PDF generated: 28 Mar 2017, 17:48 constituteproject.org Colombia's Constitution of 1991 with Amendments through 2015 © Oxford University Press, Inc. Translated by Max Planck Institute, with updates by the Comparative Constitutions Project. Prepared for distribution on constituteproject.org with content generously provided by Oxford University Press. This document has been recompiled and reformatted using texts collected in Oxford’s Constitutions of the World and the repository of the Compa constituteproject.org PDF generated: 28 Mar 2017, 17:48 Table of contents Preamble.
4 TITLE I: On Fundamental Principles. 4 TITLE II: On Rights, Guarantees, and Duties. 5 Chapter I: On Fundamental Rights. 5 Chapter II: On Social, Economic, and Cultural Rights.
10 Chapter III: On Collective Rights and the Environment. 20 Chapter IV: On the Protection and Application of Rights. 21 Chapter V: On Duties and Obligations. 23 TITLE III: On the Population and the Territory.
24 Chapter I: On Nationality. 24 Chapter II: On Citizenship. 25 Chapter III: On Aliens. 25 Chapter IV: On Territory.
25 TITLE IV: On Democratic Participation and Political Parties. 26 Chapter I: On the Forms of Democratic Participation. 26 Chapter II: On Political Parties and Political Movements. 27 Chapter III: On the Status of the Opposition.
30 TITLE V: On the Organization of the State. 31 Chapter I: On the Structure of the State. 31 Chapter II: On the Public Service. 32 TITLE VI: On the Legislative Branch.
35 Chapter I: On its Composition and Functions. 35 Chapter II: On its Sessions and Activities. 38 Chapter III: On Statutes. 40 Chapter IV: On the Senate.
47 Chapter V: On the House of Representatives. 49 Chapter VI: On Members of Congress. 52 TITLE VII: On the Executive Branch. 54 Chapter I: On the President of the Republic.
54 Chapter II: On the Government. 59 Chapter III: On the Vice President. 60 Chapter IV: On the Ministers and Directors of Administrative Departments. 60 Chapter V: On the Administrative Function.
61 Chapter VI: On the States of Exception. 62 Chapter VII: On the Public Force. 64 Chapter VIII: On International Relations .org PDF generated: 28 Mar 2017, 17:48 TITLE VIII: On the Judicial Branch. 66 Chapter I: General Provisions.
66 Chapter II: On Ordinary Jurisdiction. 68 Chapter III: On Contentious Administrative Jurisdiction. 69 Chapter IV: On Constitutional Jurisdiction. 70 Chapter V: On Special Jurisdictions.
72 Chapter VI: On the Office of Attorney General of the Nation. 73 Chapter VII: Government and Administration of the Judicial Branch. 76 TITLE IX: On Elections and the Electoral System. 78 Chapter I: On the Suffrage and Elections.
78 Chapter II: On the Electoral Authorities. 80 TITLE X: On the Control Organisms. 82 Chapter I: On the Office of Controller General of the Republic. 82 Chapter II: On the Public Ministry.
86 TITLE XI: On the Territorial Organization. 88 Chapter I: General Provisions. 88 Chapter II: On the Departmental Regime. 90 Chapter III: On the Municipal Regime.
96 Chapter IV: On the Special Regime. 101 TITLE XII: On the Economic and Public Finance Regime. 104 Chapter I: General Provisions. 104 Chapter II: On Development Plans.
106 Chapter III: On the Budget. 108 Chapter IV: On the Distribution of Resources and Jurisdictions. 111 Chapter V: On the Social Purpose of the State and of the Public Services. 119 Chapter VI: On the Central Bank.
120 TITLE XIII: On Constitutional Reform. 122 New Transitional Article: (from Legislative Act No.org PDF generated: 28 Mar 2017, 17:48 • Source of constitutional authority • God or other deities Preamble • Motives for writing constitution • Regional group(s) The people of Colombia, In the exercise of their sovereign power, represented by their delegates to the National Constituent Assembly, invoking the protection of God, and in order to strengthen the unity of the nation and ensure to its members life, peaceful coexistence, work, justice, equality, understanding, freedom, and peace within a legal, democratic, and participatory framework that may guarantee a just political, economic, and social order and committed to promote the integration of the Latin American community, decree, authorize, and promulgate the following: TITLE I: On Fundamental Principles • Human dignity • Reference to fraternity/solidarity Article 1 • Type of government envisioned Colombia is a social state under the rule of law, organized in the form of a unitary republic, decentralized, with autonomy of its territorial units, democratic, participatory, and pluralistic, based on the respect of human dignity, the work and solidarity of the individuals who belong to it, and the prevalence of the general interest. Article 2 The essential goals of the State are to serve the community, promote the general prosperity, and guarantee the effectiveness of the principles, rights, and duties stipulated by the Constitution; to facilitate participation by everyone in the decisions that affect them and in the economic, political, administrative, and cultural life of the nation; to defend national independence, maintain territorial integrity, and ensure peaceful coexistence and enforcement of a just order. The authorities of the Republic are established in order to protect all individuals residing in Colombia, in their life, honor, property, beliefs, and other rights and freedoms, and in order to ensure the fulfillment of the social duties of the State and individuals.
