Freedom of assembly

“ II. Because our passing from our Protestation doth import a real acknowledgement of the lawfulness and freedom of the Assemblies in regard of their constitution, and of power in them to inflict and take off Censures, and so by our own consent, doth not only retract and condemn the testimony which we formerly gave against the same, But also obstructeth the remeading of what is past, and the attaining a lawful, free, General Assembly for the time to come, and so wreaths about our own neck, and the necks of the Lords People, the yoke of unfree, corrupt, and unlawful Assemblies. ”

“ As for your pretence of your unlimited Freedom, you indeed refused so much as to hear from His Majesties Commissioner, of any precedent Treaty for the preparing and right-ordering of things before the Assembly; alledging, that it could not be a free Assembly where there was any Prelimitation either of the Choosers, or of those to be chosen, or of things to be treated of in the Assembly, but that all things must be discussed upon the place, else the Assembly could not be free: but whether you your selves have not violated that which you call Freedom, let any man judge ”

“ For the People: And truly I desire their Liberty and Freedom, as much as any Body whomsoever; but I must tell you, That their Liberty and Freedom consists in having of Government, those Laws by which their Life and their Goods may be most their own. ”

“ You have called for a Free General Assembly: His Majesty hath granted you one, most Free on his part, and in his intentions; but as you have handled and marred the matter, let God and the World judge, whether the least shadow or footstep of Freedom can be discerned in this Assembly, by any man who hath not given a Bill of Divorce both to his Understanding and Conscience. With what wresting and wringing your last Protestation charges His Majesties last Gracious Proclamation in the point of Prelimitations, is both known and misliked by many even of your own pretended Covenant ”

“ We respect the freedom and culture of other nations, and shall strive to cooperate with every nation of the world.
We hold that human existence is based on human dignity.
We hold that individual freedom can only be complete in cooperation with others. ”

“ The very purpose of a Bill of Rights was to withdraw certain subjects from the vicissitudes of political controversy, to place them beyond the reach of majorities and officials and to establish them as legal principles to be applied by the courts. One's right to life, liberty, and property, to free speech, a free press, freedom of worship and assembly, and other fundamental rights may not be submitted to vote; they depend on the outcome of no elections. ”

“ Isn't it a crowd of the same enemies of the people? Isn't this 'Parliament' against our will? Shall we, proletarians, consider the question of a Constituent Assembly? Would it not be an act of counter-revolution? ”

“ In adopting that definitive form of gouvernment, her proposed aim is to advance with greater freedom in the path of civilization and progress, to ensure that the burdens and advantages of society shall be more and more equitably apportioned, to augment the comfort of every individual by the gradual reduction of the public expenses and taxes, and by the successive and constant action of her institutions and laws cause the whole body of citizens to attain, without further commotion, a constantly increasing degree of morality, intelligence and prosperity. ”

“ A majority of two-thirds of the votes of the Members of Parliament present is required to pass the law on the freedom of belief and religion.
Article 61. (1) In the Republic of Hungary everyone has the right to the freedom of speech and to freely express his opinion, and furthermore to access and disseminate information of public interest.
(2) The Republic of Hungary recognizes and protects the freedom of the press.
(3) In a democracy, with a view to forming an educated opinion in matters of public interest, everyone has the right to free access to information proper. ”

“ This moderation, this humanity, are the fruits of a hundred and fifty years of liberty. During many generations we have had legislative assemblies which, however defective their constitution might be, have always contained many members chosen by the people, and many others eager to obtain the approbation of the people;—assemblies in which perfect freedom of debate was allowed;—assemblies in which the smallest minority had a fair hearing;—assemblies in which abuses, even when they were not redressed, were at least exposed. ”

“ Free association should be the result of a free and voluntary choice by the peoples of the territory concerned expressed through informed and democratic processes. It should be one which respects the individuality and the cultural characteristics of the territory and its peoples, and retains for the peoples of the territory which is associated with an independent state the freedom to modify the status of that territory through the expression of their will by democratic means and through constitutional processes. ”

“ Why truly, we have "a right of choosing an assembly, which with the concurrence of his Majesty's Governor, hath a power of enacting local statutes, establishing taxes, &c. - Yet still in subordination to the general laws of the empire, reserving the full right of supremacy & dominion, which are in themselves unalienable." If I understand his meaning in this dark expression, it is this, we have a right of choosing an assembly, but this assembly is controulable in all its acts, by another assembly which we have no right to choose, and which has this right of controul in itself unalienable. ”

“ Every person shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include the freedom to choose or change religion or any other persuasion, and the freedom for every person to proclaim, refrain from proclaiming, profess or teach his or her religion or any other persuasion by performing religious acts, ceremonies or in any other way, whether individually or jointly with others, in the public domain or in his or her private life. ”

“ Unless a representative assembly is sure of being supported in the last resort by the physical strength of large masses who have spirit to defend the constitution and sense to defend it in concert, the mob of the town in which it meets may overawe it;—the howls of the listeners in its glory may silence its deliberations;—an able and daring individual may dissolve it. And, if that sense and that spirit of which we speak be diffused through a society, then, even without a representative assembly, that society will enjoy many of the blessings of good government. ”

