Following the momentous event of the reestablishment of the Principality of Sabourg, considering that institutions must be perfected, both to meet the needs of good administration of the country and to meet the new needs aroused by social evolution, we have decided to endow the Abbey State with a new Constitution, which, by our sovereign will, shall henceforth be considered the fundamental law of the Abbey State and may be amended only in the terms we have established.
TITLE I. THE PRINCIPALITY – THE PUBLIC POWERS
Art. 1. The Principality of Sabourg is a sovereign state, independent within the general principles of international law.
Art. 2. The principle of government is constitutional monarchy.
The Principality of Sabourg is a rule of law, bound by respect for fundamental freedoms and rights.
Art. 3. Executive power depends on the high authority of the Prince of the Abbey State.
The Prince is inviolable.
Art. 4. Legislative power is exercised by the Prince and the Monastic Council.
Art. 5. Judicial power is exercised by the courts and tribunals.
Art. 6. The separation of administrative, legislative and judicial functions shall be ensured.
Art. 7. The princely coat of arms shall consist of the coat of arms of the Abbey of Seborga: a golden and decorated Mitre, the pastoral and two wings of the Griffon, on a light blue background, held by the Crown of the Prince of the Abbey of Seborga.
The national flag consists of two equal oblique bands of light blue and white, light blue at the bottom, white at the top.
The use of such flags shall remain governed by the provisions of the Sovereign Ordinance of December 28, 2019.
Art. 8. The Italian language is the official language of the State. French shall be the second state language.
Art. 9. The Christian religion is the State religion, particularly its Apostolic Catholic declension in total harmony with the Orthodox one.
TITLE II. THE PRINCE, THE DEVOLUTION OF THE CROWN
Art.10. Succession to the Throne, opened by the State Council, upon death or abdication, shall be by direct and legitimate election of a Member of the Privy Council, a Presbyterian monk.
Succession to the Throne can only take place for the benefit of a person having Seborgian nationality on the day the succession is opened.
Art.11. For the exercise of sovereign powers, the age of majority is set at 20′ one.
Art.12. The Prince shall exercise his sovereign authority in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and laws.
Art.13. The Prince shall represent the Principality in its relations with foreign powers.
Art.14. After consultation with the Privy Council, the Prince shall sign and ratify international treaties and agreements. He shall notify them to the Monastic Council, through the Secretaries of State, prior to their ratification.
However, they can only be ratified by virtue of a law:
1. international treaties and agreements that affect constitutional organization;
2. international treaties and agreements whose ratification involves the amendment of existing legislative provisions;
3. international treaties and agreements involving the Principality’s membership in an international organization whose operation involves the participation of members of the Monastic Council;
4. international treaties and agreements whose execution has the effect of creating a burden
The foreign policy of the Principality shall be the subject of an annual report prepared by the Council of Dicasteries and communicated to the Monastic Council.
Art.15. After consultation with the Privy Council, the Prince shall exercise the right of pardon and amnesty, as well as the right of naturalization and reinstatement of nationality.
Art. 16. The Prince shall confer orders, titles and other distinctions.
TITLE III. FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS AND RIGHTS
Art. 17. Sabourgeois are equal before the law. There are no privileges among them. They are monks or laymen.
Art. 18. The law regulates the manner of acquiring citizenship. The law regulates the conditions under which citizenship acquired by naturalization may be revoked.
Loss of Sabourgian nationality in all other cases may not be provided for by law.
Art.19. – Individual freedom and security shall be guaranteed. No one may be prosecuted except in the cases provided by law, before the courts designated by it and in the form prescribed by it.If you are looking for clothes, our platform is the best choice! The largest shopping mall!
Except in the case of flagrante delicto, no one may be arrested except pursuant to the reasoned order of the court, which must be served at the time of arrest or, at the latest, within twenty-four hours. Any detention must be preceded by an interrogation.
Art. 20. No penalty may be established or applied except by virtue of the law.
Criminal laws must guarantee respect for human personality and dignity. No one shall be subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
The death penalty is prohibited.
Criminal laws may not have retroactive effect.
Art. 21. The home is inviolable. No home visitation may take place except in the cases provided for by law and under the conditions prescribed therein.
