Bøker i Constitutional Systems of the World-serien

This book provides an overview of Mexico's political evolution since it became independent from Spain in 1821, and its current constitutional arrangements, principles and structures.

The current South Korean Constitution of 1987 is the culmination of decades-long efforts by the South Korean people to achieve democratic self-government. It is the fruition of untold sacrifices made by dedicated citizens who tirelessly fought to rein in the power of the government under some form of constitutional rule. In that sense, it should be understood against the backdrop of South Korea's experimentation with constitutionalism that began at the turn of the last century. Yet, it also represents a radical break, the beginning of a new era which ended a long political history of "constitution without constitutionalism." For the first time in the history of the South Korean nation, the constitution has become a living norm rather than an ornament, or a façade, for illegitimate or ineffectual governments. It is proving to be a binding law that matters for not only the government leaders but also private individuals. With the adoption, especially, of a system that allowed for the adjudication of constitutional issues at an independent court, the people are realizing that the constitution can actually be invoked to protect their rights and advance their interests. As a result, the South Korean Constitutional Court is being stretched to its limits with so many cases filed at its docket. This means that the constitutional system of South Korea is very much a work-in-progress, whose shape and contours are still being hammered out. The primary goal of this volume will be to flesh out, and make intelligible to foreign readers, that process within the specific political and historical context of modern South Korea.

This book examines the Malaysian approach to constitutional governance in light of waning authoritarianism and continuing inter-communal strife, and explains the ways in which a supposedly doomed colonial text has come to be known as 'our constitution'.

This book deals with the living Constitution of Finland, with an emphasis on constitutional history, culture, and practice.

This new book examines constitutional debate and development in one of the most dynamic and rapidly changing societies in Asia.

In this book, the institutional structure and the principles governing the Belgian constitutional system are explained in the light of its historical, demographic and political context.

This volume provides a contextual account of Pakistan's constitutional laws and history. It aims to describe the formal structure of government in reference to origins that are traced to the administrative centralisation and legal innovations of colonial rule. It also situates the tide of Muslim nationalism that gave rise to the nation of Pakistan within a terrain of nascent constitutionalism and its associated promises of representation. The post-colonial history of the Pakistani state is charted by reference to succeeding constitutions and the distribution of powers between the major branches of government that they augured. Where conventional histories often suggest that constitutionalism in Pakistan is to be solely understood by reference to a cycle of abidance and rupture, and in the oscillation between military and civilian rule, this volume also accounts for the many points of continuity between regime types. The contours of a broader constitutionalism come to light in the ways in which state power is wielded at different periods and in the range of contests - economic, political and cultural - through which some of this power is sought to be dispersed. Chapters on Rights, Federalism and Islam detail the contextual features of some of these contests and the normative, legal parameters through which they are provisionally settled.

In December 1989, Romania became the last Eastern European communist country to break with its communist dictatorship, the most powerful in the region at the time. It has struggled ever since to overcome the transition to democracy and to become a 'full-time' member of the Western democratic community of states. This book provides a contextual analysis of the Romanian constitutional system, with references to the country's troubled constitutional history and to the way in which legal transplantation has been used. The Constitution's grey areas, as well as the gap between the written constitution and the living one, will also be explained through the prism of recent events that cast a negative shadow upon the democratic nature of the Romanian constitutional system. The first chapters present a brief historical overview and an introduction to Romanian constitutional culture, as well as to the principles and general features of the 1991 Constitution. The chapters which follow explain the functioning of the institutions and their interrelations-Parliament, the President, the Government and the courts. The Constitutional Court has a special place in the book, as do local government and the protection of fundamental rights. The last chapter refers to the mechanisms and challenges of constitutional change and development.

This book offers a comprehensive contextual analysis of the constitutional systems of the Commonwealth Caribbean taking into account the region's colonial past as well as considering notable developments that have occurred since independence.

This book provides an overview of the content and functioning of the Indian Constitution, with an emphasis on the broader socio-political context. It focuses on the overarching principles and the main institutions of constitutional governance that the world's longest written constitution inaugurated in 1950. The nine chapters of the book deal with specific aspects of the Indian constitutional tradition as it has evolved across seven decades of India's existence as an independent nation. Beginning with the pre-history of the Constitution and its making, the book moves onto an examination of the structural features and actual operation of the Constitution's principal governance institutions. These include the executive and the parliament, the institutions of federalism and local government, and the judiciary. An unusual feature of Indian constitutionalism that is highlighted here is the role played by technocratic institutions such as the Election Commission, the Comptroller and Auditor General, and a set of new regulatory institutions, most of which were created during the 1990s. A considerable portion of the book evaluates issues relating to constitutional rights, directive principles and the constitutional regulation of multiple forms of identity in India. The important issue of constitutional change in India is approached from an atypical perspective.The book employs a narrative form to describe the twists, turns and challenges confronted across nearly seven decades of the working of the constitutional order. It departs from conventional Indian constitutional scholarship in placing less emphasis on constitutional doctrine (as evolved in judicial decisions delivered by the High Courts and the Supreme Court). Instead, the book turns the spotlight on the political bargains and extra-legal developments that have influenced constitutional evolution.Written in accessible prose that avoids undue legal jargon, the book aims at a general audience that is interested in understanding the complex yet fascinating challenges posed by constitutionalism in India. Its unconventional approach to some classic issues will stimulate the more seasoned student of constitutional law and politics.

For decades, Indonesia's 1945 Constitution, the second-shortest in the modern world, was used as an apologia by successive authoritarian regimes. But following the fall of President Soeharto in 1998 the amendment of the Constitution ushered in a liberal democratic system. This book surveys this remarkable constitutional transition.

This book presents the main features of the Israeli constitutional system and a topical discussion of Israel's basic laws.

The book assesses the attempts to establish a modern system of democratic government in Thailand against the background of Thai politics and culture.

This book is a detailed contextual examination of the constitution of Germany including its history.

This book explains Japan's Constitution, together with a number of its unique characteristics alongside a useful historical background and context.

This book is a detailed contextual examination of the constitution of France including its history.

This book explains the form and operation of the Australian constitutional system, critically evaluates it and conveys the national debate.

This book on China's constitution and its tradition of constitutionalism provides a much needed overview of China's constitutional arrangements.

This is the second edition of Professor Tushnet's short critical introduction to the history and current meaning of the United States' Constitution. It is organised around wo themes: first, the US Constitution is old, short, and difficult to amend. Second, the Constitution creates a structure of political opportunities that allows political actors, icluding political parties, to pursue the preferred policy goals even to the point of altering the very structure of politics. Deploying these themes to examine the structure f the national government, federalism, judicial review, and individual rights, the book provides basic information about, and deeper insights into, the way he US constitutional system has developed and what it means today.

This book provides a critical introduction to the principles and institutions that make up the Spanish Constitution, which was enacted in 1978.