“ Further, desiring to secure the participation of all peace-loving peoples, including the people of Spain, in the community of nations, Recommends that if, within a reasonable time, there is not established a government which derives its authority from the consent of the governed, committed to respect freedom of speech, religion and assembly and to the prompt holding of an election in which the Spanish people, free from force and intimidation and regardless of party, may express their will, the Security Council consider the adequate measures to be taken in order to remedy the situation ”

“ Every State has the duty to refrain from any forcible action which deprives peoples referred to above in the elaboration of the present principle of their right to self-determination and freedom and independence. In their actions against, and resistance to, such forcible action in pursuit of the exercise of their right to self-determination, such peoples are entitled to seek and to receive support in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter. ”

“ The State of the Republic of Hungary shall defend the freedom and sovereignty of the people, the independence and territorial integrity of the country, and its national borders as established in international treaties. ”

“ O, sons of Joel, let us glorify the memory of our obscure ancestors, who prepared the triumph of the Revolution.
The imperishable work of the National Assembly was the Declaration of the Rights of Man. This monumental document embraced territorial and administrative unity; social, civil, political and religious equality; and above all, the formal recognition of the sovereignty of the people as the source of all power and of all functions, which it delegated to its representatives by election. ”

“ Common deliberation on common affairs is the principle, as well as the most simple form, of political liberty. This principle fully obtained at the infancy of modern nations. The national assembly was the great council in which public affairs of every kind were transacted. ”

“ It is therefore necessary that any deliberative assembly, to command respect, and proceed with as little discord as possible, should adopt certain rules, and conduct its business with a regard for certain forms and rules of procedure in order that the will of the majority may be carried out with due regard to the rights of the minority, and that the will of the assembly be ascertained with fair dealing. ”

“ The general assembly, if it has any respect for human rights, for commendable municipal government, for the performance of its sworn duty, will lay aside the struggle in legislative halls for political ascendancy, and hasten the day when this festering sore shall have applied to it an instrument of eradication which it alone can wield. ”

“ Recommends that the elections be held not later than 31 March 1948 on the basis of adult suffrage and by secret ballot to choose representatives with whom the Commission may consult regarding the prompt attainment of the freedom and independence of the Korean people and which representatives, constituting a National Assembly, may establish a National Government of Korea. The number of representatives from each voting area or zone should be proportionate to the population, and the elections should be under the observation of the Commission ”

“ THE Sovereign, having no force other than the legislative power, acts only by means of the laws; and the laws being solely the authentic acts of the general will, the Sovereign cannot act save when the people is assembled. The people in assembly, I shall be told, is a mere chimera. It is so to-day, but two thousand years ago it was not so. Has man's nature changed? ”

“ A single assembly thus constituted, without any counterpoise, balance, or equilibrium, is to have all authority, legislative, executive, and judicial, concentrated in it. It is to make a constitution and laws by its own will, execute those laws at its own pleasure, and adjudge all controversies that arise concerning the meaning and application of them, at its own discretion. ”

“ However, they favoured independence and freedom everywhere, in all attitudes and under all systems, and they felt the debate should therefore be widened to include all issues relating to freedom—such as freedom of speech and freedom to worship. ”

“ We ought to prevent the lower and middle class from forming any organisation for as long a time as possible after the first victory, and especially to oppose ourselves in serried ranks to the scheme of calling a constitutional assembly. ”

“ To overlook the distinctions which the fundamental laws of our country have made in respect to different orders of men, and to regard only the accidents of affluence and necessity, is surely unjust in itself, and unworthy of this assembly; an assembly, sir, instituted principally to protect the weak against the strong, and deputed to represent those, in a collective state, who are not considerable enough to appear singly, and claim a voice in the legislature. ”

“ Thus, regardless of the absence of any material power by which its conclusions were to be enforced, the Assembly, in the intervals between its stormy debates on the politics of the hour, traced with philosophic thoroughness the consequences of the principles of personal liberty and of equality before the law, and fashioned the order of a modern society in which privileges of class, diversity of jurisdictions, and the trammels of feudalism on industrial life were alike swept away. ”

“ Our Constitution, like every other constitution which puts the authority to make laws and the duty of controlling the public expenditure into the hands of a popular assembly, practically sets that assembly to rule the affairs of the nation as supreme overlord. ”

“ The right of free expression of opinion as well as the right to assemble peaceably and without arms, and to form associations or unions is guaranteed for purposes not opposed to public morality. Laws regulating the manner in which the right of forming associations and the right of free assembly may be exercised shall contain no political, religious or class distinction. ”

“ The great argument is, that though the Assembly have not a right to violate the constitution, yet if they in fact do so, the only remedy is, either by a humble petition that the law may be repealed, or a universal resistance of the people, But that in the mean time, their act, whatever it is, is to be obeyed as a law; for the judicial power is not to presume to question the power of an act of Assembly. ”

“ A representation of the people in one assembly being obtained, a question arises, whether all the powers of government, legislative, executive, and judicial, shall be left in this body? I think a people cannot be long free, nor ever happy, whose government is in one assembly. ”