Commonwealth Constitutions

In the seventeenth century Mauritius was colonised by the Dutch. However, it later came under French rule before being ceded to the United Kingdom by France in 1814 under the Treaty of Paris. The British had earlier occupied the island in 1810. From 1814 until 1968 Mauritius was a Crown Colony.

However, on 12th March 1968 Mauritius became an independent state within the Commonwealth. She remained within Her Majesty's Dominions until 1992 whereupon she became a republic. Notwithstanding this change the basic constitution remained fundamentally unaltered.

Background : Mauritius Independence Act 1968 (UK). Mauritius Independence Order 1968 (S.I. 1968 I at p. 1871)

The Constitution of Mauritius was originally scheduled to the Mauritius Independence Order 1968. The basic structure of the independence constitution remains unaltered, although it has been amended.

The Constitution contains many features of what Stanley de Smith called the "Westminster Export Model." For example, it purports to be the "supreme law" of Mauritius, and as such contains an extensive Bill of Rights which is judicially enforceable. The Constitution also contains extensive safeguards against abuse of power by the executive. These include the Ombudsman, who is empowered to investigate corruption, the usual plethora of independent service commissions, an Attorney-General and a Director of Audit.

Since 1992 the head of state has been the President. Until then Mauritius had in common with other Commonwealth members maintained HM Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. The Queen of Mauritius had been represented by a governor-general in her absence. However, both the Crown in right of Mauritius and the office of governor-general were abolished in 1992.

Executive power resides in the President, and officers subordinate to him. In typical Westminster fashion the President appoints the member of the Legislative Assembly to be PM. In turn the other cabinet ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the PM. The cabinet holds office for as long as it can maintain the confidence of the Legislative Assembly.

The Parliament of Mauritius consists of the President and a Legislative Assembly. The Assembly is composed of 62 members directly elected from one of the twenty-one constituencies and 8 other members allocated seats by the Electoral Supervisory Commission from among unsuccessful candidates.This ensures the better representation of certain minority communities.

Typically the Parliament is vested with plenary power to make laws "for the peace, order and good government" of Mauritius. The Parliament is also competent to amend the Constitution, although this requires super-majorities (either two-thirds or three-quarters of its membership).

Judicial power vests in a Supreme Court which consist of the Chief Justice, the Senior Puisne Judge and such other number of puisne judges as the Parliament prescribes. As a superior court of record it enjoys unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction under all laws. The Supreme court also enjoys original jurisdiction in cases involving constitutional questions and the Bill of Rights. The constitution also makes provision for a Court of Civil Appeal and a Court of Criminal Appeal, both of which are divisions of the Supreme Court.

An appeal still lies in certain cases to the Juidicial Committee of the Privy Council in London (in effect the British Law Lords). An appeal may be brought before the Privy Council with special leave from the decision of any court in any civil or criminal matter. Similarly, an appeal as of right lies in cases involving the Bill of Rights or any matter related to constitutional interpretation, in cases exceeding a monetary value prescribed by the Parliament, and in cases where a court has certified that the question is one of great general or public importance that it requires a decision of the Privy Council.