2nd
December 1971 was a turning point in the
history of the Emirates. On this date a
declaration was issued renewing enforcement
of the provisional constitution of the UAE
and the United Arab Emirates was declared
a sovereign Federal State comprising Aim
Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain,
Fujairah and later Ras Al Khaimah. The UAE
is governed by five constitutional and legislative
bodies which include the following:
The
Supreme Council of the Federation, the
President and the. Vice-President, the
Council of Ministers, the Federal . National
Council (FNC) and the Federal Judiciary.
The
Supreme Council of the Federation is the
highest political authority in the country.
It consists of all the Rulers of the Emirates
comprising the Federation and represents
collective leadership. The President and
the Vice-President of the State are elected
by the Supreme Council from its members.
The, jurisdiction of the Supreme Council
of the Federation is confined to major
political, legislative and administrative
issues of the state.
The
President appoints the Prime Minister
with the consent of the Supreme Council.
Deputy Premiers and Federal Ministers
are appointed as per decree by the President
upon a recommendation of the Prime Minister.
The Cabinet is the executive body running
domestic and foreign affairs concerning
the state as per the Federal Constitution,
laws and under the supervision of the
President and the Supreme Council of the
Federation.
The
Federal National Council (FNC) is set
up with 40 members representing the Emirates
forming the Federation. The FNC is the
legislative assembly (Parliament) which
is as4gned the authority of discussing
and approving all federal draft laws and
then referring them to the Supreme Council
for enactment, The FNC also exercises
the power of raising issues concerning.
performance of the government, discussing
matters of interest to the public and
monitoring the conduct of the federal
government.
The
judicial authority is assumed by the Federal
Court which consists of the Federal High
Court, the Appeal Court and the Federal
Courts of First Instance. As per the constitution,
the judicial authority of each Emirate
may handle the judicial matters not assigned
to the Federal Court. However, it is possible
as per a federal decree issued upon the
request of the respective Emirate, to
transfer whole or part of the judicial
authorities exercised by the respective
Emirate's judiciary to the Federal Court
of First Instance.
On
the Arab and international levels, the
UAE is a member of the Arab Gulf Co-operation
Council (AGCC) which comprises in addition
to the IJAE, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,
the State of Bahrain, The Sultanate of
Oman, the State of Qatar and the State
of Kuwait. The AGCC was formed in 1981.
The United Arab Emirates is also a member
of the Arab League, the United Nations
and other international organizations
and agencies.
