The House at Work
The Parliamentary System
FAQs
Introduction
Composition
Making Law
Debates
History
Parliament House
Introduction
It is a common belief that the Legislative Assembly is part of the executive government of Tonga, which is incorrect. The Legislative Assembly and the executive government have very different roles. The Legislative Assembly is the sole law making authority in Tonga (although the Privy Council can pass ordinances during the time when parliament is not in session but such ordinances must be tabled in the House when parliament resumes its business). The Legislative Assembly can make any laws whatsoever provided
(i) that it does not contradict the Constitution of 1875; and
(ii) that His Majesty King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV has assented to it.
Tonga’s system of parliament can be described as a Constitutional Monarchy. What the term means (from a Tongan perspective) is that the Head of State is His Majesty King Taufau’ahau Tupou IV (and he rules under a hereditary monarchy), but he exercises his powers and functions within constitutional constraints.
Composition
The composition and make-up of the Legislative Assembly is founded by the Constitution of Tonga 1875, that was enacted by King George Tupou I in recognition of the inherent rights of the people of Tonga. The traditional composition of the Legislative Assembly is made up of 12 Cabinet Ministers, 9 Representatives of the Nobles and 9 Representatives of the People.
His Majesty King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV
However, in late 2004, His Majesty King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV on advice the Prime Minister HRH Prince ‘Ulukalala Lavaka ‘Ata announced that 2 new Ministers would be appointed from the Representative of the Nobles and 2 from the Representatives of the People’s respectively. In recognition that the Constitution specifically states that there must be 9 Nobles Reps and 9 People’s Reps, an election would be held to replenish the vacant seats of the newly appointed Ministers. More information.
His Majesty King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV appoints the Cabinet Ministers for such term as he pleases and they sit in the Legislative Assembly as “Nobles” per the Constitution. Each Cabinet Minister has one or more portfolios that represent a Ministry of government in which they are the Head of the Ministry. Cabinet Ministers per the Constitution also sit in the Privy Council with His Majesty King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV.
Cabinet Ministers are accountable to the King and as such, the King must have confidence in his Ministers to Head the various governmental Ministries. The government (also known as the “Executive”) run the day-day administration of country but must do so within the boundaries of the Constitution and Laws enacted by the Legislative Assembly. In cases where the government do exceed their powers, such exercise of discretion maybe pronounce unlawful (and hence the government decision or order is “void”) by the courts because it contradicts the laws of Tonga or in some cases the Constitution. Because of this very fact, it is important that the 3 branches of government, (i) the Legislative Assembly, (ii) the Executive, and (iii) the Judiciary are independent from each other, so that that each branch can keep the other two branches in check (Separation of Powers).
The electoral system in Tonga is outlined by the Constitution and the procedural laws relating to its implementation are detailed in the Legislative Assembly Act (Cap. 4) and the Electoral Act 1989. Traditionally, 18 members of the Legislative Assembly are elected in a General Election rather than appointed by His Majesty. Within these seats, 9 Representatives are elected by the 33 Noble families in Tonga and the 9 Representatives of are elected by the People of Tonga. Electoral Seats for both the Nobles and Peoples Representatives respectively are divided as follows—3 seats in Tonga, 2 seats in Vava’u, 2 seats in Ha’apai, 1 in ‘Eua and 1 in Ha’apai. The Representatives are elected for a term of 3 years. Currently the longest serving member in the Legislative Assembly is the Peoples No. 1 Representative (Tonga) Mr. ‘Akilisi Pohiva who has been an MP for a continuous period of 18 years.
The makeup of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga is vastly different from many of the Legislative systems in other parliaments in the South Pacific. These differences maybe summarised as follows:
· Firstly, unlike other parliaments in the South Pacific, the government (represented by the Ministers) never has a majority in the House and as such must rely on the support of either the Representatives of the Nobles or the Representatives of the People in order to get legislation through the House;
· Secondly, unlike other parliaments in the South Pacific, the government does not need the confidence of the House in order to govern, only the confidence of His Majesty. For example, New Zealand has a concept known as “Responsible Ministers”, whereby Ministers are accountable to the House. As such where for some reason the Legislative Assembly (or the House of Representatives as is known over there) losses confidence in its Ministers, they may ask for a confidence vote. If the government is defeated in a confidence vote, then it is within the discretion of the Governor-General (the Queens Representative in these countries) to either –
(i) call an election; or
(ii) ask the Leader of the Opposition to form a government.
