# Provisions of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands

UNITED STATES CIVIL ADMINISTRATION OF THE RYUKYU ISLANDS Office of The Deputy Governor APO 719
PROVISIONS OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE RYUKYU ISLANDS
Section I General
Article I
The area of political and geographic jurisdiction of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall constitute and include those islands and territorial waters within the following boundaries:
    29° North Latitude, 125°22' East Longtitude; thence
    24° North Latitude, 122° East Longtitude; thence
    24° North Latitude, 133° East Longtitude; thence
    29° North Latitude, 131° East Longtitude; thence to point of origin.
Article II
The Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall have its capital in Naha-City Okinawa Shima, and it shall not be changed to any other locality except by referendum in which the total vote cast comes to seventy per centum of the total number of qualified electors as determined by the last General and Supplementary Register of Electors. Provided that, in the case of a state of emergency, the seat of the government may be changed to ensure continued operation of the Government and the safety of its members, records, and allied matters.
Section II Status, Duties and Rights of the People
Article III
1. A Ryukyuan shall be a natural person whose birth and name are registered in a family register in the Ryukyu Islands, provided that no family register shall be transferred into the Ryukyu Islands without authority of the Deputy Governor and no person who is a national of any foreign state other than Japan or who is a stateless portion may be registered except in accordance with the provisions of law.
​2. The duties of a Ryukyuan toward the Government of the Ryukyu Islands of which he is a part shall be that of assuming the general responsibilities of representative government, that of aiding in the maintenance of law and order, that of taking part in civic affairs, that of casting the ballot at all elections and that of paying taxes duly established and meted out to him.
3. No person shall have the right to vote in any election for public office or to hold any public office through either election or appointment who has been adjudged incompetent or quasi-incompetent, or who has been sentenced to imprisonment and has neither finished the execution of such punishment nor has legally ceased to undergo the same, or who has been placed upon probation by a duly constituted court and has not completed the term of his probation.
4. No person who advocates, or who aids or belongs to, any party, organization, or association which advocates the overthrow by force or violence of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands or of the United States shall be permitted to run for or hold any public office of trust or profit.
5. The rights of a Ryukyuan toward the Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall be that of using in common with others the property and establishments of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands and of the city, town or village in which they reside; the right of seeking public office; the right of participating in public elections and the right of petitioning for general and just cause.
Article IV
Furthermore, a Ryukyuan shall have the right of exercising the initiative and referendum for the enactment, amendment, or abolition of laws; and that of initiating procedures for the recall of legislators, either severally or jointly, as provided by law.
Article V
1. The rights of the people toward the Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall be that of obtaining protection of life, real and personal property and effects according to law.
2. All of the people shall be respected as individuals and hold equal under the law. Their right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness shall, to the extent that it does not interfere with the public welfare, be the supreme consideration in legislation and in other governmental affairs.
Article VI
1. Freedom of religion is guaranteed to all. No religious organization shall receive any privileges from the Government of the Ryukyu Islands or from any municipal or other governmental unit within the Ryukyu Islands, nor exercise any political authority.
2. No person shall be compelled to take part in any religious act, celebration, rite or practice.
Section III Executive Branch Organization and Operation
Article VII
The Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall have an Executive Branch composed of the Chief Executive, Deputy Chief Executive and its administration which shall be so organized as to personnel, structure, and function that the affairs of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall be coordinated, effected, and executed to maximize its benefits for the inhabitants.
Article VIII
The departments of the Executive Branch of the Government of the Ryukyu islands shall consist of the following: Department of Education, Department of Communications, Department of Finance, Department of Natural Resources, Department of General Affairs, Department of Transportation, Department of Public Health and Welfare, Department of Commerce and Industry, Department of Public Works, Department of Police, and Department of Legal Affairs.
Article IX
The Chief Executive shall, within his jurisdiction, coordinate affairs of the Civil Administrator as affecting city, town or village governments, and the Government of the Ryukyu islands, as fall within his powers under proclamations, directives, ordinances, or laws.
Article X
Article XI
The Chief Executive shall, at the commencement of each session, give to the Legislature information by message of the condition of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands and shall recommend such measures as he shall deem expedient. He shall accompany his message with a statement of all money received and paid out, subject to his order or the order of the treasurer or other official charged with such responsibility in the Government of the Ryukyu Islands, with vouchers therefor; and at the commencement of each regular session, present estimates of the amount of money required by taxation for all purposes, The Chief Executive shall present to the Legislature such additional messages as he shall deem advisable from time to time.
Article XII
The Chief Executive may, on extraordinary occasions, convene, at his own instance, the Legislature; but when so convened, it shall enter upon no business except that stated in such call for such session, or as shall be broadened by him to include other matters which he shall deer expedient.
