Liberum veto

Liberum veto

"Liberum veto" (Latin: "I freely forbid") was a parliamentary device in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth that allowed any deputy to a Sejm to force an immediate end to the current session and nullify all legislation already passed at it.

This rule evolved from a unanimity principle (unanimous consent), and the latter from the federative character of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which was essentially a federation of countries. Each deputy to a Sejm was elected at a local "regional" "sejm" (sejmik) and represented the entire region. He thus assumed responsibility to his sejmik for all decisions taken at the Sejm. A decision taken by a majority against the will of a minority (even if only a single sejmik) was considered a violation of the principle of political equality.

It is commonly, and erroneously, believed that a Sejm was first disrupted by means of "liberum veto" by a Trakai deputy, Władysław Siciński, in 1652. In reality, however, he only vetoed the continuation of the Sejm's deliberations beyond the statutory time limit. It was only in 1669, in Kraków, that a Sejm was prematurely disrupted on the strength of the "liberum veto", by the Kiev deputy, Adam Olizar.

In the first half of the 18th century, it became increasingly common for Sejm sessions to be broken up by "liberum veto", as the Commonwealth's neighbours — chiefly Russia and Prussia — found this a useful tool to frustrate attempts at reforming and strengthening the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth deteriorated from a European power into a state of anarchy.

1764

After 1764 the "liberum veto" practically went out of use: the principle of unanimity did not bind "confederated sejms," and so deputies formed a "confederation" (Polish: konfederacja) at the beginning of a session in order to prevent its disruption by "liberum veto".

The "liberum veto" was abolished by the May 3rd, 1791, Constitution (adopted by a confederated sejm), which permanently established the principle of majority rule.

The achievements of that constitution, however — claimed to be Europe's first modern codified constitution — were undone by another confederated sejm, meeting at Grodno in 1793. That Sejm, under duress from Russia and Prussia, ratified the penultimate, Second Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

References

ee also

* consensus decision-making


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  • Liberum veto — (du latin, littéralement « j interdis librement ») était un outil parlementaire dans la république des Deux Nations (union de Pologne Lituanie), qui autorisait n importe quel député du Sejm (diète polonaise) à forcer un arrêt immédiat… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Liberum veto —   [lateinisch »das freie »ich verbiete««], das im polnischen Sejm (Reichstag) 1652 1791 geltende Recht, nach dem jeder Abgeordnete gegen einen Beschluss Einspruch einlegen konnte, ohne diesen weiter begründen zu müssen. Danach konnte der Sejm… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • liberum veto — лат. (либэрум вэто) букв. «свободное вето» с 16 в. до конца 18 в. в польском сейме право свободного протеста, в силу которого один возражающий член сейма мог сделать недействительным постановление сейма. Толковый словарь иностранных слов Л. П.… …   Словарь иностранных слов русского языка

  • Libērum veto — (lat., »das freie ›ich verbiete‹«), das Recht der polnischen Reichstagsmitglieder, durch ihren Einspruch (poln. nie pozwolam, »ich gestatte nicht«) einen Beschluß des Reichstags zu verhindern; es wurde 1652 zum erstenmal von dem Landboten… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Liberum Veto — Libĕrum Veto (lat.), die gesetzliche Befugnis jedes Mitgliedes des poln. Reichstags, durch seinen Einspruch jeden Beschluß desselben ungültig zu machen …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Liberum Veto — Das so genannte Liberum Veto (lat.: veto → dt.: ich verbiete) war ein Einspruchsrecht im polnischen Parlament, dem Sejm. Dort hatte jeder Abgeordnete im 17. und 18. Jahrhundert die Möglichkeit, durch einen einzelnen Einspruch (Veto) einen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Liberum veto — «Свободное вето» (лат. Liberum veto)  принцип парламентского устройства в Речи Посполитой, который позволял любому депутату сейма прекратить обсуждение вопроса в сейме и работу сейма вообще, выступив против. Истоком этого принципа стала …   Википедия

  • Liberum veto — Das so genannte Liberum Veto (veto: lat = ich verbiete) war ein Einspruchsrecht im polnischen Reichstag, dem Sejm. Dort hatte jeder Abgeordnete im 17. und 18. Jahrhundert die Möglichkeit, durch einen einzelnen Einspruch (Veto) einen Beschluss zu… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • liberum veto — /lib euhr euhm, lee beuhr / a veto exercised by a single member of a legislative body whose rules require unanimity. [1785 95; < L liberum, neut. of liber free] * * * ▪ Polish government       in Polish history, the legal right of each member of… …   Universalium

  • liberum veto — ˈlibərəm noun Etymology: Latin liberum (neuter of liber free) + English veto more at liberal : a veto exercised by a single member (as of a legislative body) under rules requiring unanimous consent the anarchic potentialities of the liberum veto… …   Useful english dictionary

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