The “Method and Madness” of Authoritarian Constitution Making in Democratic Regimes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.13130/2612-6672/16631Parole chiave:
Constitution-Making, Democratic Backsliding, Turkey, Hungary, Venezuela, DemocracyAbstract
Globally, more than half the attempts at making a democratic constitution have failed to produce one. Another large number of constitutions have suffered the ignominy of having a draft made and implemented, but ultimately being rejected by the populace or political elites for failing to perform its intended functions. A curious case emerges in instances when would-be-autocrats draft authoritarian constitutions in democratic regimes. They do it rather successfully. Moreover, they do so without using force, with the consent of large sections of the society, and in ostensibly democratic ways. The question that then arises is how would-be-autocrats are more successful than their democratic counterparts in such ventures. Using three varied examples of authoritarian constitution-making from Hungary, Venezuela, and Turkey, this article will examine the ‘method and madness’ behind the success of would-be autocrat’s constitution-making endeavors and these authoritarian constitutions’ acceptance by the populace
Metriche
Riferimenti bibliografici
Freedom in the World 2018, Freedom House, Washington DC, 2018, 8.
M. Loughlin, The Contemporary Crisis of Constitutional Democracy, in Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, Vol. 35, No. 2, 2019, 436-437.
Freedom in the World 2019, Freedom House, Washington DC, 2019, 1.
Freedom in the World 2018, cit., 1-3.
Democracy Index 2020, Economic Intelligence Unit, London, 2020, 9.
J. Corrales, Autocratic Legalism in Venezuela, in Journal of Democracy, Vol. 26, No. 2, 2015, 38–45.
By “authoritarian” I refer to a system of government that is characterized generally by elements such as (1) centralized power (2) rejection of political plurality (3) erosion of the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic voting procedures. These characteristics of an authoritarian government have been identified by Furio Cerutti in F. Cerutti, Conceptualizing Politics: An Introduction to Political Philosophy, Routledge, London, 2017, 17. Additionally, while democracy has far too many connotations and no single acceptable definition (on this point see C. Tilly, Democracy, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007, 1-25), for the purposes of this article, democracy or democratic is used as the antonym of autocracy or authoritarian.
K. L. Scheppele, Autocratic Legalism, in University of Chicago Law Review, Vol. 86, No. 2, 2018, 545-555.
Idem, 550-554.
M. Tushnet, Constitution-Making: An Introduction, in Texas Law Review, Vol. 91, 2013, 1983-1984.
Successful here refers to a constitution-making attempt that has to a fair degree the following four characteristics (1) results in producing a constitution; (2) produces a constitution with workable power-sharing arrangements; (3) produces a constitution that is accepted by a significant section of the populace and/or core elites; (4) produces a constitution that does not face calls by a significant section of the populace and/or core elites to be replaced shortly after its drafting.
M. Brandt, J. Cottrell, Y. Ghai, A. Regan, Constitution-Making and Reform Options for The Process, Interpeace, Switzerland, 2011, 75.
A. Hudson, When Does Public Participation Make a Difference? Evidence From Iceland's Crowdsourced Constitution, in Policy and Internet, Vol. 10, No. 2, 2017, 205-207.
S. Levitsky, L. Way, The New Competitive Authoritarianism, in Journal of Democracy, Vol. 31, No. 1, 2020, 51-52.
P. Collier, Wars, Guns, And Votes, Harper Collins, New York, 2010, 75.
The argument here is that optimally making a constitution can counteract to some degree non conducive exogeneous factors and likewise can result in far better outcomes in those situations where exogeneous factors are conducive to making a constitution.
Z. Elkins, T Ginsburg, J. Milton, The Endurance of National Constitutions, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2009, 2-5.
C. Saunders, International Involvement In Constitution Making, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (Eds.), Comparative Constitution Making, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham: UK, 2019, 84-88.
There are obviously other factors that the ones described here that impact the success of the constitution. Nonetheless, if these factors are not present, most other factors do not even come into play. For example, one such factor could be that different core groups get a fair chance to bargain at the constitution-making table. However, if they are not present at the table, the question of them getting a fair chance becomes moot.
Z. Elkins, T Ginsburg, J. Milton, The Endurance of National Constitutions, cit., 78.
J. Elster, Ways Of Constitution-Making in Democracy’s Victory and Crisis, in A. Hadenius (Ed.), Democracy’s Victory and Crisis, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1997, 123–42.
