23. Freedom of assembly
The freedom of assembly in order to protest sometimes conflicts with laws intended to protect public safety, even in democratic countries: in many cities, the police are authorized by law to disperse any crowd (including a crowd of political protesters) which threatens public safely, or which the police cannot control. Sometimes this bureaucratic power is abused by lawmakers if the protest is not a popular one in the community or with ihc local government, with the permit process in some cities taking a great deal of time, organization, and even money required before a permit is issued - and then, when issues, time and location restrictions are sometimes added.
From time to lime, local permit laws collide in court with the freedoms of assembly and of speech, such as in February 2003 when protests were anticipated over the exclusion of women from membership al the Augusta National Golf Club where golfs Masters Tournament is played every year. The Richmond County, Georgia county commission implemented a new rule requiring 20 days of advance notice before a protest, and giving the county sheriff the power to approve or deny permits, and to dictate the location of demonstrations. The sheriff turned down a permit to protest in front of the golf club but approved a protest half a mile away. Two courts upheld the ordinance granting the sheriff this power.
Right to vote (suffrage)
Suffrage (from the I^atin suffragium, meaning “voting tablet”, and figuratively “right to vote”; probably from suffrage “hough”, and originally a term for the pastern bone used to cast voles) is the civil right to vote, or the exercise of that right. In that context, it is also called political franchise or simply the franchise. In most democracies citizens or subjects above the voting age can normally vote in its elections. Resident aliens can vote in some countries and in others exceptions are made for citizens of countries with which they have close links (e.g. some members of the Commonwealth of Nations, and the members of the European Union).
Many countries restrict the voting rights of convicted criminals. Some countries, and some U.S. slates, also deny the right to vote to those convicted of serious crimes after they are released from prison. In some cases (e.g. the felony disenfranchisement laws found in many U.S. states) the denial of the right to vole is automatic on a felony conviction; in other cases (e.g. provisions found in many parts of continental Europe) the denial of the right to vote is an additional penalty that the court can choose to impose, over and above the penalty of imprisonment, such as in France or Germany. In the Republic of Ireland, prisoners arc not specifically denied the right to vote, but are also not provided access to a ballot station, so arc effectively disenfranchised. Canada allowed only prisoners serving a term of less than 2 years the right to vote, but this was found unconstitutional in 2002 by the Supreme Court of Canada in Sauve v. Canada (Chief Electoral Officer), and all prisoners were allowed to vote as of the 2004 Canadian federal election.