Article 3 Sovereignty resides exclusively in the people from whom public power emanates. The people exercise it in direct form or through their representatives, within the limits established by the Constitution. Article 4 The Constitution provides the norm of regulations. In all cases of incompatibility between the Constitution and the statute or other legal regulations, the constitutional provisions shall apply.
• Duty to obey the constitution It is the duty of citizens and of aliens in Colombia to obey the Constitution and the laws, and to respect and obey the authorities.org PDF generated: 28 Mar 2017, 17:48 Article 5 The State recognizes, without any discrimination whatsoever, the primacy of the inalienable rights of the individual and protects the family as the basic institution of society. • Ultra-vires administrative actions Article 6 Individuals are solely responsible before the authorities for violations of the Constitution and the laws. Public servants are responsible for the same violations and the omissions or ultra vires acts committed in the exercise of their functions. • Right to culture Article 7 The State recognizes and protects the ethnic and cultural diversity of the Colombian Nation.
• Right to culture Article 8 It is the obligation of the State and of individuals to protect the cultural and natural assets of the nation. • Regional group(s) Article 9 • International law The external relations of the state are based on national sovereignty, on respect for • Right to self determination the self-determination of peoples, and on the recognition of the principles of international law approved by Colombia. In the same manner, the foreign policy of Colombia shall be oriented toward the integration of Latin America and the Caribbean. • Official or national languages • Protection of language use Article 10 Spanish is the official language of Colombia.
The languages and dialects of ethnic groups are also official in their territories. The education provided in communities with their own linguistic traditions shall be bilingual. TITLE II: On Rights, Guarantees, and Duties Chapter I: On Fundamental Rights • Prohibition of capital punishment • Inalienable rights Article 11 • Right to life The right to life is inviolate. There shall be no death penalty.
• Prohibition of cruel treatment • Prohibition of torture Article 12 No one shall be subjected to forced sequestration, torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.org PDF generated: 28 Mar 2017, 17:48 Article 13 • General guarantee of equality All individuals are born free and equal before the law, shall receive equal protection • Equality regardless of gender • Equality regardless of creed or belief and treatment from the authorities, and shall enjoy the same rights, freedoms, and • Equality regardless of political party • Equality regardless of origin opportunities without any discrimination on account of gender, race, national or • Equality regardless of race • Equality regardless of language family origin, language, religion, political opinion, or philosophy. • Equality regardless of religion The State shall promote the conditions so that equality may be real and effective and • Provisions for wealth redistribution • Mentions of social class shall adopt measures in favor of groups that are discriminated against or marginalized. • State support for the disabled The State shall especially protect those individuals who on account of their economic, physical, or mental condition are in obviously vulnerable circumstances and shall sanction the abuses or ill-treatment perpetrated against them. Article 14 Every individual has the right to have his/her legal identity recognized.
• Right to privacy Article 15 • Right to information All individuals have the right to personal and family privacy and to their good • Right to protect one's reputation reputation, and the State has to respect them and to make others respect them. Similarly, individuals have the right to know, update, and rectify information collected about them in data banks and in the records of public and private entities. Freedom and the other guarantees approved in the Constitution shall be respected in the collection, processing, and circulation of data. Correspondence and other forms of private communication may not be violated.
They may only be intercepted or recorded on the basis of a court order in cases and following the formalities established by statute. For tax or legal purposes and for cases of inspection, the oversight and intervention of the State may demand making available accounting records and other private documents within the limits provided by statute. • Right to development of personality Article 16 All individuals are entitled to the unrestricted development of their identity without limitations other than those imposed by the rights of others and the legal order. • Prohibition of slavery Article 17 Slavery, servitude, and the slave trade in all forms are prohibited.
• Freedom of opinion/thought/conscience Article 18 Freedom of conscience is guaranteed. No one shall be importuned on account of his/her convictions or beliefs or compelled to reveal them or obliged to act against his/her conscience. • Freedom of religion Article 19 Freedom of religion is guaranteed. Every individual has the right to freely profess his/her religion and to disseminate it individually or collectively.
All religious faiths and churches are equally free before the law.org PDF generated: 28 Mar 2017, 17:48 • Freedom of expression • Freedom of press Article 20 Every individual is guaranteed the freedom to express and diffuse his/her thoughts and opinions, to transmit and receive information that is true and impartial, and to establish mass communications media. The latter are free and have social responsibility. The right to make corrections under conditions of equity is guaranteed. There shall be no censorship.
• Human dignity Article 21 The right to dignity is guaranteed. An Act shall provide the manner in which it shall be upheld. Article 22 Peace is a right and a duty of which compliance is mandatory. • Right of petition Article 23 Every individual has the right to present respectful petitions to the authorities on account of general or private interest and to secure prompt resolution of same.
The legislative body shall be able to regulate its exercise by private organizations in order to guarantee fundamental rights. • Freedom of movement • Restrictions on entry or exit Article 24 Any Colombian citizen, except for the limitations established by statute, has the right to move about freely across the national territory, to enter and exit the country, and to remain and reside in Colombia.