J. Widner, Constitution Writing and Conflict Resolution, in The Round Table, Vol. 94, No. 381, 2005, 511.
N. Brown, The Unsurprising but Distinctive Nature of Constitution Writing in The Arab World, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (Eds.), Comparative Constitution Making, cit., 457-458.
D. Landau, Constituent Power and Constitution Making in Latin America, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (Eds.), Comparative Constitution Making, cit., 558.
Z. Elkins, T Ginsburg, J. Milton, The Endurance of National Constitutions, cit., 147-214.
J. Widner, Constitution Writing and Conflict Resolution, cit.
C. Sunstein, Designing Democracy: What Constitutions Do, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2003, 13-48; D. Landau, Constitution-Making Gone Wrong, in Alabama Law Review, Vol. 64, No. 5, 2013, 923-980; W. Partlett, The Dangers of Popular Constitution-Making, in Brooklyn Journal of International Law, Vol. 38, No. 1, 2012,.193-238.
J. Elster, Forces and Mechanisms in the Constitution-Making Process, in Duke Law Journal, Vol. 45, No. 2, 1995, 395.
G. Negretto, Replacing Constitutions in Democratic Regimes: Elite Cooperation and Citizen Participation, in G. Negretto (Ed.), Redrafting Constitutions in Democratic Regimes, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2020, 109-110.
A. M. Bejarano, R. Segura, The Difference Power Diffusion Makes, in G. Negretto (Ed.), Redrafting Constitutions in Democratic Regimes, cit., 133.
T. Ginsburg, Z. Elkins, J. Blount, Does the Process of Constitution-Making Matter, in Annual Review of Law and Social Sciences, Vol. 5, No 1, 2009, 214.
See B. O’Leary, Making Constitutions in Deeply Divided Places, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (Eds.), Comparative Constitution Making, cit., 186-211.
W. Partlett, Post-Soviet Constitution Making, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (eds), Comparative Constitution Making, cit., 539-566.
Taliban Demands New Constitution for Afghanistan at Moscow Talks, in TRT World, 5 February 2020, available at https://www.trtworld.com/asia/taliban-demands-new-constitution-for-afghanistan-at-moscow-talks-23896/.
A Bali, Courts and Constitutional Transition: Lessons from the Turkish Case, in International Journal of Constitutional Law, Vol. 11, No. 3, 2013, 679-691.
A. Bali, H. Lerner, Religion and Constitution-Making in Comparative Perspective, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (Eds.), Comparative Constitution Making, cit., 266-267.
A Bali, Courts and Constitutional Transition: Lessons from the Turkish Case, cit.
H. Lerner, Constitution-Writing in Deeply Divided Societies: The Incrementalist Approach, in Nations and Nationalism, Vol. 16, No. 1, 2010, 66-88 (describing how this can be done by using four tactics (1) ambiguity (2) deferral; (3) conflicting principles/provisions; and (4) non-justiciability).
Juan Linz, Presidential or Parliamentary Democracy: Does It Make a Difference?, in J. Linz, A. Valenzuela (Eds.), The Failure of Presidential Democracy, John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1994, 18.
Z. Csaky, Nations in Transit: Dropping the Democratic Façade, Freedom House, Washington DC, 2020, 1-25.
A. Lijphart, Constitutional Design for Deeply Divided Societies, in Journal of Democracy, Vol. 15, No. 2, 2004, 101.
A. Sethi, A Stitch in Times Saves Nine – Why South Sudan Needs a New Constitution ASAP, in Global Affairs Blog, available at https://www.law.upenn.edu/live/news/6911-a-stitch-in-time-saves-nine-why-south-sudan/news/international-blog.
L, Goodson, Afghanistan’s Long Road to Reconstruction, in Journal of Democracy, Vol. 14 No. 1, 2003, 91.
D. Landau, Constitution-Making Gone Wrong, cit., 980.
Moreover, this part to paint broad strokes relies on more detailed individual works (and particularly empirical works) on the respective jurisdictions (and their issues) which help in ascertaining adequately the broader picture of the respective constitution-making experiences.
M. Coppedge, Venezuela Popular Sovereignty Versus Liberal Democracy, in J. I. Domínguez, M. Shifter (Eds.), Constructing Democratic Governance in Latin America, John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2003, 161-175.
K. M. Roberts, Populism and Democracy in Venezuela under Hugo Chavez, in C. Mudde, C.R. Kaltwasser (Eds.), Populism in Europe and the Americas, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2012, 144-145.
