The legislative power in Algeria is made up of two chambers of parliament. These chambers are called the People’s National Assembly and the Council of the Nation. These chambers hold great responsibility and influence in the Republic of Algeria.
Most of the members of these chambers are elected however one third of the members of the Council of the Nation are selected by the President of the Republic. These members are generally national personalities or people that are qualified in many fields. Some of these fields include science, economic and sociology.
The parliament of Algeria meets for two sessions a year. These sessions are fairly lengthy and last for a minimum of four months per session. If the President of the Republic wishes to hold an extraordinary session of parliament her may do so.
It is also important to note that a meeting of the parliament can also be called by the Head of Government or by two-thirds of the members of the People’s National Assembly.
The members of both the People’s National Assembly and the Council of the Nation all have the benefit of parliamentary immunity. This means that none of the members of these chambers can be arrested or prosecuted for a crime or misdemeanor in the duration of their mandate. There are couple of situations that would allow a member of parliament to be arrested. The first is if the majority of the members of either the People’s National Assembly or the Council of Chambers vote to lift the immunity or if a very serious crime has been committed.
While the members of these legislative groups enjoy many benefits they also hold great responsibility. It is essentially their job to make sure that the issues brought to them are heard and debated upon fairly by the chambers.
