Brazilian dictatorial past has brought a pattern of “hyper-presidentialism,“ as a consequence, any abrupt change in people’s attitudes toward the president, as well as any sudden drop in popularity, can lead to a crisis that can put the whole political system in tension. The “winner-take-all“ model of presidentialism, combined with the history of authoritarianism in...
Tag: <span>TUESDAY JUNE 26 2018 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM</span>
A Prequel to the Constitutional Review in China: the Rise of “Constitutional Supremacy“ in the Confinement of the NPC System
The Chinese constitutional system is a unique mixture of the NPC regime and the norms of “constitutional supremacy“. The People‘s Republic of China has been a state with “a written constitution“ for decades; however, the idea of some kind of “the review of the consistency with the Constitution of legal documents“ was brought into the...
A role of “constitutionalism“ in the recent constitutional debates on Article 9 (the “pacifism“ clause) in Japan
The paper aims to explore a role of the concept of “constitutionalism“ in the recent constitutional debates concerning the re‐interpretation and amendment of the Constitution of Japan (particularly Article 9 which has been cherished as a ‘pacifism‘ clause by the Japanese people since itspromulgation) by shedding light on two intertwining elements of constitutionalism: one works...
A Square, a Museum and a Monument: Piazza Venezia in Rome after World War II
Piazza Venezia in Rome has been heavily characterized by its connection to the Italian Fascist Regime. First the Venetian and Austrian embassy, then Benito Mussolini‘s headquarters, Palazzo Venezia represents the incarnation of the Fascist Regime in the Italian cultural memory. Despite being the headquarters of the Italian Prime Minister during the 1920s and 1930s, Palazzo...
Accountability in Data-Driven Regulation: A critique of the Joint Punishment Scheme under China‘s Social Credit System
This paper analyses the accountability problems in the deployment of big data in social governance by reviewing a core mechanism of the Social Credit System. The System subjects individuals to “joint punishments“ that would substantially affect their interests across various fields of social lives, if their credit records process the traits determined by state datasets...
Adjudicating Blasphemy : Challenging the Writ of the State in Pakistan
In the past decade, the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) has dealt with several blasphemy cases. In many cases, the person accused of blaspheming is murdered by vigilantes. In some cases, the killers appeal their sentences on the basis that avenging blasphemy is a religious duty, immune to punishment. In this paper, I examine why...
ASEAN and a Janus-faced constitutionalism: the Indonesian case
This paper addresses the interaction between two ASEAN norms and Indonesia‘s dual constitutionalism, particularly in the energy sector. The ASEAN norms are increasing foreign investment and private sector involvement. Indonesia‘s dual system comprises two spheres of legislative action. In the first, the House of Representatives legislates subject to judicial oversight. In the second, the President...
Assuming Facts as an Alternative to Secret Evidence
The UK Investigatory Powers Tribunal, the court responsible for determining human rights claims with regards to state surveillance, has developed procedure which serves to reduce the reliance on secret evidence in a case. Rather than establishing security-sensitive facts regarding the UK’s surveillance regime in closed proceedings, the procedure involves assuming certain facts regarding the nature...
Authoritarian Constitutionalism in Japan?
Historically speaking, in the late 19th century, the national goal was to reorganize a typically feudalistic Japan into a modern nation‐state comparable to western developed countries of that time. It was accomplished in its own way through a modernization of Japanese political, economic and social structures and through an introduction of western constitutionalism to Japanese...