Article XIII
Every bill passed by the Legislature shall, before it becomes a law, be presented to the Chief Executive. If he approves the bill he shall sign it, and thereupon it shall become a law; but if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to the Legislature, which shall enter the objections at large upon its journal and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of the members present and voting, agree to pass the bill, it shall be referred to the Deputy Governor of the Ryukyu Islands for his final action thereon. But in all cases, the vote in the Legislature shall be determined by yeas and nays to be entered on the journal, Any bill which shall not be returned by the Chief Executive within ten days after he receives it, excluding Sundays and Holidays, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Legislature by its adjournment, prevents the return of such bill, in which case it shall not be a law. However, the following shall be applicable to bills appropriating money or providing revenue: Every bill passed by the Legislature making appropriations of money or raising revenue, embracing distinct items, shall before it becomes a law, be presented to the Chief Executive; if he disapproves the bill, or any item or appropriation therein contained, he shall communicate such disapproval with his reasons therefor to the Legislature; but all items not disapproved shall have the force and effect of law according to the original provisions of the bill. Any item so disapproved shall be void, unless repassed by a two-thirds majority of the Legislature and approved by the Deputy Governor.
Article XIV
Article XV
A system of civil service for the Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall be established in accordance with the provisions of law which shall control such responsibilities as appointment, promotion, and retirement which fall within the provisions of such system.
Article XVI
The Chief Executive shall perform such administrative and executive responsibilities in accordance with the powers as set forth under Article IV of Civil Administration Proclamation No. 13, Establishment of the Government of the Ryukyu islands," dated 29 February 1952. However, such powers shall be exercised independently of the powers granted to the Legislature or to the Judicial organs of the Government of the Ryukyu islands.
Article XVII
The Deputy Chief Executive shall preside over the Legislature, but shall have no vote, except the Legislature may authorize such a vote as a part of the standing rules of procedure thereof, where the Legislature be equally divided. The Deputy Chief Executive shell perform no official executive and administrative responsibilities in the Government of the Ryukyu islands or in any department or agency thereof, unless he shall be called upon to perform the duties of the Chief Executive in the event of the absence or inability of such official to perform his responsibilities. in such case the Legislature shall elect, from among its own members a presiding officer.
Section IV Legislature Organization and Operation
Article XVIII
The Legislature shall be composed of thirty-one members to be elected by the people of the Ryukyu islands in accordance with the provisions of law.
Article XIX
Article XX
The first regular session of the Legislature of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall convene at the seat of government in Naha, Okinawa on the 1st day of April 1952, and shall meet in regular session as prescribed by law. The Chief Executive may convene the Legislature whenever, in his opinion, the public safety or welfare shall require it. It shall be his duty to convene it, on application in writing of one-fourth of the members thereof, and for cause stated in such written application.
Article XXI
Every member of the Legislature shall be present within the Legislative chamber during sittings of the Legislature and shall attend the regular meetings of the standing committees or of select committees of which he is a member, unless excused or necessarily prevented. Two-thirds of the members of the Legislature shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting business. In case a smaller number than a quorum of the Legislature shall convene, they are hereby authorized to send the Sergeant-At-Arms of the Legislature, or any other person or persons, by them authorized, for any and all absent members as the majority of such members shall agree, at the expense of such absent members, respectively, unless such expense for nonattendance shall be paid as the Legislature, when a quorum is convened, shall judge sufficient; and, in that case, the expense shall be paid out of monies appropriated by the Legislature.
Article XXII
No person shall be a member of the Legislature who shall not have attained the age of 25 years and who has not been a resident of the Ryukyu Islands and domiciled therein for minimum period of five years and whose family Register has not been maintained in the Ryukyu Islands for a like period. No person shall, while a member of the Legislature, hold any other position or office under the Government of the Ryukyu Islands, or any Gunto Government or other governmental unit within the Ryukyu Islands, or under any foreign government except as provided for in Article XXXIX Civil Administration Ordinance No. 57 dated 18 December 1951. Nor shall any person who has been convicted of bribery, perjury, or any crime involving moral turpitude be eligible for membership in the Legislature.
Article XXIII
Article XXIV
No act of the Legislature shall embrace more than one subject and that shall be expressed in the title. However, if any subject shall be embraced in an act which is not so expressed, the act shall be void only as to so much thereof as shall not be so, expressed, and no law shall be revised, or amended, by reference to its title only.
Article XXV
The Legislature shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and cause the same to be published from time to time and all bills and resolutions shall be described therein. The following shall be contained in the journal:
    a. Messages from the Chief Executive,
    b. Titles of all bills, and the title and text of all resolutions.
    c. Every vote taken by yeas and nays, and a brief statement of the context of each petition, memorial or paper presented to the Legislature.
    d. A true and accurate account of the proceedings of the Legislature.
