TITLE I. OF THE FUNDAMENTAL BASES OF SOCIETY
Article 1
The human person is sacred and inviolable. All agents of public authority, [and] any organization, have the absolute obligation to respect it and to protect it.
The Republic recognizes the existence of the Rights of Man as the basis for all human community, of peace and of justice in the world.
Article 2
The Republic proclaims respect [for] and intangible guarantee of the development of the personality. Everyone has the right to the free development of their personality if they neither violate the rights of others, nor infringe the constitutional order.
Article 3
Everyone has the right to life and physical integrity. They may only be infringed in these rights by application of a law.
No one may be subjected either to torture, or to rape [viol], or to cruel, inhuman, degrading or humiliating acts or treatment. Any individual, [or] any agent of the State, [or] any organization that is rendered culpable of such acts, will be punished in accordance with the law.
No one may be arbitrarily arrested or detained. Every defendant is presumed innocent until their culpability has been established following a procedure offering to them the guarantees indisputable for their defense. The legal time period of detention must be respected.
No one may be convicted except by virtue of a law [which] had entered into force before the act committed.
The rights of defense are exercised freely before all the jurisdictions and the administration of the Republic.
Any person made the object of a measure deprivative of liberty has the right of being examined and treated by a doctor of their choice.
Article 4
The freedom of the person is inviolable.
The freedoms of movement [aller et venir], of residence and of establishment on the whole extent of the territory are notably guaranteed to all within the conditions established by the law.
Article 5
All human beings are equal before the law without distinction of race, of ethnic origin, of region, of sex, of religion, of political affiliation[,] and of social position.
The law guarantees to the man and to the woman equal rights in all the domains.
In the Central African Republic one is neither subject [to] nor [has] a privilege of place of birth, of person or of family.
No one can be forced into exile.
No one may be made the object of house arrest or of deportation, except by virtue of a law.
Article 6
Marriage and family constitute the natural and moral basis of the human community. They are placed under the protection of the State.
The State and the other public collectivities have, collectively [ensemble], the duty to see to the physical and moral health of the family and to encourage it socially by the appropriate institutions.
The protection of the woman and of the child against violence and insecurity, exploitation and moral, intellectual and physical neglect[,] is an obligation of the State and the other public collectivities. This protection is assured by the appropriate measures and institutions of the State and of the other public collectivities.
Parents have the natural right and the primordial duty to raise and educate their children so as to develop in them [a] good physical, intellectual and moral aptitude. They are supported in this task by the State and the other public collectivities.
Children born outside of marriage have the same rights to public assistance that legitimate children [have].
Natural children, legally recognized, have the same rights as legitimate children.
The State and the other public collectivities have the duty to create the prerequisite conditions and the public institutions that guarantee the education of children.
Article 7
Everyone has the right of access to sources of knowledge. The State guarantees to the child and to the adult access to instruction, to culture, and to vocational [professionnelle] training.
Education and instruction must be provided to youth by public or private establishments.
Private establishments may be opened with the authorization of the State, within the conditions established by the law. They are placed under the control of the State.
Parents have the obligation to provide education and instruction to their children until the age of sixteen (16) years at least.
The State and other public collectivities have the obligation to create and to assure the good functioning of the public establishments for the education and the instruction of youth.
Education is gratuitous in the public establishments at the various [divers] levels of education.
Article 8
The freedom of conscience, of assembly, [and] of the free exercise of beliefs [cultes] are guaranteed to all within the conditions established by the law.
Any form of religious fundamentalism and intolerance is prohibited.
Article 9
The Republic guarantees to every citizen the right to work, to a healthy environment, to rest and to recreation within respect for the requirements of national development. It assures to them the conditions favorable for their development through an efficient policy of employment.
All citizens are equal concerning employment. No one may be discriminated against in their work or their employment because of their origin, of their sex, of their opinions, or of their beliefs.
All workers participate, through the intermediary of their representatives, in the determination of working conditions.
The laws establish the conditions of assistance and of protection accorded to workers, and most particularly to the most young, to the most elderly, to the handicapped[,] as well as to those who have health problems due to the conditions of their work.
Article 10
The syndical right is guaranteed and is exercised freely within the framework of the laws which regulate it.
Any worker can affiliate with the union of their choice and defend their rights and interests through trade union action.
The right to strike is guaranteed and is exercised within the framework of the laws which regulate it and may, in no case, infringe either the freedom to work, or the free exercise of the right of property.
Article 11
Free enterprise is guaranteed within the framework of the laws and regulations in force.
Article 12
All citizens have the right to freely constitute associations, groups, societies and establishments of public utility, under reserve of conforming to the laws and regulations.
The associations, groups, societies and establishments of which the activities are contrary to the public order as well as to the unity and to the cohesion of the Central African People[,] are prohibited.
Article 13
The freedom to inform, to express and to disseminate one’s opinions by speech, the pen and the image, under reserve of respect for the rights of others, is guaranteed.
The secrecy of correspondence as well as that of postal, electronic, telegraphic and telephonic communications[,] are inviolable.
Restrictions on the above provisions may only be ordered in application of a law.
The freedom of the press is recognized and guaranteed. It is exercised within the conditions established by the law.
The exercise of this freedom and the equal access for all to the media of the State are assured by an independent organ, endowed with the power of regulation and of decision[,] the status of which is established by the law.
The freedom of intellectual, artistic and cultural creation is recognized and guaranteed. It is exercised within the conditions established by the law.
Article 14
Any physical or moral person has the right to property. No one may be deprived of his property, except for cause of public utility legally declared and under the condition of a just and prior indemnization.
The domicile is inviolable. It may only be infringed by a judge and, if there is a danger in the dwelling, by the other authorities designated by the law, responsible for its execution in the forms prescribed by it;
The measures infringing the inviolability of the domicile or restricting it will be taken to guard against a public danger or to protect persons in peril. These measures may be taken in application of the law to protect the public order against imminent threats, notably to combat the risks of epidemic, of fire or to protect persons in danger.
The property and the assets of persons as well as the patrimony of the Nation are inviolable. The State and local collectivities as well as all citizens must protect them.
Article 15
All citizens are equal concerning [devant] public responsibilities [charges] and in particular concerning taxes [impot] that only the law may, within the conditions provided for by this Constitution, create and assess. They support, in all solidarity, the responsibilities resulting from natural calamities or [from] endemic, epidemic or incurable diseases.
Article 16
The defense of the Fatherland and is a duty for every citizen.
Military service is obligatory. It is exercised within the conditions established by the law.
Article 17
An individual [who is a] victim of violation of the provisions of Articles 1to 15of this Title has the right to reparation.
Any person living in the national territory has the duty to respect, in all circumstances, the Constitution, the laws and regulations of the Republic.