However, it is important to note that the convention is for the Governor General to listen to the advice of its Ministers, which is usual in such situations to call an early election. This is very different with the procedure that happens in Tonga. When the House looses confidence in a Minister they do not ask the Speaker for a vote of confidence, but ask that the Minister be impeached. This procedure is very similar with the procedure used in the United States. The process of impeachment is very similar to a court action, because the Legislative Assembly would put the Minister on trial and the Chief Justice presides over the hearing. Members of the Legislative Assembly would sit as jurors. A guilty verdict by the jurors could mean instant expulsion from the House and their Ministerial portfolios. Since the government (the Executive) never has a majority in the House, verdicts of accountability are more transparent.
· Thirdly, unlike other parliaments in the South Pacific, there is no party system in Tonga. Nobles and the Peoples Representatives all run for elections as independents. However, many People’s Representative candidates, such as some of the incumbents in the last election of 2004, campaigned together and on the same principals and are members of the Tonga Democratic Movement. Furthermore, in April 2005, a Party called the People's Democratic Party, was formed by Prof. Futa Helu and the former Minister of Police, Clive Edwards, but as yet, they do not have any seat in the House.
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Making Law
One of the most important and visible functions of the House is to pass legislation for which the government is governed.
Legislation is introduced into the House either as –
(i) Government Bills (which is usually introduced by the Minister of Justice); or
(ii) Private Bills (which can be introduced by any of the Representatives of the Nobles or the Representatives of the Peoples).
The Opening of Parliament House, The Center of Law-Making
In recognition of the government as the administrator of the law and the creator of policies for the benefit of the country at large, more time is given to the examination and passing of Government Bills than Private Bills. However, procedures are in-place to make sure that Private Bills can easily be introduced into the House. In the pass, private bills have rarely been passed but the House certainly encourages all members to put forward a Bill that is of interest to the country as a whole.
Before a Bill can pass as law, it goes through 3 readings in the House. In some cases, where the Bill is complicated or it raises some issues which needs to be examined more closely and the need to prioritize the House’s time, Bills maybe referred to a committee to examine the bill and make recommendations to the House. The choosing of the committee and the make-up of committees is within the discretion of the Speaker but it is a convention that the composition of committees represents the composition of the Legislative Assembly.
The Constitution states that all Bills must have the assent of His Majesty before a Bill becomes law. This practice is still widely practiced in many countries, especially Commonwealth countries. When a Bill has received its third reading in the House, it is printed and the Clerk authenticates the print before it is presented to His Majesty for the Royal Assent. The Constitution states that where a Bill does not receive the Royal Assent the Bill shall not become law and will have no legal effect and that the matter shall not be raised again in the House for at least 1 year. However, it is very rare that Bills do not receive the Royal Assent.
The House has developed several processes by which its holds the government into account because it has long been recognized that checks and balances are necessary in a system of government to ensure that individual power is not abused. Parliament is the law-making assembly where the opinions, interests and beliefs of all represented parties are represented. As has been mentioned, the concept of impeachment is the most serious of these “checks and balances” and it is a process entrenched in the Constitution. However, such a “check” is very serious and only in the most exceptional cases should it be used because the penalty for such a charge is very severe (which is instant dismissal of the Minister upon a guilty verdict by the House). It is important to emphasize here that only Ministers can be impeached because they are the only members of the House that represents the government. Hence, before someone is impeached in the House, it customary that a committee should examine all the facts relating to the matter to see whether the claim is well founded (a process similar to a preliminary hearing in court).
However, perhaps the most frequent and visible means is question time (which usually takes place in the Legislative Assembly every Thursday during weeks where the House is in session). This is a chance for Representatives to question Ministers on their administration of the countries affairs. They can be very powerful means of extracting information that might bring into question the performance of individual Ministers or the Government as a whole. Another significant means is the ability of the House to form select committees to initiate inquiries into certain governmental agencies or Boards. If necessary witnesses maybe asked to attain and the production of records maybe required. The rights of the House to conduct such inquiries are entrenched in the common laws of Tonga per adoption of English common laws.
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Debates
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Since the House is where all laws are enacted or repealed, and is the central place where all issues affecting the Kingdom from both a micro and macro perspective, all issues before the House are heavily and at times heatedly discussed. Since the executive arm of government (the Executive) never has a majority in the House, they must always rely on the support of either the Noble's or People's Representatives to push government legislation through.
Debates in the House take place according to the following seating arrangement -
Debates in the House are chaired and governed by the Speaker in reconciliation with the Legislative Assembly's Rules of Proceedings and Standing Orders. The Speaker maintains order by exercising his powers to punish members for disorderly behaviour and contempt.
History
Residence
Brief History of the Kingdom of Tonga
The Beginning
It has been suggested by archaeological exploration that settlement in Tonga began around 1200BC. Recently, discoveries of pottery particles called "Lapita" in Tonga, proved to be from the Rewa River in Fiji. This confirmed the theory that Tonga was once the centre point for migration to all the civilizations in the South Pacific. The "Lapita" people had the ability to sail the open seas for thousands of miles and their navigation skills were second to none.
