Definition of Impeachment

Citizens who exercise high-level public representation functions are subject to compliance with the law like any other citizen. In addition to this, public servants can also be judged politically by the parliament of a nation in the event that they perform their duties in an irregular or illegal manner.

The purpose of a political trial is clear: to demand political and / or administrative responsibilities from all that public servant who has behaviors contrary to the general interest or who acted outside the law. In other words, it is about setting legal limits against possible abuses of power.

In the terminology proper to the field of government, impeachment and impeachment are equivalent terms. It should be noted, on the other hand, that in democratic countries the different representatives of the legislative power have the function of controlling those who have the executive power.

Ethics and politics

The concept of impeachment can be understood from a philosophical perspective. In this sense, thinkers such as Aristotle, Locke or Hobbes understood that the activity

politics must be founded on ethics. In other words, everything related to the exercise of political power cannot be excluded from ethics.

The origin of the concept must be historically located in the English Parliament

In the 17th century, the English monarch Carlos I was accused of tyranny and treason by the House of Commons. The parliamentary forces formed a court that tried the monarch and the sentence that was definitively applied was the death penalty. In this way, the power of the English parliament set limits to the maximum authority of the nation.

In the absolute monarchies of other times the principle of the divine origin of the monarch was maintained and, for Therefore, the monarch was exempt from political responsibilities since he was considered a divinity.

The dismissal and execution of Carlos l is considered the historical and legal precedent of the current political trials or impeachment.

The constitutional texts of most nations include a series of laws and procedures to limit political power.

For a ruler to be judged by the members of a parliament it is necessary that all the procedures legally established. In this way, an attempt is made to prevent members of parliament from acting arbitrarily against the executive branch.

In short, the idea of ​​impeachment should be valued as a public health measure so that laws and not men are the ones that govern a nation.

Photos: Fotolia - nalidsa / jpgon

Issues in Impeachment