Constitutional Structure: Judiciary, Rights, Defense & Finance

Judiciary and Legal Codes

The judiciary is a matter for the courts (Art. 17). Codes exist only in civil, criminal, and commercial matters across the country (Art. 248), except for the clergy and military, who enjoy special privileges. The courts enforce the law through due process.

Individual Rights and Criminal Guarantees

Other titles in the Constitution recognize individual rights, such as:

• freedom,
• property,
• tax and legal equality,
• the inviolability of the home (Art. 306),
• criminal guarantees,
• freedom of the press, among others.

However, although there was an express declaration of the rights of the individual or citizen, as in France, these rights appear scattered throughout the articles of the Constitution. It also contains a number of duties (Art. 6-9).

Organization of the State

Regarding the organization of the State (Art. 10 and 11), the Constitution establishes the division into provinces, each headed by a superior officer appointed by the king (Art. 324), along with a provincial council, an elective collegiate body.

Local Government and National Militia

Municipalities would be governed by elected councils, headed by an elected mayor. In each province, the National Militia was organized — an armed civilian body controlled by local authorities, whose task was to defend the nation and, therefore, the Constitution (Art. 362-365).

Armed Forces and Conscription

The organization of the Army (and Navy) and the obligation of all citizens to join it when required are addressed in Title VIII (Art. 356-361).

Treasury Reform

The reform of the Treasury is developed in several sections of the Constitution (Art. 338-355). It abolished the traditional income tax and established a direct and unique contribution, although its implementation was frustrated by the dismal economic situation in the state.

Public Education

The Constitution establishes the obligation for the State to promote public education (Art. 366-370), given the value attributed by the enlightened design of education.

Constitutional Amendment and Intangibility Clause

Finally, Title X provides that reform of the Constitution is possible but cannot occur until after eight years of its implementation and only through a complex process. The time-of-intangibility clause (Art. 375–381) made it very difficult to amend the Constitution.