S. Ellner, Rethinking Venezuelan Politics: Class, Conflict, and the Chávez Phenomenon, Lynne Rienner Publishers, Boulder, 2008, 95-98.
J. Braver, Hannah Arendt in Venezuela: The Supreme Court Battles Hugo Chávez over the Creation of the 1999 Constitution, in International Journal of Constitutional Law, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2016, 565-578.
A. Brewer-Carías, The 1999 Venezuelan Constitution making Process as an Instrument for Framing the Development of an Authoritarian Political Regime, in L.E. Miller, Framing the State in Times of Transition: Case Studies in Constitution Making (Ed.), United States Institute of Peace Press, Washington DC, 506.
J. Braver, Hannah Arendt in Venezuela: The Supreme Court Battles Hugo Chávez over the Creation of the 1999 Constitution, cit., 567-578.
M. Bejarano, R. Segura, The Difference Power Diffusion Makes, cit., 143-144.
D. Landau, Constituent Power and Constitution Making in Latin America, cit., 578.
D. Landau, Constitution-Making Gone Wrong, cit., 948.
M.P. García-Guadilla, M. Pilar, Polarization, Participatory Democracy, and Democratic Erosion In Venezuela’s Twenty-First Century Socialism, in The Annals of The American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 681, No. 1, 2019, 65–67.
D. Landau, Constitution-Making Gone Wrong, cit., 942.
O. G. Encarnación, Venezuela’s “Civil Society Coup”, in World Policy Journal, Vol. 19, No. 2, 2002, 41.
G. Negretto, S. Wandan, Democratic Constitutional Replacements and Majoritarian Politics, in G. Negretto (Ed.), Redrafting Constitutions in Democratic Regimes, cit., 158.
E. Palonen, Performing the Nation: The Janus-Faced Populist Foundations of Illiberalism in Hungary, in Journal of Contemporary European Studies, Vol. 26, No. 3, 2018, 308-321.
G. Halmai, A Coup Against Constitutional Democracy, in M.A. Graber, S. Levinson, M. Tushnet, Constitutional Democracy in Crisis?, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2018, 245.
E. Palonen, Performing the Nation: The Janus-Faced Populist Foundations of Illiberalism in Hungary, cit., 308.
According to the Pew Research Study from 2010, 7/10 Hungarians felt they were worse off than under communism, and expressed skepticism with democracy – the highest of any of the countries in the region.
A. Bozóki, András, Mainstreaming The Far Right: Cultural Politics In Hungary, in Revue D’études Comparatives Est-Ouest, Vol. 47, No. 4, 2016, 91-99.
G. Halmai, The Making Of “Illiberal Constitutionalism” With or Without a New Constitution, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (Eds.), Comparative Constitution Making, cit., 305.
M. Bánkuti, G. Halmai, K. L. Scheppele, Disabling the Constitution, in Journal of Democracy, Vol. 23, No. 3, 2012, 138-146.
G. Halmai, The Making Of “Illiberal Constitutionalism” With or Without a New Constitution, cit., 305.
I. Szikinger, Hungary’s Pliable Constitution, in J. Zielonka (Ed.), Democratic Consolidation in Eastern Europe: Volume I: Institutional Engineering, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 406–430.
G. Negretto, S. Wandan, Democratic Constitutional Replacements and Majoritarian Politics, cit., 158.
M. Bánkuti, G. Halmai, K.L. Scheppele, From Separation of Powers to a Government without Checks: Hungary’s Old and New Constitutions, in G.A. Toth (Ed.), Constitution for a Disunited Nation: On Hungary’s 2011 Fundamental Law, CEU Press, Budapest, 2012, 237-268.
This generally happens for one of these three reasons (1) lack of sufficient representation in governmental bodies that carry out formal constitutional change (2) constraints due to constitutional norms or procedures (3) easier and subtler way to go about things.
Two high-risk countries - Poland and India - have started to make use of this model.
O. Varol, Stealth Authoritarianism in Turkey, in M.A. Graber, S. Levinson, M. Tushnet, Constitutional Democracy in Crisis?, cit., 342.
A Bali, Courts and Constitutional Transition: Lessons from the Turkish Case, cit.
M. Çınar, From Moderation to De-moderation: Democratic Backsliding of the AKP in Turkey, in J. L. Esposito, L. Z. Rahim, N. Ghobadzadeh, The Politics of Islamism, Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2018, 129.