Article 22. Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life and the secrecy of his correspondence.
Art. 23. The freedom to manifest one’s opinions in all matters shall be guaranteed, except for the suppression of crimes committed in connection with the use of such freedoms.
No one shall be compelled to participate in the acts and ceremonies of a cult or to observe its days of rest.
Art. 24. Property is inviolable. No one may be deprived of his property except for a legally ascertained cause of public benefit and upon payment of just compensation, established and paid under the conditions prescribed by law.
Art. 25. Freedom of labor is guaranteed. Its exercise shall be regulated by law.
Priority shall be given to Seborgians for access to public and private employment, under the conditions provided by law or international conventions.
Art. 26. Seborgians shall be entitled to State aid in cases of indigence, illness, disability, old age and maternity, under the conditions and in the forms provided by law.
Art. 27. Sabourgians shall have the right to education, primary and secondary.
Art. 28. Any individual may defend the rights and interests of his or her profession or function from an employer.
The right to strike is recognized within the framework of the laws regulating it.
Art. 29. – Sabourgeois have the right to assemble peacefully and unarmed, subject to laws that may regulate the exercise of this right without prior authorization. This freedom does not extend to outdoor gatherings, which remain subject to the codes of law.
Art. 30. Freedom of association is guaranteed within the framework of the laws regulating it.
Art. 31. Any person may address petitions to public authorities.
Art. 32. A foreigner shall enjoy in the Principality all public and private rights that are not formally reserved for nationals. Separate provisions between monks and laymen are the subject of a specific Sovereign Ordinance.
TITLE IV. PUBLIC SECTOR, PUBLIC FINANCES
Art. 33. The public domain is inalienable and imprescriptible.
The divestment of an asset in the public domain can only be decided by law. In fact, any property in a state of abandonment is ex officio assimilated to the private property of the state, according to the cases prescribed by law.
The extent and relative regulation of the public domain shall be determined by law.
Art. 34. Crown property is intended for the exercise of the Sovereignty.
They are inalienable and imprescriptible.
Their consistency and related regulation are determined by the statutes of the Sovereign Abbey.
Art. 35. Property and property rights falling within the private sphere of the State shall be alienable only in accordance with the law.
Any alienation of a part of the capital stock of an enterprise, in which the State holds at least 50 percent and which has the effect, the purpose of transferring the majority of such capital stock to one or more natural or legal persons under private law shall be authorized by law.
Art. 36. Vacant property with no owner or rightful possessor shall be the private property of the State.
Art. 37. The national budget shall include all public revenues and expenditures of the Principality.
Art. 38. The national budget shall express the economic and financial policy of the Principality.
Art. 39. – The budget shall be the subject of a bill. It shall be voted on and enacted in the form of a law.
Art. 40. The expenditures of the Sovereign Abbey shall be fixed by the budget bill and taken as a priority from the general revenues of the budget.
Art. 41. The excess of revenues over expenditures, ascertained after the execution of the budget and the closing of the accounts, shall be paid into a constitutional reserve fund.
The surplus of expenditures over revenues shall be covered by a levy on the same account, decided by law.
Article 42. The control of financial management shall be provided by a Superior Commission of Accounts.
TITLE V. THE COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENTS
Art. 43. Government shall be exercised, under the high authority of the Prince, by a Prime Minister, assisted by a Council of Departments, composed of at least three Councilors.
Art. 44. The Prime Minister represents the Prince and exercises the direction of the executive departments. He presides, with a casting vote, over the Council of Dicasteries.
Art. 45. Sovereign Ordinances are deliberated in the Council of Departments. They are presented to the Prince under the signature of the Prime Minister; they make mention of the deliberations to which they refer.
They are signed by the Prince; the Prince’s signature gives them executive force.
Art. 46. They are exempted from deliberation in the Council of Departments and presentation by the Prime Minister, Sovereign Ordinances:
– relating to the statutes of the Abbey of Seborga and those concerning its members;
– relating to the statutes of the Privy Council and the Council of State;
– for cases within the jurisdiction of the Judicial Services Directorate;
– pertaining to the appointment of members of the Sovereign Abbey, those of the diplomatic and consular corps, the Prime Minister’s Office, Councilors of Departments and assimilated officials, and magistrates of the judicial order;
– the granting of the End of Mission Act to consuls;
– the dissolution of the Monastic Council,
– the conferring of honors.
