Muslim trainee. If the Qatar Aeronautical College (QAC) didn’t put the news out, the PFDJ would never have disclosed it.

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=375973&version=1&template_id=36&parent_id=16

The graduating QAC are:

1.       Amanuel Habte Mezenghi,

2.       Mesfun Belai Debessai,

3.       Haile Yemane Gebreyesus,

4.       Mesfun Gebrezghi Habtemariam,

5.       Tesfaldet Habtemicael Asfaha,

6.       Efrem Kifle Habte,

7.       Isaias Abraha Berhane,

8.       Tekie Ghebremariam,

9.       Mebrahtu Teklay Zerai and

10.    Michael Asfaha Ghebrat.

The meteorologists are:

1. Kahsai Asrat Haileab,

2. Tesfay Bekurezion Haile,