Y. Arat, Beyond the Democratic Paradox: The Decline of Democracy in Turkey, in University of Gothenburg Working Paper Series, No. 21, 2019, 2-4.
M. Çınar, From Moderation to De-moderation: Democratic Backsliding of the AKP in Turkey, cit., 132
O. Varol, Stealth Authoritarianism in Turkey, cit., 348-354.
Z. Yılmaz, Erdoğan’s Presidential Regime and Strategic Legalism: Turkish Democracy in The Twilight Zone, in Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, Vol. 20, No. 2, 2020, 265-287.
O. Varol, Stealth Authoritarianism in Turkey, cit., 342.
D. Cupolo, The Decline and Fall of Turkish Democracy, in The Atlantic, 13 April 2017, available at https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/04/turkey-referendum-erdogan-kurds/522894/.
A. Makovsky, Erdoğan’s Proposal for an Empowered Presidency, Center for American Progress, Washington DC, 2017, 8.
A. Richard, Constitutional Amendment and Dismemberment, in Yale Journal of International Law, Vol. 43, No. 1, 2018, 29-80.
This sub section’s claim is not that the drafting processes in the three countries were perfect. All of these examples have been criticized by both academics and international organizations as being exclusionary or otherwise not completely optimal. Nonetheless, they do display several elements of an optimal constitution-making process – atleast to the extent that they lead to building popular support for the constitution.
AKP, 367'den Vazgeçemedi, in Cumhuriyet, 9th December 2016, available at https://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/akp-367den-vazgecemedi-642636.
Z. Elkins, A. Hudson, The Constitutional Referendum in Historical Perspective, in D. Landau, H. Lerner (Eds.), Comparative Constitution Making, cit., 142-164.
Z. Elkins, T Ginsburg, J. Milton, The Endurance of National Constitutions, cit., 147-214.
I. Szikinger, Hungary’s Pliable Constitution, cit.
M. P. García-Guadilla, Civil Society Institutionalization, Fragmentation, Autonomy, in S. Ellner, D. Hellinger (Eds.), Venezuelan Politics in The Chávez Era: Class, Polarization, & Conflict, Lynne Rienner Publishers, Boulder, 2003, 179-186.
K. L. Scheppele, Autocratic Legalism, cit.
E. Chenoweth, M. Stephan, Why Civil Resistance Works, in International Security, Vol. 33, No. 1, 2011, 39-42.
A. Chilton, M. Versteeg, How Constitutional Rights Matter, Oxford University Press, New York, 2020, 7.
G. Vanberg, Constitutional Courts in Comparative Perspective: A Theoretical Assessment, in Annual Review of Political Science, Vol. 18, 2015, 179-182.
K. L. Scheppele, Autocratic Legalism, cit., 550-554.
D. Landau, R. Dixon, c, in University of California Davis Law Review, Vol. 53, 2020, 1315-1387.
A. Sethi, Populism, Liberal Democracy, And Constitutionalism: An Unholy Trinity, 2021, 8, 18-20, available at https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3838122.
L. Gambao, Opposition at The Margins: Strategies Against the Erosion of Democracy in Colombia and Venezuela, in Comparative Politics, Vol. 49, No. 4, 2017, 464-468.
G. Halmai, The Making Of “Illiberal Constitutionalism” With or Without a New Constitution, cit., 320-321.
A. Sethi, Populism, Liberal Democracy, And Constitutionalism: An Unholy Trinity, cit.
M. Cameron, K. Sharpe, Andean Left Turns Constituent Power and Constitution Making, in M. Cameron, E. Hershberg (Eds.), Latin America’s Left Turns, Latin America’s Left Turns: Politics, Policies & Trajectories of Change, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2010, 60-71.
D. Landau, Courts and Constitution Making in Democratic Regimes, in G. Negretto, Redrafting Constitutions in Democratic Regimes, cit., 944-9.
B. Moffit, The Global Rise of Populism, in The Global Rise of Populism, Stanford University Press, 2016, 1-10.
W. A. Galston, The Populist Challenge to Liberal Democracy, in Journal of Democracy, Vol. 29, No. 2, 2018, 15-1
Dowloads
Pubblicato
Come citare
Licenza
Questo lavoro è fornito con la licenza Creative Commons Attribuzione - Non commerciale - Non opere derivate 4.0 Internazionale.