1989 Navajo Nation Council reforms
The 1989 Navajo Nation Council Reforms, also known as the Title II Amendments were a series of Constitutional changes to the government structure of the
Background
The Navajo Nation has an uncodified constitution, so the Tribal Council has the power to change its own operation with simple resolutions.
Peter MacDonald
The executive of the Navajo Nation was previously the
MacDonald faced accusations of corruption involving kickback schemes, such as selling a ranch to the Navajo Nation at a $7.2 million profit. These actions resulted in the Tribal Council putting him on administrative leave. MacDonald however refused to step down, and after a five-month standoff, an interim Chairman was appointed. The situation grew confusing as there were at times up to three men claiming the title of Tribal Chairman. On July 20, 1989, rioters from competing group clashed outside an administrative building, resulting in the deaths of two MacDonald supporters. His supporters claimed that the Navajo Police Department was brutalizing them as an attempt to remove MacDonald from power. A group of Tribal Councilmen managed to gather enough political support to remove MacDonald, and he was arrested and put on trial with some of his supporters. Chairman MacDonald served 8 years of his 14-year sentence in federal prison, having his sentence commuted by Bill Clinton on his last day in office. Out of 32 men originally indicted, only 10 (including MacDonald) were sentenced.[2][3]
Reforms
In deciding what reforms should be made, the Tribal Council looked to the case of Chairman MacDonald and decided that the constitutional crisis resulted from a lack of oversight and too much power vested in the executive.[4]
- Formally defined separation of powers between the Executive and Legislative Branches
- Creation of the office of the President and Vice-President of the Navajo Nation
- Limits on the powers of the Executive and Legislative Branches.
- Reduced the number of legislative committees from eighteen to twelve.
- The power to appoint members of committees was vested in the new Speaker of the Council[5]
Legacy
Later Reforms
In 1998, the Tribal Council adopted the Navajo Nation Local Governance Act, giving the dozens of local Navajo chapters some ability to make their own decisions.[4] The size of the Council was eventually reduced to 24 members from 88.[6]
Criticism
The Title II Reforms and subsequent changes have been criticized as being handled entirely by leadership, rather than via
References
- JSTOR 20068711.
- ^ "The Navajo Times Online - News". navajotimes.com. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
- ^ Vanderpool, Tim. "The Price of Doing Business". Tucson Weekly. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
- ^ a b c "Navajo Nation Government Reform Project" (PDF). DinĂ© Policy Institute. 2007 – via DinĂ© College.
- ^ a b Wilkins, David (April 2002). "Governance within the Navajo Nation: Have Democratic Traditions Taken Hold?". Jepson School of Leadership Studies – via University of Richmond.
- ^ "The Navajo Times Online - Race for 24-member council includes 56 current delegates". navajotimes.com. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
- ^ Jan. 8, Ivan Gamble Opinion; Now, 2010 Like Tweet Email Print Subscribe Donate (2010-01-08). "The Navajo Nation signals it's ready for more reforms". www.hcn.org. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
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: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Tribune. "Navajo lawmakers put tribal president on leave". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved 2020-04-20.