Constitutional Convention

Preamble: We the people of the Somalian Haven dedicate our time and efforts to the
people of Somalia in a most caring and thoughtful way. Those who have traveled a far
will be able to come here and feel safe and protected under the laws of Parliamentary
System.

A.
Pick a political philosophy (direct democracy, republic, dictatorship, socialist,
communist etc.) and design a government body around it with laws.
democracy Government
o Answer the questions below to see what kind of political philosophy you might agree
with:
1.
How will you make the laws?
Since we will have a democracy , the people who make the laws would be a council
i. What type of legislature will you have?
Our legislature will be given under the title of a democracy system where the people
will elect the members of the parliament to select a president .
iii.
How long should members serve? For about 2 to 3 years depending on the
presidency
Each of the members will serve three years on the council of Parliament.
2.
How will you enforce the laws? We will enforce laws by having military and
something called the CID which handles investigations, fingerprinting, criminal records,
immigration matters, and passports.
i. What type of executive will you have?
i. If you are dictator, will you have a strong police force?
If we were a dictator, our police force would be very strong police force simply because
in order to have a dictatorship, you must a strong force to back you up in case anyone
wanted to rebel against you.
ii.
How will you select leaders? The people will select the leaders by voting
iii.
How long should leaders serve? 2 to 3 depending of what the people want
3.
How will you interpret the laws? By creating documents that clearly state them.
i.

What type of judiciary will you have? We will have a Supreme court to decide.
i. Ex: Supreme Court, trial by jury, presumed innocence, etc.?
4.
What are your beliefs on equality? Everyone is equal but when it comes to jobs
and opportunities every one must make their own choices
i. What divisions exist amongst your group? The only divisions that exist in our group
is the religion.

ii.
What laws would you create to protect/define equality?
Since they are all from Somalia but of different religions, most equality laws would be
based on religion. These laws would include the freedoms to worship their own religion.
iii.
What would your government look like to protect and enforce the equality laws
you make? Our government will enforce laws and will not be flexible to any crimes or
people that break the laws.
5.
What rights do you believe we should have? All the rights that a human should
have which for example are: freedom of speech, and the right to vote.
i. What laws would you create to protect/define rights? The laws would be based on
the U.S. constitution.
ii.
Are your rights unalienable rights?
No, we will be able to take away their rights BUT only if its necessary and is given a
valid reason for being taken away. For example, if someone is prosecuted, they would
have to go through the supreme court
iii.
Do you have a Constitution and/or Bill of Rights? Why or Why not? Yes we have
a constitution to protect the people from the government and have fair trials
6.
What do you define as liberty?liberty is the state of being free within society from
oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views.

i. What laws would you create to protect/define liberty? The bill of rights like the U.S
ii.
What would your government look like to protect and enforce the liberty? We are
forming the government like the U.S has formed
7.
What do you think is opportunity? (ex: education, small business loans, things
that help people move out of poverty) opportunity is a set of circumstances that makes it
possible to do something.

i. What laws would you create to protect/define opportunity?

ii.
What would your government look like to protect and enforce the opportunity?
Our government will look the same as the U.S so the same how the U.S looks when
they protect opportunity
B.
After you have created your constitution, address the following questions:
1.
Compare and Contrast your government/constitution to the United States
Constitution. Specifically, explain how your laws and government differ or are similar to
the American Constitution and Bill of Rights. Does the central government in the
capital hold more power than the state or does the state hold more power than the
central government? Why? Why not? - The central government in the capital holds
more power than the state does because in the refugees location they need guidance
to how to live ruly and not in anarchy as done in their home country.
2. Cite at least three founding ideals and why you agree or disagree with them.
-Republicanism, the idea of a representative democracy in which the people's elected deputies
(representatives), not the people themselves, vote on legislation.

-Democracy - a form of government in which the supreme power is retained by the people, but
which is usually exercised indirectly through a system of representation and delegated authority
periodically renewed.
-Constitutional democracy - a form of government in which the sovereign power of the people is
spelled out in a governing constitution.