Constitutional Courts in Decline
On losing confidence, gaining independence and other constitutional ups and downs.
Articles for category: English Articles
Academic Freedom in an Illiberal Democracy: From Rule of Law through Rule by Law to Rule by Men in Hungary
October 11, 2017, was supposed to be the day when the deadline for meeting the requirements of the notorious "Lex CEU" would expire. Two days afterwards, however, the Hungarian government announces to extend the deadline by a year – out of the blue. And that is not the only interesting thing that happened today.
Catalonia and Spain: A View from the Future Past
I am not suggesting Spain and Catalonia are headed for the same result as Yugoslavia and its republics. The conditions necessary for such a confrontation are simply not present. At the same time, the similarities do suggest danger of further escalation, with the possibility of unrest that should be taken seriously.
Can Brexit be stopped under EU Law?
Ominous clouds are gathering and the terrain underfoot increasingly resembles a quagmire on the Brexiteers ‘sunlit uplands’. It is therefore unsurprising that the chatter about revoking the Art. 50 notification to withdraw from the EU – itself waxing and waning since the referendum vote – has become louder in recent days; spurred on by a freedom of information request seeking the government’s legal advice on the question.
Independence as an Assertion
On Catalonia and… No. It's basically all about Catalonia.
The Spanish Constitutional Crisis: Law, Legitimacy and Popular Sovereignty in Question
The Spanish constitutional crisis is escalating, and it has now – finally – found broader attention, thanks to the referendum on 1 October and the violence of the Spanish police trying to prevent it from being held. Still, much confusion reigns on how to approach the crisis, apart from the obvious condemnation of the human rights violations during the referendum and in the weeks leading up to it. Having been a close observer of the unfolding crisis for the last decade, here some attempts at clarification.
Catalan secessionism faces the European Union
Catalan secessionists have constructed a hypothetical place for an independent Catalonia within the EU on the basis of three explicit assumptions.((See on this issue Carlos Closa (ed.) Secession from a Member State and Withdrawal from the European Union;Troubled Membership, Cambridge University Press 2017)) They assume, firstly, that the EU will treat their demands sympathetically. This first assumption explains the calls from various political actors, including the Mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, the Catalan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Raúl Romeva and even the European Parliament’s Green Group who coincided, prior to 1-O, in their request to the Commission for mediation. And ... continue reading
Homage to Catalonia: How to Lift the Gridlock of Constitutional Crisis in Spain
83 years after the first proclamation of a Catalan State, Catalonia seems once again to be on the verge of unilaterally declaring its independence, giving cause to a grave constitutional crisis in Spain. Although, until now, the intransigence of both sides has led to this gridlock, there is always space for a compromise that could de-escalate the crisis. However, such compromise should be characterised by a number of principles that could help the two sides present the future agreement as a win-win situation.
Where is the Pulse of Europe when it’s needed?
On rebuilding Europe and the resounding silence of the German election results in this and other matters constitutional.
President Duda is Destroying the Rule of Law instead of Fixing it
Were the president of any country to propose acts of law that remove almost half of the members of its supreme court, interrupt the constitutional term of office of the chairperson of such court, give himself the right to appoint a new chairperson of the court, and finally, interrupt the constitutionally defined term of office of a judicial council responsible for appointing judges, the consequences of such manifestly unconstitutional solutions would be massive public opposition and accusations of a coup d’état. And yet in Poland, where this is exactly what is happening, the President’s proposals are met with understanding. Why? Because they are perceived as better than the even more unconstitutional proposals put forward earlier by the ruling party, Law and Justice.