The first known rulers or Tu'i Tonga (King) are believed to have existed during the 9th century AD, and according to legend the first Tu'i Tonga, was the son of the supreme god, Tangaloa, and of a young Tongan girl, Va'epopua.
Long before the first Europeans first came to Tonga, the Tongans were feared warriors all over the pacific and at one stage had conquered Samoa, Niue and parts of Fiji. However, around the 13th century the Tongan empire collapsed due to a number of bloody battles from upraises and internal problems back in Tonga. In 1470, the Tu'i Tonga who grew tiresome of all the routine work of controlling the affairs of the country delegated much of his day-to-day role to the Tu'i Ha'atakalaua, who was the younger brother of the then ruling King. Having delegated his powers, the Tu'i Tonga became the spiritual leader. In the 17th century, the Tu'i Ha'atakalaua again delegated his powers to another ruler, the Tu'i Kanokupolu, who acted as an intermediary between the Tu'i Tonga and the Tu'i Ha'atakalaua. The three ruling families lived in peace during the 16th and early 17th century but as their dynasties grew, fierce fighting began to emerge between the three groups controlling Tongatapu, Ha'apai and Vava'u.
The first Europeans to come across the islands were the Dutch navigators Schouten and Lemaire in 1616. Captain Cook, who visited the islands three times, was so enchanted by the hospitality he received that he called Tonga the "Friendly Islands". However, little did he know that a plan had been set for his execution by Finau 'Ulukalala II, although there were disagreement between the Chiefs and did not reach a final decision before Captain Cook set sail.
Pictured above, is one of the earliest missionary to Tonga.
The earliest missionaries were Wesleyan, who arrived around the 1810's were the most successful. French Catholic missionaries arrived not too long afterwards, but were not as successful. The fact that some of the leading chiefs in Tonga, particularly the Tu'i Kanokupolu family were beginning to question the validity of the old order contributed to the eventual success of the mission.
Unification
It was a descendant of the Tu'i Kanokupolu line, then the young Taufa'ahau, son of Tupouto'a and grandson of Tuku'aho who emerged as the maker of modern Tonga. Indeed he became the ruler of Ha'apai in 1820, and by the time the French Catholic missionaries arrived, the Wesleyans had already converted Taufa'ahau in 1834. He adopted the name King George in 1831 and his influence also converted Finau 'Ulukala Tuapasi to Christianity, who was the ruler of Vava'u. This angered many of the Chiefs in Vava'u but with Taufa'ahau's warriors' aide, resistance was quickly halted. Upon Finau's death, he named his successor Taufa'ahau and this became the first important step to unification.
The great wars between Taufa'ahau and the Ha'a Havea (chiefs of the Tongatapu group) broke out in 1837 and again in 1840. Taufa'ahau was assisted in these battles by Siosaia Aleamotu'a (who was the incumbent Tu'i Kanokupolu in Tonga) and who was also a converted Christian. When Aleamotu'a died in 1845 after naming his successor Taufa'ahau, King George immediately assumed rulership of the whole of Tonga. Although there were still opposition, this was finally put rest in the last civil war of 1852.
Once Tonga's internal political struggles had been favourably resolved, King George turned his attention to establishing and maintaining independence by trying to secure its recognition by the major powers. He set to improve Tonga's legal system, and eventually enacted Tonga's Constitution in 1875. He also converted most of the people to Christianity and guaranteed for each Tongan a garden plot and a house lot.
Constitution and Modern Tonga
King George Tupuo
King George Tupou I died in February 1893 at the age of 97. Everything came to a halt as the country mourned a truly remarkable leader, measured by any standard of the world. It was King George's great grandson who was only 19 years old who succeeded him. He was the son of the daughter of the son of King George Tupou I who was Crown Prince David 'Unga before he died in Auckland in December 1889. Within the first few months of his coronation in 1896, King George Tupou II dismissed the Tuku'aho government blaming them for not putting under quarantine the ship that had bought the measles epidemic to Tonga. Sateki Tonga was made the new Premier. This state of tension was exhilarated , when contrary to popular advice from his chiefs, Tupou II insisted on marrying Lavinia, a descendent of the Tu'i Tonga line, instead of 'Ofa, a descendant from the Tu'i Ha'atakalaua line. This caused antagonism amongst a number of chiefs and were only silence when it was argued that according to the Constitution the Kings approval was required for the marriage of any member of the Royal family, and that therefore, he had the right to decide for himself whom he wanted to marry.
