Themes & Issues by Country
Burkina Faso
The legal framework for the creation of political parties in Burkina Faso is exceptionally liberal. The provisions governing political parties are incorporated into the highest level of regulations: the Constitution and the Law. According to Article 13 of the Constitution of Burkina Faso, “Political parties are freely created… They freely conduct their activities in compliance with the law. All political parties or political groups have equal rights and duties. However, parties or political groups based on tribalism, regionalism, religious affiliation or racism are not allowed.” The Constitution thus establishes a multiparty system and makes it unalterable, since Article 165 of the Constitution prohibits questioning the multiparty system. The freedom to create political parties is confirmed by the Political Parties Charter Act No 032-2001 of 29 November, 2001…
Chad
The multiparty system was suspended in Chad from 1963 to 1990. It was restored following the demise of Hissène Habré’s rule and Idriss Déby’s rise to power. The law 019/PR/2009, known as the Political Parties Charter, states in Article 4 that political parties shall be freely established and shall conduct their activities in compliance with the prevailing rules and regulations. These requirements include: respect of national sovereignty, the integrity of the national territory, national unity and democratic pluralism. Article 4 of the Charter in fact mirrors Article 4 of the Constitution which guarantees legally established political organizations the freedom to conduct their activities. A citizen or a group of citizens can freely take the initiative to establish a political party. However, the creation of a party needs to be formalized by convening a meeting of founding members…
Mali
In Mali the creation, the functioning, and the funding of political parties are determined by the Political Parties Charter. The Charter is a moral and legal framework for parties. There have been two Political Parties Charters in Mali, the 91-075/PCTSP of October 10, 1991 and the Law 05-047 of August 18, 2005, constituting the Political Parties Charter. According to the preamble of the current Charter, political parties fulfill a public service by democratically and peacefully contributing to the realization of people’s political will, and to the civic education of citizens and leaders who are destined to assume public responsibilities…
Mauritania
The modified ordinance 91-024, passed on July 25, 1991, regulates political parties in Mauritania. Political parties are defined as associations of citizens pursuing common ideals and political objectives and participating in the political life of the country. For a political party to be legally established, it must file a declaration at the Ministry of Interior. The declaration consists of presenting to authorities a number of required documents (Article 8), after which the Ministry issues to the political party a certificate of declaration…
Niger
The political party system in Niger is determined by the Political Parties Charter. Three charters have been passed in (1991, 1999 and 2010). The Charter defines the rules and fundamental principles that govern the activities of political parties. The last Charter was established under the military transition regime by ordinance 2010-84, on December 16, 2010. The Charter determines the conditions under which political parties can be created, organized, and funded. It also details the operations of parties, their access to public media, and how they may create their own media…
Senegal
Following a short experience of a one-party system, from 1966 to 1974, Senegal restored political pluralism, but limited the number of authorized political parties to three, each representing a specific political current. This innovation was codified by the Law 76-01 of March 19, 1976, amending the Constitution. After this change, the Constitution was amended again to authorize a fourth political party (Law 78-60 of December 28, 1978). A multi-party system without any restrictions was finally instituted by the Law 81-17 of May 6 1981, early in Abdou Diouf’s presidency (Senegal’s second President). This piece of legislation amended the third article of the Constitution which limited the number of political parties, lifting all restrictions on number. With the introduction of an unrestricted multi-party system, every Senegalese citizen is free to create his or her own political party…
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