Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China

The Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China are the revisions and constitutional amendments to the original constitution to meet the requisites of the nation and the political status of Taiwan. The Additional Articles are usually attached after the original constitution as a separate document. It also has its own preamble and article ordering different from the original constitution.[1]

"Constitution of Taiwan" redirects here. For the original constitution, see Constitution of the Republic of China.
Additional Articles of
the Constitution of
the Republic of China
Original title中華民國憲法增修條文
JurisdictionFree area of the Republic of China
RatifiedApril 22, 1991
Date effectiveMay 1, 1991
SystemUnitary semi-presidential
constitutional republic
BranchesFive (Executive, Legislative, Judicial, Examination, Control)
Head of statePresident
ChambersUnicameral
(Legislative Yuan)
ExecutivePremier led Executive Yuan
JudiciaryJudicial Yuan
FederalismUnitary
Electoral collegeNo
First legislatureJanuary 1, 1992 (NA)
February 1, 1993 (LY)
Amendments7
Last amendedJune 10, 2005
Commissioned byNational Assembly
Signatories438 of the 445 remaining delegates elected in 1947, in Taipei
SupersedesMost articles of the original Constitution of the Republic of China
Additional Articles of
the Constitution of
the Republic of China
Traditional Chinese中華民國憲法
增修條文
Simplified Chinese中华民国宪法
增修条文
Taiwan
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
the Republic of China
Government
Presidency
Executive
Legislature
National Assembly (defunct)
Control Yuan (chamber defunct)
Judiciary
Other branches
Elections
Political parties
  • Nationally represented
  • Others
Related topics
 Taiwan portal

The Additional Articles are the fundamental law of the present government of the Republic of China on Taiwan since 1991, last amended in 2005.

Features

Free area
Main article: Free area of the Republic of China

The territory controlled by the Government of the Republic of China changed significantly after the Chinese Civil War. This created difficulties in holding elections on a national scale. Thus, the Additional Articles of the Constitution defines the Free Area (Chinese: 自由地區, Mandarin: Zìyóu Dìqū, Taiwanese: Chū-iû Tē-khu, Hakka: Chhṳ-yù Thi-khî) to address the territory and the people under the government's effective jurisdiction. Only the citizens of the Free Area may exercise the full civil and political rights, including suffrage and referendum.

Direct presidential election
See also: Presidential elections in Taiwan

The Additional Articles requires direct election of the President by the citizens of the free area.[2] The first direct presidential election was held in 1996. Under the original constitution, the President was elected indirectly by the National Assembly.

Government reform and reorganization

The Additional Articles of the Constitution reformed the government of the Republic of China from a parliamentary system to a semi-presidential system. The National Assembly is abolished, and its functions are exercised directly by the citizens of the Free area. The five-power governmental structure is retained, though it functions closer to the traditional Western trias politica in practice.

Constitutional referendum
See also: Referendums in Taiwan

The Additional Articles were ratified on June 7, 2005, constitutional amendment or national territory alteration have to be ratified by more than half (50%) of voters of the Free Area in a referendum after passed in Legislative Yuan with a three-quarters majority. Before that, constitutional amendment or national territory alteration were ratified by the National Assembly.

Comparison of the governmental structure

The present structure of government are regulated by the Additional Articles in 2005.[3]

Governmental structureOriginal Constitution (1947)Additional Articles (2005)
Head of stateThe President and Vice President are elected separately by the National Assembly for a duration of 6 yearsThe President and Vice president are elected in pair by the citizens of the Free area for a duration of 4 years, limited to 2 terms.
Head of governmentThe premier is nominated by the president, and consented by the Legislative Yuan.The premier is appointed by the president.
Parliament Tricameralism: National Assembly, Legislative Yuan and Control Yuan.
  • The members of the National Assembly are elected for a duration of 6 years.
  • The members of the Legislative Yuan are elected for a duration of 3 years.
  • The members of the Control Yuan are elected by provincial legislators for a duration of 6 years.
 Unicameralism: Legislative Yuan.
  • The National Assembly is abolished, and its functions are exercised directly by the citizens of the Free area.
  • The 113 members of the Legislative Yuan are elected for a duration of 4 years.
  • The Control Yuan, though retained, is now a purely auditory body, and its 29 members are nominated by the president, and confirmed by the Legislative Yuan for a duration of 6 years.
JudiciaryThe justices are appointed by the president, with the consent of the Control Yuan. The justices have life tenure.The 15 justices are appointed by the president, with the consent of the Legislative Yuan for a duration of 8 years.
Local governmentTwo level system: provincial Level, county LevelThe provinces are streamlined. Counties and cities under provinces are subordinated directly to the central government.

Articles

The Additional Articles of the Constitution has been amended seven times since the 1990s.

AmendmentDate ratifiedRatified byDate effectivePresidentNote
1stApril 22, 19911st National AssemblyMay 1, 1991Lee Teng-huiAdditional Articles established
2ndMay 27, 19922nd National AssemblyMay 28, 1992Lee Teng-hui
3rdJuly 28, 19942nd National AssemblyAugust 1, 1994Lee Teng-hui
4thJuly 18, 19973rd National AssemblyJuly 21, 1997Lee Teng-hui
5thSeptember 3, 19993rd National AssemblySeptember 15, 1999Lee Teng-huiVoided by Judicial Yuan Interpretation No. 499
6thApril 24, 20003rd National AssemblyApril 25, 2000Lee Teng-hui
7thJune 7, 2005ad hoc National AssemblyJune 10, 2005Chen Shui-bianCurrently in force

Current Additional Articles of the Constitution contains 12 articles:

See also

References
  1. Office of the president — Constitution of the Republic of China (Taiwan)
  2. Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act
  3. 中華民國憲法與其相關法規彙編 by Hsien-Mo Liao
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