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POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS xxix

former portfolios, were attributed ministerial rank. The President of
the Council became a Prime Minister. The decree conferred upon
the new Cabinet “all the powers and functions of the Council of
State", which included the power to propose legislation to the Amir.
On 16 December 1971, the Amir stated in an announcement to his
people that he had authorised his Council of Ministers to work on
presenting a proposed constitution during 1972. The procedure
required for passing the said constitution shall be specified by a
decree to be issued in due course, the Amir said.1 Consequently, an
Amiri Decree, issued on 20 June 1972,2 provided for the election of a
Constituent Assembly, empowered to approve a draft constitution
for the country. According to Article 1 of the Decree, the Assembly
shall be constituted from (a) 22 members to be elected by universal
secret suffrage, (b) not more than 10 members to be nominated by a
decree, and (c) the Cabinet Ministers, who will be members ex
officio. Under Article 6, the Council of Ministers shall submit a draft
constitution to the Assembly within four months, after which period
the Assembly shall complete its consideration and approval of the
said document within a period not exceeding six months from the
date of its first meeting. Election procedures for the Constituent
Assembly and the conditions of the right to vote were provided in
another decree, issued on 16 July 1972.3
On 1 December 1972, Bahrain, which was divided by the Decree
of 20 June 1972, into eightconstituencies,elected 22 members for the
Constituent Assembly. And on 9 December 1972, the Amir
appointed, by a Decree, eight members for the said Assembly.4

On 16 December 1972, the date of Bahrain’s National Day, the
Amir convened the Constituent Assembly, which comprised 22
elected members, 8 appointed members and 12 Ministers as ex
officio members. This marked the beginning of the 6-month term of
office of the Assembly.5 The Constituent Assembly met
twice-weekly and held 45 meetings between 16 December 1972 and 9
June 1973. During those meetings, members of the Assembly
discussed in details the provisions of a draft Constitution which was
submitted by the Cabinet to the Assembly on 16 December 1972.
1. Private papers of the author.
2. Decree No. 12 for 1972, concerning the Establishment of a Constituent
Assembly for Preparing a Constitution for the State, al-Jaridah al-Rasmiyah
No. 974, dated 22 June 1972.
3. Decree No. 13 for 1972, concerning Election Procedures, al-Jaridah
al-Rasmiyah No. 978, 20 July 1972
4. See Decree No. 18 for 1972, appointing Eight Members in the Constituent
Assembly, al-Jaridah al-Rasmiyah,No. 998, dated 14 December 1972.
5. Decree No. 19 for 1972. Inviting the Constituent Assembly to meet on 16
December 1972, al-Jaridah al-Rasmiyah, No. 998, dated 14 December 1972.