Our Constitution

Our Constitution: Democracy Or One- Man Rule? is prefaced by a summary chronology of significant historical politico-constitutional events which predated the promulgation of the country s Independence Constitution. It investigates the extent to which the critical principle of democratic practice, namely, governance of a country by a majority of its people, is enshrined in the Independence Constitution of the Commonwealth of Dominica. Against the background of the fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed to the citizenry, the powers invested in the leading institutions of governance are examined. The study submits that the Constitution fails to provide for governance by a Parliament of representatives of the electorate. Or, even, for governance by Cabinet. Instead, it enshrines prime ministerial government, that is to say, one-man rule. Although Our Constitution: Democracy or One-Man Rule? analyses a particular constitution, the substance of the study, taking account of the historical evolution of the British empire, is hugely relevant to the constitutional realities of the Commonwealth Caribbean, if not the English-speaking ex-colonial, now independent nations of Africa and Asia.