Constitution of Qatar in the context of "2024 Qatari constitutional referendum"

Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares its sole land border with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its territory surrounded by the Persian Gulf. The Gulf of Bahrain, an inlet of the Persian Gulf, separates Qatar from nearby Bahrain. The capital is Doha, home to over 80% of the country's inhabitants. Most of the land area is made up of flat, low-lying desert.

Qatar has been ruled as a hereditary monarchy by the House of Thani since Mohammed bin Thani signed an agreement with Britain in 1868 that recognised its separate status. Following Ottoman rule, Qatar became a British protectorate in 1916 and gained independence in 1971. The current emir is Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who, like previous emirs, holds nearly all executive, legislative, and judicial authority in an autocratic manner under the Constitution of Qatar. He appoints the prime minister and cabinet. The Consultative Assembly (also known as the "Shura Council") can block legislation and has a limited ability to dismiss ministers, but is fully appointed by the emir. While Qatar held a partial Shura Council election in 2021, with two thirds of seats elected, in 2024 it moved to abolish those elections altogether, and reverted to a fully appointed Assembly.

The Emir of the State of Qatar (Arabic: أمير دولة قطر) is the monarch and head of state of Qatar. The emir is also the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces and guarantor of the constitution. The emir holds the most powerful position in the country, controlling all branches of state power, and has a prominent role in foreign relations.

The emirs are members of the House of Thani (Al Thani), whose origins are in the Banu Tamim, one of the largest tribes in the Arabian Peninsula. The current ruler is Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who succeeded on 25 June 2013.

A referendum to approve a new constitution was held in Qatar on 29 April 2003. The constitution was overwhelmingly approved, with over 98% in favour. The population of the country was estimated to be around 790,000 at the time of the referendum with only 85,000 registered voters (because the majority of the population are foreign workers). Voter turnout was 84.3%. With the referendum's approval, it also created a legislative body of which two-thirds would be elected by universal suffrage, and one third appointed by the Emir. According to the new constitution, the legislature will have three powers: to approve (but not prepare) the national budget; to monitor the performance of ministers through no-confidence votes; and to draft, discuss, and vote on proposed legislation, which becomes law only with the vote of a two-thirds majority and the Emir's endorsement.