The National Assembly (Arabic: المجلس الوطني البحريني) is the legislative body[1][2] of Bahrain. Parliament is bicameral, consisting of the 40 elected members of the Council of Representatives (the lower house) and the 40 royally-appointed members of the Consultative Council (the upper house). The joint session of the National Assembly is chaired by the Speaker of the Council of Representatives, or by the Speaker of the Consultative Council if the former is absent.[3]
National Assembly المجلس الوطني البحريني al-majlis al-watani | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| Houses | Consultative Council Council of Representatives |
| Leadership | |
Chairman of the Consultative Council | Salim bin Rashid Al-Khalifa since 15 December 2008 |
Ahmed bin Salman Al-Musallam since 12 December 2022 | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 80 40 in the Consultative Council 40 Representatives |
 | |
Consultative Council political groups | Independent (40) |
| |
Council of Representatives political groups | Independent (40) |
| Elections | |
| Appointed by the King | |
| Two-round system | |
Last Council of Representatives election | 12 November 2022 |
| Meeting place | |
| Manama | |
| Website | |
| www | |
Latest election
editNational Assembly under the 1973 constitution
editUnder the 1973 Constitution (Article 43), the National Assembly was a single chamber parliament consisting of forty members elected by "universal suffrage". However, the then Amir, Shaikh Isa ibn Salman Al Khalifah decreed that women would not be considered as "universal suffrage" and were not allowed to vote in the 1973 parliamentary elections.[4]
History of the National Assembly of Bahrain
editThe first ever National Assembly in Bahrain was elected in 1973 under the statutes of the first constitution which was promulgated of that same year. In 1975, the Assembly was dissolved by the then Emir Shaikh Isa ibn Salman al-Khalifa because it refused to pass the government sponsored State Security Law of 1974. The Emir subsequently did not allow the Assembly to meet again or hold elections during his lifetime.
Members of the 1973 National Assembly
edit- Hassan Al Jishi (President of National Assembly)
- Khalifa Ahmed Al Bin Ali (Vice-President of National Assembly)
- Ali Qasim Rabea
- Isa Ahmed Qasim
- Abdulhadi Khalaf
- Rasool Al-Jishi
- Abdullah Ali Al-Moawada
- Mohammed Jaber Al-Sabah
- Ali Bin Ebrahim Abdul Aal
- Jassim Mohamed Murad
- Isa Hassan Al-Thawadi
- Ibrahim Mohammed Hassan Fakhro
- Abdul Amir Al-Jamri
- Abdullah Mansoor Isa
- Alawi Makki Alharkhat
- Khalid Ibrahim Al-Thawadi
- Mustafa Mohammed Al-Qassab
- Abdullah Al-Shaikh Mohammed Al-Madani
- Abbas Mohammed Ali
- Yousif Salman Kamal
- Abdul Aziz Mansoor Al-Aali
- Hassan Ali Al-Mutawaj
- Salman Al shaikh Mohammed
- Ibrahim bin Salman al Khalifa
- Khalifa Al Dhahrani
- Mohammed Salman Ahmed Hammad
- Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Harmas (now Al Harmesi Al-Hajeri)
- Mohsin Hameed Al-Marhoon
- Ali Saleh Al-Saleh
- Hamad Abdullah Abel
After the death of Isa ibn Salman al-Khalifa in 1999, his son Shaikh Hamad ibn Isa al-Khalifah, the new ruler of Bahrain promulgated the Constitution of 2002. That same year elections were held for the Council of Representatives and he appointed the members for the Consultative Council, forming the first National Assembly since 1975.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Diamond, Larry; Plattner, Marc F. (17 April 2014). Democratization and Authoritarianism in the Arab World - Google Books. JHU Press. ISBN 9781421414171. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
- ^ McMurray, David A.; Ufheil-Somers, Amanda (2013). The Arab Revolts: Dispatches on Militant Democracy in the Middle East - Google Books. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0253009685. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
- ^ "Constitute" (PDF). www.constituteproject.org. Retrieved 9 December 2019.
- ^ "From ethnic to national and vice versa". Archived from the original on 16 July 2006. Retrieved 16 July 2006.