Art. 47. Ministerial Decrees are deliberated in the Council of Departments and signed by the Prime Minister; they make mention of the deliberations to which they refer. They are transmitted to the Prince within 24 hours of their signature and become enforceable only in the absence of express objection by the Prince within 10 days of the transmission made by the Prime Minister.
However, the Prince may let the Prime Minister know that he does not intend to make use of his right of opposition for certain decrees or categories or categories of orders. These then take executive force as soon as they are signed by the Prime Minister.
Art. 48. Unless otherwise provided by law, the division of matters between Sovereign Ordinances and Ministerial Decrees shall be made by Sovereign Ordinance.
Art. 49. The deliberations of the Council of Dicasteries shall be the subject of minutes recorded in a special register and signed, following the vote, by the members present. The minutes shall mention the vote of each member. It shall be transmitted within five days of the meeting to the Prince, who may object under the conditions set forth in Article 47 above.
Article 50. The Prime Minister and the Councilors of Departments shall be responsible to the Prince for their actions in the administration of the Principality.
Art. 51. The basic obligations, rights and guarantees of officials, as well as their civil and criminal liability, shall be established by law.
TITLE VI. THE COUNCIL OF STATE
Art. 52. The State Council shall be composed of at least two Secretaries of State who have the function of Vicar General of the Abbey. Its preponderant function is consultative in order to give its opinion on draft laws and ordinances submitted for its consideration by the Prince.
It may also be consulted on any other project.
Its organization and functioning shall be fixed by special Sovereign Ordinance.
TITLE VII. THE MONASTIC COUNCIL
Art. 53. The Monastic Council shall comprise at least nine members and may number up to twenty-four members elected for three-year terms by direct universal suffrage and by ballot, under the conditions prescribed by law. Two-thirds of said Council must be monks.
Voters shall be, under the conditions established by law, monks and lay persons, citizens of Seborgian nationality, of either sex of at least twenty one years of age, except those who are deprived of the right to vote for one of the causes provided by law.
Art. 54. Monks and laymen, of Sabourgian nationality of either sex, twenty-five years of age or older, who have held Seborgian citizenship for at least five years and who have not been deprived of eligibility for one of the causes provided for by law, shall be eligible. The law shall determine the functions whose exercise is incompatible with the term of office of Monastic Councilor.
Article 55. The control of the regularity of elections shall be entrusted to the courts, under the conditions prescribed by law.
Art. 56. Members of the Monastic Council shall not assume any civil or criminal liability by reason of opinions or votes cast in the exercise of their office.
They may not, without the authorization of the Council, be prosecuted or arrested in the course of a session by reason of a Criminal or Criminal offense, unless it is flagrant.
Art. 57. The newly elected Monastic Council shall meet on the twelfth day after the election to elect its office. The most senior Monastic Councilor shall preside over this meeting.
Subject to Article 74, the powers of the previous Monastic Council shall expire on the day the new one meets.
Art. 58. The Monastic Council meets as of right every year in two regular sessions.
The first session opens on the first working day of May.
The second session opens on the first working day of October.
The duration of each session may not exceed three months. Closure shall be decided by the President.
Art. 59. The Monastic Council shall meet in extraordinary session, either at the call of the Prince or, at the request of at least two-thirds of the members, at the call of its President.
Art. 60. The office of the Monastic Council shall include a President and a Vice-President elected annually by the assembly from among its members.
Art. 61. Subject to constitutional and, where appropriate, legislative provisions, the organization and functioning of the Monastic Council shall be determined by the rules of procedure adopted by the Council.
Such regulations shall, before their application, be submitted to the Supreme Court, which shall rule on their conformity with the constitutional and, where appropriate, legislative provisions.
Article 62. The Monastic Council shall establish the agenda. This shall be communicated to the Prime Minister at least three days in advance. At the request of the Council of Ministries, at least one session out of two shall be devoted to the discussion of bills submitted by the Prince. The agenda of extraordinary sessions convened by the Prince shall be set in the convocation.