Article XXVI
The Legislature shall name such standing committees, and from time to time such select committees, as it shall determine; but each shall consist of not less than three members, to be authorized in a manner as the Legislature shall establish. At the adjournment of each regular or special session of the Legislature, the chairman of the respective committee shall deliver to the Secretary of the Legislature, the record book of such committee proceedings, and it shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Legislature to preserve the same among the archives of his office. The chairman of each standing committee shall cause to be kept for the purpose, a record of every meeting of the committee wherein shall be entered the followsing:
    a. The time and place of each committee meeting, and every hearing had before the committee.
    b. The attendance of members of the committee at each meeting thereof.
    c. The name of any person or persons appearing before the committee, and the interest represented by him.
Article XXVII
1. The Legislature shall determine its own rules of procedure. However, all bills must go through three reading processes, but each reading process must be made on a separate day, unless, in case of urgency, by a vote of three-fourths of the members present taken on each bill, this requirement may be dispensed with.
​2. No items under consideration will be unduly delayed by the Legislature in its deliberations, or held in committee beyond a reasonable length of time.
3. The Legislature is hereby vested with authority to conduct investigations and to order the attendance and testimony of witnesses, and to order the production of books and papers or documents, before the Legislature as a whole or before any committee thereof. In such cases, the provisions of law concerning the inquiry of witnesses, as stated in the Code of Civil Procedure and subsequent modification by competent legislation shall apply mutatis mutandis with the exception of those provisions relating to detention or administrative fine. Any witness thus ordered to appear before the Legislature as a whole or before any committee thereof may be paid per diem expenses as determined by the Legislature, or as provided for by law.
4. Conduct of members, witnesses and visitors during sessions of the Legislature shall be controlled by the Speaker, as prescribed by the Legislature. Misconduct and violations of lawful orders of the Legislature shall be punished as provided for by law. The legislature may punish its members for disorderly behaviour, and, with the concurrence of three-fourths of the members elected thereto, expel a member. Persons, other than members of the Legislature, who hold the authority of the Legislature in contempt may be tried by court action.
5. Any member of the Legislature may introduce a bill or a resolution. However, such bill or resolution may be prepared by the Chief Executive, Deputy Chief Executive, or by any official, agency, activity or by a citizen's group or private individual.
6. Enactments by the Legislature shall be mede by a majority vote of the members present, a quorum being present at the time of such enactments.
7. A session of the legislature shall be open to the public, provided that, on a motion of three or more members, a resolution, for holding a secret sitting has been adopted by the majority of two-thirds or more of the members present, a secret session may be held.
Article XXVIII
Section V Courts Organization and Operation
Article XXIX
The governments, the inhabitants, and all persons present within the jurisdiction of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands unless otherwise excepted shall be governed in their relations with the Judiciary of the Ryukyu Islands by the provisions of Civil Administration Proclamation No. 12 dated 2 January 1952, titled: "Ryukyuan Court Systems".
Article XXX
The Executive and Legislative Branches of the Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall exercise no additional governmental powers concerning the Judicial System except as specified in Civil administration Proclamation No. 12, dated 2 January 1952, titled: "Ryukyuan Court Systems".
Section VI Relationship with Municipal Government
Article XXXI
Regulations concerning organization and operations of municipal governments shall be fixed by law in accordance with the principals of self government.
Article XXXII
The municipal governments shall have assemblies as their deliberative body. The mayors, the members of the assembly, and such other local officials as may be determined by law shall be elected by direct popular vote within each municipality.
Article XXXIII
Municipalities shall have the right to manage their property, administration, financial activities, and affairs and to enact their own by-laws in accordance with law.
Article XXXIV
Section VII Sundry Provisions
Article XXXV
1. The Government of the Ryukyu Islands shall engage in no foreign affairs except through the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands.
2. The following Ordinances and Directives of Civil Administration are rescinded or amended as indicated:
    a. CA Directive Number 5 of 22 May 1951 is hereby rescinded.
    b. CA Diroctive Number 6 of 22 May 1951 is hereby rescinded.
    c. MG Ordinance Number 22 of 4 August 1950 is hereby amended by the rescission of paragraph 2b of Article II, paragraph 2 of Article IX, and Article XI.
3. Legislative, executive and administrative actions performed in accordance with the Ordinances and Directives rescinded or amended by the preceding paragraph prior to the effective date of this Ordinance shall remain in force and effect until modified, rescinded or superseded by the appropriate branches of government.
Article XXXVI
The effective date of this Ordinance shall be 1 April 1952.
BY DIRECTION OF THE DEPUTY GOVERNOR:
* JAMES M. LEWIS Brigadier General, U. S. Army Civil Administrator.
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States federal government (see 17 U.S.C. 105).
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