constituteproject.org • Constitutional court powers • Emergency provisions PDF generated: 18 Apr 2016, 15:30 Article 80 In the event of imminent danger threatening the nation’s institutions or the security or independence of the country, and hampering the normal functioning of the state, the President of the Republic may take any measures necessitated by the exceptional circumstances, after consultation with the Head of Government and the Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People and informing the President of the Constitutional Court. The President shall announce the measures in a statement to the people. The measures shall guarantee, as soon as possible, a return to the normal functioning of state institutions and services. The Assembly of the Representatives of the People shall be deemed to be in a state of continuous session throughout such a period. In this situation, the President of the Republic cannot dissolve the Assembly of the Representatives of the People and a motion of censure against the government cannot be presented. Thirty days after the entry into force of these measures, and at any time thereafter, the Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People or thirty of the members thereof shall be entitled to apply to the Constitutional Court with a view to verifying whether or not the circumstances remain exceptional. The Court shall rule upon and publicly issue its decision within a period not exceeding fifteen days. These measures cease to be in force as soon as the circumstances justifying their implementation no longer apply. The President of the Republic shall address a message to the people to this effect. • Approval of general legislation Article 81 The President of the Republic shall sign laws and ensures their publication in the Official Gazette of the Tunisian Republic within a period of no more than four days from:   1. The deadline to challenge constitutionality and the deadline to return, without any of them occurring.   2. Expiry of the deadline to return after issuing a decision of constitutionality, or after the mandatory referral of the draft law to the President of the Republic in accordance with the final paragraph of Article 121.   3. The deadline to challenge the constitutionality of a draft law that was returned by the President of the Republic and after its ratification in a modified version by the Assembly of the Representatives of the People.   4. The second approval, without amendment, of a draft law, after return, by the Assembly of the Representatives of the People, without being subject to a challenge of constitutionality after the first ratification, or the issuance of a decision confirming its constitutionality, or the mandatory referral of the draft law to the President of the Republic in accordance with the final paragraph of Article 121.   5. Tunisia 2014 The court decides a law is constitutional, or after the mandatory referral of the draft law to the President of the Republic in accordance with the final paragraph of Article 121, if it was returned from the President of the Republic and was approved, in a modified version, by the Assembly. Page 18