Constitution-making and Political Settlements in Times of Transition

Constitution-making and Political Settlements in Times of Transition: Special Section, Global Constitutionalism

Global Constitutionalism, Volume 6 Issue 1

This special issue addresses in particular constitution-making and politicalsettlements in times of transition. We consider how constitutional design and adjudication must be understood to have a specific political role in constructing and enabling a political settlement, as in the shared understandings as to how power is to be held and exercised, that forms the political constitution which the constitution attempts to institutionalised. We collectively argue that traditional constitutional devices have to be understood as operating differently in times of transition where the constitution plays a very constructivist role with respect to the forming of agreement, rather than reflecting prior agreement.

Download the full research paper series.

Contents:

Bargaining on Constitutions: Political Settlements and Constitutional State-building (Christine Bell)

Letting off Steam: Interim Constitutions as a Safety Valve to the Pressure-Cooker of Transitions in Conflict-Affected States? (Charmaine Rodrigues)

Eternity Clauses in Post-Conflict and Post-Authoritarian Constitution-Making: Promise and Limits (Silvia Suteu)

The Alchemists: Courts as Democracy-Builders in Contemporary Thought (Tom Gerald Daly)

Courting Peace: Judicial Review and Peace Jurisprudence (Jenna Sapiano)

Keywords: Peace Processes, Interim Constitution, Peacebuilding, Post-Conflict Constitution-Making