Legislative Power of the Military Occupant under Article 43, Hague Regulations

Abstract

Article 43, contained in Part IV, Section III, of the Hague Convention, was designed to limit the legislative power of the military occupant.In the authoritative French text it appears as follows:"L'autorit6 du pouvoir l6gal ayant passC-de fait entre les mains de l'occupant, celui-ci prendra toutes les mesures qui dependent de lui en vue de r6tablir et d'assurer, autant qu'il est possible, l'ordre et la vie publics en respectant, sauf empchement absolu, les lois en vigeur dans le pays."z While a literal reading seems to indicate that some legislation by the military occupant is permitted, according to one theory 2 applied in I t Attorney, Office of the Solicitor, Department of the Interior.The opinions eaxprezczed in this article represent the personal views of the author and are not necessarily those of any government department. This is the interpretation of