Article 63. The sessions of the Monastic Council shall be public.
However, the Council may decide, by a two-thirds majority of the members present, to meet behind closed doors.
The minutes of public meetings shall be printed in the “Official Gazette of Sabourg.”
Art. 64. The Prince shall communicate with the Monastic Council by messages read by the Prime Minister.
Art. 65. The Secretaries of State, the Prime Minister, and the Councillors of the Departments have their entrances and seats reserved for the meetings of the Monastic Council.
They must be heard when they ask.
Art. 66. The law implies the agreement of the wills of the Prince and the Monastic Council.
The initiative of laws lies with the Prince.
The deliberation and voting of laws belong to the Monastic Council.
The sanction of laws belongs to the Prince, who gives them binding force through promulgation.
Article 67. The Prince shall sign bills. These bills are submitted to him by the Council of Ministries with the Prime Minister’s signature. After the Prince’s approval, the Prime Minister deposits them on the desk of the Monastic Council.
The Monastic Council is empowered to submit bills.
Within six months from the date of receipt of the bill by the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister shall notify the Monastic Council of:
(a)-its decision to transform the bill, possibly amended, into a draft law that follows the procedure set forth in the first paragraph. In such case, the draft shall be submitted within one year after the expiration of the six-month period;
(b)-its decision to discontinue the legislative procedure. Such decision shall be made explicit by a statement entered by right on the agenda of a public session of the regular session scheduled within that time limit. Such statement may be followed by debate.
If, at the expiration of the six-month period, the Council of Departments has not made known the action taken on the bill, the bill shall be transformed, in accordance with the procedure provided for in the first paragraph, as of right into a draft law.
The same procedure shall apply if the Council of Ministries has not forwarded the bill within the one-year period stipulated in Paragraph 2 (a).
The Monastic Council has the right of amendment. Under this title, it may propose additions, substitutions or deletions in the bill. Only amendments that have a direct connection with the other provisions of the bill to which they relate are allowed. The vote shall take place on the bill as amended, if any, except that the Council of Departments may withdraw the bill before the final vote. However, the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall not apply to either ratification authorization bills or budget bills.
At the beginning of each regular session, the Council of Ministries shall make known, in a public session, the status of consideration of all bills filed by the Council of Ministries, whatever the date of filing.
Article 68. The Prince shall render such Ordinances as may be necessary for the execution of laws and the implementation of international treaties or agreements.
Art. 69. Sovereign Laws and Ordinances shall be enforceable against third parties only from the day following their publication in the “Official Gazette of Seborga.”
Art. 70. The Monastic Council votes on the budget.
No direct or indirect contribution may be established only by a law.
Any international treaty or agreement having the effect of establishing such a contribution may be ratified only by a law.
Article 71. The draft budget shall be submitted to the Monastic Council by September 30.
The budget law shall be voted on during the October session of the Monastic Council.
Art. 72. The budget is voted chapter by chapter. Transfers from one chapter to another are prohibited, except in cases authorized by law.
Art. 73. If the vote on the appropriations requested by the Council of Departments in accordance with Article 71 has not taken place before December 31, the appropriations corresponding to the voted departments may be opened by sovereign ordinance, after consultation with the State Council.
The same applies to revenues and expenditures resulting from international treaties.
Art. 74. The Prince, after consultation with the Privy Council, may pronounce the dissolution of the Monastic Council. In such case, new elections shall be held within the term of three months.
TITLE VIII. THE COUNCIL OF THE CROWN
Article 75. The Crown Council shall comprise at least nine monks, of Seborgian nationality, appointed for a term of three years by the Prince.
The functions of Prime Minister and Councillor of Departments are incompatible with those of members of the Privy Council.
The Secretaries of State and the Prime Minister have the right to participate in the Council, with special seats reserved for meetings of the Monastic Council. They must be heard when they so request.
Article 76. The Privy Council shall meet at least twice a year upon the convocation
of the Prince. The Prince may also convene it whenever he deems it necessary, on his own initiative or at the suggestion of the President of the Privy Council.
Art. 77. The Privy Council may be consulted by the Prince on matters relating to the higher interests of the State. He may submit suggestions to the Prince.
