Kenya constitutional referendum campaigning begins News
Kenya constitutional referendum campaigning begins

[JURIST] Official campaigning began Friday for Kenya's controversial draft constitution, on which a referendum will be held November 21 [JURIST report]. The proposed draft [PDF text] has divided the country [JURIST report] over issues including presidential power controls, separation of church and state, and distribution of government powers. Kenya's political parties have squabbled over the document [JURIST report] and an unsuccessful bid was made at Kenya's High Court to block the vote [JURIST report]. If approved, the changes would be the first made to Kenya's government [CIA Factbook profile] since it declared independence 42 years ago. From South Africa, the Mail & Guardian has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

UN General Assembly approves Palestine partition plan

The UN General Assembly approved UN Resolution Resolution 181 (II) on November 29, 1947, recommending that the British Mandate for Palestine be split into a Jewish state, an Arab state, and an international zone for Jerusalem. The vote in the assembly was 33 for to 13 against, with 10 abstentions. The resolution sparked a war between Palestinian Arabs and Jews in 1947 and a wider war after Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Lebanon invaded the new State of Israel in 1948. Read Resolution 181 (II).

UN divided Palestine between Arabs and Jews

On November 29, 1947, the UN General Assembly voted to partition Palestine into Jewish and Arab territories, leading to the establishment of a Jewish state the following year. Read UN General Assembly Resolution 181.

Defense Secretary Robert McNamara resigns during Vietnam Conflict

On November 29, 1967, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara announced that he was resigning from his office to accept an appointment as head of the World Bank. The announcement came as the Vietnam Conflict was becoming increasingly unpopular in the United States and abroad.