Chad Republic
Constitution of March 31, 1996 revised
Chad, proclaimed Republic on November 28, 1958, acceded to national and international sovereignty on August 11, 1960.
Since that date, it has experienced a turbulent institutional and political evolution.
Years of dictatorship and one party have prevented the emergence of any democratic culture and political pluralism.
The various regimes which have succeeded have created and maintained regionalism, tribalism, nepotism, social inequalities, violations of human rights and fundamental individual and collective freedoms, the consequences of which have been war, violence politics, hatred, intolerance and mistrust between the different communities that make up the Chadian Nation.
This institutional and political crisis that has shaken Chad for more than three decades has not, however, weakened the determination of the Chadian people to achieve nation-building, dignity, freedom, peace and prosperity.
Thus, the Sovereign National Conference, held in N'Djaména from January 15 to April 7, 1993 and having brought together political parties, civil society associations, state bodies, traditional and religious authorities, representatives of the world rural and resource personalities, restored the confidence of the Chadian people and enabled the dawn of a new era.
Consequently, We the Chadian people:
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Affirm by this Constitution our will to live together with respect for ethnic, religious, regional and cultural diversity; to build a rule of law and a united Nation founded on public freedoms and fundamental human rights, the dignity of the human person and political pluralism, on the African values of solidarity and fraternity;
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Reaffirm our attachment to the principles of Human Rights as defined by the Charter of the United Nations of 1945, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 and the African Charter of Human and Peoples' Rights of nineteen eighty one ;
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Solemnly proclaim our right and our duty to resist and disobey any individual or group of individuals, any body of state which seizes power by force or exercises it in violation of this Constitution;
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Affirm our total opposition to any regime whose policy would be based on arbitrariness, dictatorship, injustice, corruption, concussion, nepotism, clanism, tribalism, confessionalism and the confiscation of power;
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Affirm our will to cooperate in peace and friendship with all peoples sharing our ideals of freedom, justice and solidarity, on the basis of the principles of equality, reciprocal interests, mutual respect and sovereignty national, territorial integrity and non-interference;
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Proclaim our attachment to the cause of African unity and our commitment to do everything possible to achieve sub-regional and regional integration;
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Solemnly adopt this Constitution as the supreme law of the State.