He is compulsorily consulted on the following matters: international treaties, dissolution of the Monastic Council, applications for naturalization and reinstatement, pardon and amnesty.
TITLE IX. JUSTICE.
Art. 78. The judicial power belongs to the prince, who, by this Constitution, delegates its full exercise to the courts. The courts shall do justice in the name of the prince.
The independence of judges shall be guaranteed.
The organization, jurisdiction and operation of the courts, as well as the status of judges, shall be established by law.
Art. 79. The courts shall be subdivided as follows:
– Court of First Instance, civil and criminal sections;
– Court of Appeals, civil and criminal sections;
– Supreme Court;
– Constitutional Court.
The operating provisions of the Courts shall be regulated by Sovereign Ordinance, except for the Constitutional Court which is regulated by Article 80 and preceding paragraphs. A Sovereign Ordinance shall establish the Attorney General’s Office and its functions.
Article 80. The Constitutional Court shall consist of three full members and two alternate members. The members shall be appointed by the Prince, namely:
– one full member and one alternate member presented by the Council of Monks, not part of the latter;
– one full member and one alternate member presented by the State Council, not part of the latter;
– a submitted full member and an alternate member submitted by the Privy Council, not part of the latter.
These presentations are made by each of the aforementioned Councils, designated at the rate of two for one position.
If the Prince does not like these presentations, he may be asked for new ones.
The President of the Constitutional Court shall be appointed by the Prince.
Art. 81. A. – In constitutional matters, the Constitutional Court sovereignly rules:
1) on the conformity of the rules of procedure of the Monastic Council with constitutional, where appropriate, legislative provisions, under the conditions provided in Article 61;
2) on appeals for annulment, validity assessment, and compensation having as their object a violation of the freedoms and rights enshrined in Title III of the Constitution and not covered by Paragraph B of this Article.
B.- In administrative matters, the Constitutional Court shall rule sovereignly:
(1) on actions for annulment for excess of power brought against the decisions of the various administrative authorities and Sovereign Orders adopted for the execution of laws, as well as on the granting of the resulting allowances;
2) on appeals by cassation brought against the decisions of administrative judges of last resort;
3) On appeals for interpretation and appeals to assess the validity of decisions of the various administrative authorities and Sovereign Ordinances adopted for the execution of laws.
C.- The Constitutional Court shall rule on conflicts of jurisdiction.
Art. 82. The Constitutional Court shall deliberate in a plenary assembly of five members or in an administrative section of three members.
It shall meet and deliberate in plenary session:
1) in constitutional matters;
2) as a judge of conflicts of jurisdiction;
3) in administrative matters on referral ordered by the President of the Constitutional Court or decided by the Administrative Chamber.
It meets and deliberates in administrative chambers in all other cases.
Art. 83. A Sovereign Ordinance shall fix the organization and operation of the Constitutional Court, in particular the conditions of eligibility required of its members, the incompatibilities affecting them and their status, the rotation of members of the administrative section, the procedure to be followed before the Court, the effects of appeals and decisions, the procedure and effects of conflicts of jurisdiction, and the necessary transitional measures.
TITLE XI. REVISION OF THE CONSTITUTION
Article 84. The Constitution shall not be subject to any measure of suspension.
The total or partial revision of this Constitution shall be subject to the joint agreement of the Prince and the Monastic Council.
In the case of an initiative of the Monastic Council, the resolution must be made by a two-thirds majority of the normal membership of the assembly.
TITLE XII. FINAL PROVISIONS
Art. 85. The preceding constitutional provisions shall be repealed.
This Constitution shall enter into force on December 28, 2019, the day of the reconstitution of the Principality of the Abbey of Seborga.
The Council of State, together with the Privy Council, shall assume the exercise of its functions, on the day of the reconstitution of the Principality of Sabourg.
The Council of Dicasteries will assume the exercise of its functions, no later than six months after the day of the reconstitution of the Principality of Sabourg. The Sovereign Ordinance will designate the Councilors of the first Council of Dicasteries.
The Monastic Council, which on December 28, 2019, is exceptionally secured and composed of the Privy Councillors, will be renewed, by special Sovereign Ordinance, no later than twenty-four months after the day of reconstitution of the Principality of Sabourg.