scholarly journals ARTICLE 7 PROCESS AND DEMOCRATIC BACKSLIDING OF HUNGARY AND POLAND. DEMOCRACY AND THE RULE OF LAW

2020 ◽  
pp. 57-85
Author(s):  
Łukasz ZAMĘCKI ◽  
Viktor GLIED
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
The Political ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Council Of Europe ◽  
Checks And Balances ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
History Of ◽  
Eastern European Countries ◽  
First Time ◽  
The Eu

This paper examines developments in Poland following the 2015 elections and in Hungary since 2010, which included the gradual destruction of democratic institutions, challenges to the rule of law, as well as to the system of checks and balances. The authors consider the Ziblatt–Levitsky model (2018) as a meaningful framework for the analysis of the way in which the power structure was reshaped and have based their research on the classification set out in this model. Our objective is to present the political changes that took place in the two Central-Eastern-European countries during the last decade that resulted in the process under Article 7 being used for the first time in the history of the EU. The paper conclusion is that the path of de-democratization of Hungary and Poland is seen from the perspective of the EU and Council of Europe, as similar one. In actions taken toward both countries, the EU concerns mostly the principle of the rule of law.

scholarly journals Argentina’s Politicized Bureaucracy: A Historical Analysis of Two Political Regimes

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Verónica Elías
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Historical Analysis ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Regimes ◽  
Checks And Balances ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Fair Treatment ◽  
History Of ◽  
Democratic Rule

This article employs the concept of “bureaucratic authoritarianism” (O’Donnell, 1978, 1988) to evaluate whether the character of Argentine bureaucracy has changed in the shift from dictatorial to democratic rule. A brief discussion about the political and administrative history of that country follows the characterization of bureaucratic authoritarianism in light of accountability and clientelism (Fox, 2000; Smulovitz & Peruzzotti, 2000, 2003). This article explores the possibility of bureaucratic legitimacy in Argentina through the enforcement of the rule of law, the system of checks and balances, and the fair treatment of citizens.

scholarly journals Finality of Judgments in Civil Cases and Related Considerations: The Experience of Ukraine and Lithuania

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (5) ◽  
pp. 6-29
Author(s):  
Kostiantyn Gusarov ◽  
Viktor Terekhov
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Judicial Reform ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Council Of Europe ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Public Role ◽  
Eastern European Countries ◽  
Judicial Economy

Finality of judgments is a concept that puts an end to the trial, prohibiting subsequent appeals, opening of new proceedings and disputing clearly established facts. Despite being promoted by the Council of Europe and its Court of Human Rights and familiar to most if not all states, its application still encounters misunderstanding in some Eastern European Countries. Deeply rooted ideas of substantive truth and public role of the judiciary, a rather idiosyncratic notion of fair trial and the rule of law all lead to underestimation of the role played by finality in a peaceful life of the society. This article addresses the experience of Ukraine (where a major judicial reform has just taken place) and Lithuania – two post-Soviet nations that both, still in their unique way, worked on implementing the principle of finality into their procedural order. The paper also explores an uneasy balance to be found between this notion and other relevant considerations (access to justice, rule of law, judicial economy and some other).

European Integration

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johann P. Arnason
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Historical Processes ◽  
History Of ◽  
External Conditions ◽  
Eastern European Countries ◽  
Totalitarian Regimes ◽  
The Eu

Different understandings of European integration, its background and present problems are represented in this book, but they share an emphasis on historical processes, geopolitical dynamics and regional diversity. The introduction surveys approaches to the question of European continuities and discontinuities, before going on to an overview of chapters. The following three contributions deal with long-term perspectives, including the question of Europe as a civilisational entity, the civilisational crisis of the twentieth century, marked by wars and totalitarian regimes, and a comparison of the European Union with the Habsburg Empire, with particular emphasis on similar crisis symptoms. The next three chapters discuss various aspects and contexts of the present crisis. Reflections on the Brexit controversy throw light on a longer history of intra-Union rivalry, enduring disputes and changing external conditions. An analysis of efforts to strengthen the EU’s legal and constitutional framework, and of resistances to them, highlights the unfinished agenda of integration. A closer look at the much-disputed Islamic presence in Europe suggests that an interdependent radicalization of Islamism and the European extreme right is a major factor in current political developments. Three concluding chapters adopt specific regional perspectives. Central and Eastern European countries, especially Poland, are following a path that leads to conflicts with dominant orientations of the EU, but this also raises questions about Europe’s future. The record of Scandinavian policies in relation to Europe exemplifies more general problems faced by peripheral regions. Finally, growing dissonances and divergences within the EU may strengthen the case for Eurasian perspectives.