The most important constitutional amendments during Tupou II's reign were passed at a special session of Parliament in December 1914. These reforms provided for a smaller Legislative Assembly to sit annually instead of every 3 years, and for the election of nobles. The King held meetings with the nobles and representatives to explain the need to reduce the size of the Legislative Assembly, which then had 70 members for a population of 22,000, largely for economic reasons, since the outbreak of World War I had bought a significant decrease in government revenue.
King George Tupou II died on 5 April 1918 and was succeeded by his daughter who was crowned Queen Salote Tupou III in October that year. She had a commanding presence and a radiant and attractive personality, which endeared her to everyone, including British Officials. During WWII Tonga formed a local defence force of about 2000 men, which saw action in the Solomon Islands. New Zealand and US troops were stationed on Tongatapu, which became a staging point for shipping. In 1917 she married Tungi Mailefihi, son of Tuku'aho and direct descendent of the Tu'i Ha'atakalaua line. He succeeded Tu'ivakano as Premier in 1923 and held the position until his death in 1941.
Queen Salote
Queen Salote's reign was not completely free of problems but she handle it with care and skill. One of these, was the on-going tension between the 2 Methodism fractions in Tonga. She decided to initiate a reunion of the two fractions under the name the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga. She succeeded in bringing two thirds of the Free Church to the union, but her influence meant that the bitterness felt towards each fraction gradually faded away. It was also under her reign that Clause 64 of the Constitution was amended to give women the right to vote. Queen Salote's major achievements were the stabilization of the relationship between the Tongan government and British Officials, the development of social services such as education and public health which bought about population growth. Pictured left: Queen Salote in one of her visits to England.
Queen Salote died on 16 December 1965 and was succeeded by Prince Tungi, who was crowned King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV. His legal training and wide experience in international relations facilitated Tonga's full independence in 1976 and was readmitted to the Commonwealth. King Taufa'ahau's reign has emphasized economic development, and the country has even enjoyed a pumpkin-led boom in recent years, with massive exports of pumpkins to the profitable Japanese export market.
Today, Tonga is a place where great importance is placed on maintaining social and political harmony, consensus and tolerance. Tongan society remains conservative, with reverence for the monarchy and strong attachments to the church. Sabbath observance laws are still applied per the Constitution, with no sport or general commercial trading on Sundays (with the exception of bakeries, island/beach resorts).
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Parliament House
Parliament House is a well-preserved 19th Century wooden, single room structure, that reminds many, of the old picturesque English houses of yesteryears. It has significant heritage value and carries much of Tonga's modern history, but does have some restrictions in-terms of size, making it too small to provide public access. The interior and exterior of the building has been renovated many times, the last time being 2003. With the induction of the 4 new Ministers into the House, making a total of 34 members, instead of the traditional 30, plan is underway to extend the House, and work is likely to commence in late 2005. (Above - Parliament House as taken in 2004). Also in 2003, ceiling fans (although, perhaps air-conditioning maybe introduce to combat the enduring heat - especially when members are required to wear a neck-tie and jacket), new lights, new curtains, microphones and new tables were installed. Each member has a set of the Laws of Tonga to assist them with their Parliamentary duties. The amendments of the Acts are also distributed to members on a regular basis. Parliament also provided funds for the installation of its own broadcasting equipment (before equipment was borrowed from the Tonga Broadcasting Corporation). 
Inside the Television Broadcasting Room In 2003
This means that parliament can now televise its own television programmes and keep video and audio files of all the proceedings of the House. 
Inside the Chambers of the Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly acquired the adjourning premises, picture left, which was to that point used as the Statistics Department of the government of Tonga. They have since moved to the top floor of the Si'i Kae Ola Building, located on Taufa'ahau road in Nuku'alofa. This meant that the Legislative Assembly acquired new offices to be used by the Speaker, the Chairman of the Whole and its members. It was also able to set-up a parliamentary library to aide members, a new Hansards office, a printing office, and a members computer room (see, map of the premises). Computers are available in all offices of the Parliament, including the conference rooms of the Representatives.
The Member's Common Room
The parliament conference room is equipped with air-conditioning and copies of all the Laws of Tonga. Furthermore, recognizing the amount of pressure and stress that members experience in their parliamentary duties, a members common room was built in 2003. It is equipped with television, stereo, snooker table, tea facilities, book shelves and a bar.
The Mace
The Mace is the symbol of the authority of the Speaker in the House. It is a practice adopted from England and it is a common symbol amongst most Commonwealth countries. At the beginning of every parliament session, the mace is carried into the House by the Sergeant at Arms and is placed on the end of the table of the Clerk. At the end of every parliament session, the Sergeant at Arms carries the mace and leads out the Speaker. The current mace (pictured above) was donated by the Parliament of New Zealand in 2003.
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