New Constitutionalism in Latin America

Promises and Practices
1. Auflage 2016
ISBN: 978-1-138-27155-5
Verlag: Routledge

Buch, Englisch, 436 Seiten, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm, Gewicht: 664 g

Latin America has a long tradition of constitutional reform. Since the democratic transitions of the 1980s, most countries have amended their constitutions at least once, and some have even undergone constitutional reform several times. The global phenomenon of a new constitutionalism, with enhanced rights provisions, finds expression in the region, but the new constitutions, such as those of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela, also have some peculiar characteristics which are discussed in this important book. Authors from a number of different disciplines offer a general overview of constitutional reforms in Latin America since 1990. They explore the historical, philosophical and doctrinal differences between traditional and new constitutionalism in Latin America and examine sources of inspiration. The book also covers sociopolitical settings, which factors and actors are relevant for the reform process, and analyzes the constitutional practices after reform, including the question of whether the recent constitutional reforms created new post-liberal democracies with an enhanced human and social rights record, or whether they primarily serve the ambitions of new political leaders.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Schilling-Vacaflor, Almut

Nolte, Detlef

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politikwissenschaft Allgemein

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1: Introduction and Analytical Concepts; 1: Introduction: The Times they are a Changin': Constitutional Transformations in Latin America since the 1990s; 2: Explaining Constitutional Change: Comparing the Logic, Advantages and Shortcomings of Static and Dynamic Approaches; 3: Toward a Theory of Formal Constitutional Change: Mechanisms of Constitutional Adaptation in Latin America; 4: Still the Land of Presidentialism? Executives and the Latin American Constitution; 5: What do we mean when we talk about ‘Critical Constitutionalism'? Some Reflections on the New Latin American Constitutions; 2: Reflections on the New Latin American Constitutionalism from a Historical and Comparative Perspective; 6: Latin American Constitutionalism: Historical Development and Distinctive Traits; 7: Latin American Constitutionalism Then and Now: Promises and Questions 1; 3: Case Studies: The Impact of New Constitutions on Democracy and Governance; 8: Neo-Constitutionalism in Twenty-first Century Venezuela: Participatory Democracy, Deconcentrated Decentralization or Centralized Populism?; 9: New Constitutions and the Transformation of Democracy in Bolivia and Ecuador *; 10: Constitutionalizing Policy: The Brazilian Constitution of 1988 and its Impact on Governance; 11: Change and Continuity in Dominican Constitutions: The 2010 Reform Compared 1; 12: Chile: Democratization through Constitutional Reforms 1; 4: Case Studies: The Empowerment of Courts; 13: Institutional Design and Judicial Behaviour: Constitutional Interpretation of Criminal Due Process Rights in Latin America 1; 14: Constitutional Courts and Constitutional Change: Analysing the Cases of Presidential Re-Election in Latin America *; 5: Case Studies: Rights Revolution and Indigenous State Transformation; 15: Colombia's 1991 Constitution: A Rights Revolution 1; 16: How Does the New Constitutionalism Respond to the Human Rights Challenges Posed by Transnational Corporations?; 17: Plurinational Constitutionalism: A New Era of Indigenous-State Relations?; 18: Turning Legal Pluralism into State-Sanctioned Law: Assessing the Implications of the New Constitutions and Laws in Bolivia and Ecuador; Conclusions

Über Autor(innen)

Detlef Nolte is Vice-President of the GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies and Director of the GIGA Institute of Latin American Studies. Dr. Almut Schilling-Vacaflor is a Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute of Latin American Studies, Germany.