Table 2 shows how the tasks that are carried out in a constitution-making process identified and discussed in part 2 may be performed by the variety of bodies and institutions identified and discussed in part 3. It is not necessary to have a particular body to perform a particular task. In the course of this handbook we may sometimes suggest that a certain body is often more suitable than another for a specific task. But we are conscious that national traditions, time and financial pressures, and other factors may limit the choice in a given country. The table is not a prescription—it is merely meant to clarify the relationship between the tasks and the institutions.
To take a few examples from the top rows of table 2:
- Preparing a road map or timetable for a process could be done by a constituent assembly (if that assembly were in charge of the process). Where a constituent assembly does not exist, or comes late in the process, the road map may be prepared in a law or by the legislature, or it may have been specified in a peace agreement or a “roundtable” process or by the government. Often, civil society and political parties (and sometimes the international community) will have some input—though they do not have the power to make a legally binding road map.
- Generating ideas for the new constitution is something in which all sectors of society can participate.
- Developing guiding principles for the process and content of the constitution may be done in different ways. Sometimes a constituent assembly has done this near the beginning of the process. Sometimes principles are laid down in law, or through political agreement (in a peace process or by political parties); civil society again may participate.
Table 2: Who does what?
Tasks |
Constituent assembly
|
National conference
|
Legislature
|
Roundtable
|
Constitutional commission
|
Other bodies
|
Peace process parties
|
Special bodies
|
Experts
|
Electoral management bodies
|
Governments and their departments
|
Courts
|
Referendums
|
Civil society
|
Political parties
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Starting the process |
n | n | n | n | |||||||||||
Road map |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||
Generating ideas |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||
Guiding principles |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||
Civic education |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||
Consultation on draft |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||
Other forms of consultation |
n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||||
Making submissions |
n | n | n | n | |||||||||||
Receiving and processing views |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | ||||
Resources management |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||
Managing media |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||
Managing international actors |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||
Making procedural rules |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||
Determining agenda of issues |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||
Making choices on issues |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||
Dealing with divisive issues (special bodies) |
n | n | n | n | |||||||||||
Ensuring technical coherence |
n | ||||||||||||||
Preparing concrete proposals |
n | n | n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||
Technical drafting of text |
n | ||||||||||||||
Adoption of constitution |
n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||||
Implementation |
n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||||
Dealing with problems |
n | n | n | n | |||||||||||
Monitoring and evaluation |
n | n | n | n | n | n | |||||||||
Responding to failed processes |
n | n | n | n | n | n |