National Assembly of Haïti
Encyclopedia
The Parliament of Haiti is the legislature
of the Republic of Haiti
. It sits at the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince
. The Parliament is bicameral
, the upper house
being the Senate of Haiti
and the lower house
being the Chamber of Deputies of Haiti
.
. Prior to the creation of the Nippes Department
in 2003, there were twenty-seven seats. Senators are elected by popular vote to six-year terms, with one-third elected every two years. After the elections of 2000, twenty-six of the then twenty-seven seats were held by Jean-Bertrand Aristide
's Fanmi Lavalas
party. The Senate was not in session following the overthrow of Aristide's government in February 2004. An interim government was put in place following the rebellion, and the remaining Senators were not recognised during that time. The Senate was re-established and elections were held on 21 April 2006. The next elections are scheduled to occur in 2008, when one-third of the Senate seats will be open.
of Parliament. The National Assembly is convened for specific purposes laid out in the Constitution.
Meetings of the National Assembly are presided over by the President of the Senate, with the President of the Chamber of Deputies assisting. The Secretaries of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies also serve as Secretaries of the National Assembly.
The National Assembly was destroyed in the earthquake of 2010
on January 12, 2010. Parliament resumed sitting shortly after the earthquake in a temporary classroom.
Legislature
A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...
of the Republic of Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. It sits at the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince is the capital and largest city of the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The city's population was 704,776 as of the 2003 census, and was officially estimated to have reached 897,859 in 2009....
. The Parliament is bicameral
Bicameralism
In the government, bicameralism is the practice of having two legislative or parliamentary chambers. Thus, a bicameral parliament or bicameral legislature is a legislature which consists of two chambers or houses....
, the upper house
Upper house
An upper house, often called a senate, is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house; a legislature composed of only one house is described as unicameral.- Possible specific characteristics :...
being the Senate of Haiti
Senate of Haiti
The Senate of Haiti is the upper house of Haiti's bicameral legislature, the National Assembly. The lower house of the National Assembly is the Chamber of Deputies. The Senate consists of thirty seats, with three members from each of the ten administrative departments. Prior to the creation of the...
and the lower house
Lower house
A lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house.Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide the lower house has come to wield more power...
being the Chamber of Deputies of Haiti
Chamber of Deputies of Haïti
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of Haiti's bicameral legislature, the National Assembly. The upper house of the National Assembly is the Senate of Haiti. The Chamber has ninety-nine members who are elected by popular vote to four-year terms...
.
Senate
The Senate consists of thirty seats, with three members from each of the ten administrative departmentsDepartments of Haiti
The Communes of Haiti are the third-level divisions of Haiti. The 10 departments have 42 arrondissements which are divided into 140 communes.-Artibonite Department:*Dessalines Arrondissement**Desdunes**Dessalines**Grande Saline...
. Prior to the creation of the Nippes Department
Nippes Department
Nippes is the newest department of Haiti, having been split from Grand'Anse Department in 2003. The capital of the department is Miragoâne.The department is divided into three arrondissements:* Miragoâne Arrondissement...
in 2003, there were twenty-seven seats. Senators are elected by popular vote to six-year terms, with one-third elected every two years. After the elections of 2000, twenty-six of the then twenty-seven seats were held by Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide is a Haitian former Catholic priest and politician who served as Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in 1982 after completing his studies...
's Fanmi Lavalas
Fanmi Lavalas
Fanmi Lavalas is a leftist political party in Haiti. Its leader is former Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. It has been a powerful force in Haitian politics since 1991. Fanmi Lavalas governments supported a policy of "growth with equity" based on Caribbean and Western European social...
party. The Senate was not in session following the overthrow of Aristide's government in February 2004. An interim government was put in place following the rebellion, and the remaining Senators were not recognised during that time. The Senate was re-established and elections were held on 21 April 2006. The next elections are scheduled to occur in 2008, when one-third of the Senate seats will be open.
Chamber of Deputies
The Chamber of Deputies has ninety-nine members (previously eighty-three) who are elected by popular vote to four-year terms. Candidates from Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas party took seventy-three of the then eighty-three seats in the 2000 elections. Following the overthrow of the government in February 2004, the Chamber of Deputies remained empty. It was re-established along with the Senate, and elections were held on 21 April 2006. The next Chamber elections are scheduled for 2010.National Assembly
The National Assembly is a joint sessionJoint session
A joint session or joint convention is, most broadly, when two normally-separate decision-making groups meet together, often in a special session or other extraordinary meeting, for a specific purpose....
of Parliament. The National Assembly is convened for specific purposes laid out in the Constitution.
Meetings of the National Assembly are presided over by the President of the Senate, with the President of the Chamber of Deputies assisting. The Secretaries of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies also serve as Secretaries of the National Assembly.
The National Assembly was destroyed in the earthquake of 2010
Palais Législatif
The Palais Législatif (Legislative Building) was among the many structures which were severely damaged — if not destroyed — by the 2010 Haiti earthquake2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
on January 12, 2010. Parliament resumed sitting shortly after the earthquake in a temporary classroom.