[JURIST] Vanuatu authorities arrested 11 lawmakers on Saturday who had last week pardoned themselves of their corruption convictions while the president was away from the country. The arrests [AP report] came as President Baldwin Lonsdale [BBC profile] revoked the pardons [Guardian report] of the 14 lawmakers who have been convicted of bribery. They were arrested on Friday for suspicion of conspiracy to defeat the court of justice. Lonsdale said that Speaker Marcellino Pipite had disregarded the Vanuatu constitution when using his temporary executive powers to issue the pardons to himself and the 10 other men. Lonsdale noted that pardons only apply to those people who have already been sent to jail. The group, which includes the deputy minister Moana Carcasses, are set to be sentenced on October 22 and face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

Pipite and the other men were found guilty [Guardian report] by the Supreme Court last Friday for accepting bribes totaling 35 million Vatu (approximately USD $300,000) from the opposing party to support a vote of no confidence. According to the letter he sent to the court, Pipite stated that he was issuing the pardons in order “to maintain stability in the government of the republic of Vanuatu.” Pipite also used the temporary powers granted to him while Lonsdale was away to suspend the country’s ombudsman in an ongoing struggle for influence among the country’s top leaders. The pardons eventually led to what many called a political crisis in the country. The pardons had angered many of the country’s citizens, as they had hoped the convictions would lead to the end of serious corruption throughout the country’s leadership.