Author: Tom Ginsburg
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South Sudan constitutional process beginning
The world’s newest country, South Sudan, has been wracked by serious inter-ethnic conflict in recent weeks, in which cattle raids have escalated to large-scale pogroms between Nuer and Murle ethnic groups. The situation seems to be deteriorating rapidly, and presents serious challenges to the Government as well as international peacekeepers, who have been unable to…
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Progress in Fiji?
The recent developments in Myanmar remind us that even cosntitutions adopted with low expectations can mark significant political change. In this light, it is worth watching forthcoming developments in Fiji, where military strongman Voreqe Bainimarama yesterday lifted the three-year-old state of emergency, and announced the need to move toward a new constitution.
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Hungary constitution takes effect
The new Hungarian Constitution became law on New Year’s Day, 2012. Is it a harbinger of a new anti-European trend in the hear of Europe, or simply an anomalous hiccup? We are not living in the “end of constitutional history.” An excellent analysis by Kim Lane Scheppele is here.
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Japan Equality Case
The Tokyo District Court just handed down a decision finding that a national university’s (Tokyo Institute of Technology or TIT) denial of admission to a foreign student was unconstitutional. The case concerned an Iranian student, a refugee in Japan, who applied to the Department of Nuclear Engineering at the TIT.
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Egypt’s landmines
Nathan Brown has a nice analysis of the Landmines in Egypt’s Constitutional Roadmap over at Carnegie Endowment website. His basic theme is that the current timetable, by potentially holding presidential elections after the process of drafting the constitution, will allow the military to be able to control the latter process.
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Egypt update from International IDEA
As Egypt goes to the polls to begin its long process of electing a parliament, I recommend taking a look at an analysis produced by International IDEA of the “Fundamental Principles” document released earlier this month. The document has been widely criticized for trying to cement a role for the military in future politics.
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Japan’s Supreme Court finds lay participation in criminal trials constitutional
On November 16, 2011 Japan’s Supreme Court ruled that the country’s new “saiban’in” system of citizen participation in serious criminal trials was constitutional. Issued unanimously by all fifteen of the court’s judges sitting en banc as a Grand Bench, this ruling effectively eliminates any constitutional doubts about the system which may have lingered after it…
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Equatorial Guinea heads to polls
Citizens of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea went to the polls today to vote in a referendum on a new constitution. Changes include the imposition of term limits on the president (two seven-year terms in office); the creation of a vice-presidency and Senate; the establishment of economic policy and auditing watchdogs; and an ombudsman.
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Voting underway in Equatorial Guinea
Citizens of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea went to the polls today to vote in a referendum on a new constitution. Changes include the imposition of term limits on the president (two seven-year terms in office); the creation of a vice-presidency and Senate; the establishment of economic policy and auditing watchdogs; and an ombudsman.
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Nathan Brown tells American advisors: “Put Away Your Quills” in the Mideast
Nathan Brown of George Washington has an excellent new post at foreignpolicy.com in which he argues that Americans have little to say to constitution-makers in the Arab world. He is surely right. My own view is that external advisors are best focused on the nitty-gritty issues of drafting, such as making sure the text is…