scholarly journals A Populist Monster and the future of Constitutional Democracy

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-100
Author(s):  
Andraž Teršek
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Legal Protection ◽  
Constitutional Court ◽  
Court Decisions ◽  
Constitutional Democracy ◽  
Council Of Europe ◽  
Constitutional Courts ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Eu

Abstract The central objective of the post-socialist European countries which are also Member States of the EU and Council of Europe, as proclaimed and enshrined in their constitutions before their official independence, is the establishment of a democracy based on the rule of law and effective legal protection of fundamental human rights and freedoms. In this article the author explains what, in his opinion, is the main problem and why these goals are still not sufficiently achieved: the ruthless simplification of the understanding of the social function and functioning of constitutional courts, which is narrow, rigid and holistically focused primarily or exclusively on the question of whether the judges of these courts are “left or right” in purely daily-political sense, and consequently, whether constitutional court decisions are taken (described, understood) as either “left or right” in purely and shallow daily-party-political sense/manner. With nothing else between and no other foundation. The author describes such rhetoric, this kind of superficial labeling/marking, such an approach towards constitutional law-making as a matter of unbearable and unthinking simplicity, and introduces the term A Populist Monster. The reasons that have led to the problem of this kind of populism and its devastating effects on the quality and development of constitutional democracy and the rule of law are analyzed clearly and critically.

scholarly journals La influencia de los textos no vinculantes del Consejo de Europa sobre independencia judicial en el TEDH y en la UE

2021 ◽  
pp. 161
Author(s):  
Rafael Bustos Gisbert
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Case Law ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Council Of Europe ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
European Court ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Eastern European Countries ◽  
Basic Standards

El artículo examina los documentos elaborados sobre independencia judicial por distintos órganos del Consejo de Europa. Tiene en cuenta la diferente aproximación en los mismos antes y después de la crisis del Estado de Derecho en algunos de los Estados europeos a partir de 2010. Tras resumir los estándares básicos elaborados en tales textos, se estudia su influencia en el Consejo de Europa y en la UE. En el primer sentido se examina su presencia en la jurisprudencia del TEDH. Respecto a la UE se examina el modo en que ha condicionado la labor de la Comisión en la supervisión del respeto al Estado de Derecho por los Estados miembros desde que comenzara a usarlos para evaluar las candidaturas de los países del Este a ingresar en la UE a finales del pasado siglo, hasta su incorporación al Informe sobre el Estado de Derecho en la UE aprobado en octubre de 2020.This essay focuses on the documents on judicial independence drafted by Council of Europe bodies. It takes into account its diverse approaches before and after the rule of Law backsliding in some European States since 2010. The basic standards elaborated are summarized. Its influence is addressed both at the Council of Europe and at the European Unión. In the first sense it examines the influence of this soft law in the European Court of Human Rights case law. Secondly it focuses in the way it has conditioned the European Commission task of monitoring the effectiveness of rule of law in EU member states. This influence began when they were used to evaluate the candidatures of Eastern European countries to join the EU at the end of the last century but it has kept inspiring the Commision’s activities until the Report on Rule of Law issued in October 2010.

State, Sovereignty, and the People: A Comparison of the “Rule of Law” in China and India

2009 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan K. Ocko ◽  
David Gilmartin
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Social Order ◽  
The Political ◽  
British India ◽  
Fourth Section ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
China And India ◽  
The People ◽  
History Of

This paper uses the concept of the “rule of law” to compare Qing China and British India. Rather than using the rule of law instrumentally, the paper embeds it in the histories of state power and sovereignty in China and India. Three themes, all framed by the rule of law and the rule of man as oppositional yet paradoxically intertwined notions, organize the paper's comparisons: the role of a discourse of law in simultaneously legitimizing and constraining the political authority of the state; the role of law and legal procedures in shaping and defining society; and the role of law in defining an economic and social order based on contract, property, and rights. A fourth section considers the implications of these findings for the historical trajectories of China and India in the twentieth century. Taking law as an instrument of power and an imagined realm that nonetheless also transcended power and operated outside its ambit, the paper seeks to broaden the history of the “rule of law” beyond Euro-America.

The Impact of covid-19 Measures on the Rule of Law in the Western Balkans and the Increase of Authoritarianism

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-33
Author(s):  
Andi Hoxhaj ◽  
Fabian Zhilla
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Bosnia And Herzegovina ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Western Balkans ◽  
Checks And Balances ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
State Capture ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

Abstract This article offers a comparative analysis of the covid-19 legal measures and model of governance adopted in the Western Balkans countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Kosovo) and its impact on the state of the rule of law, and ability of parliament and civil society to scrutinise government decisions. The article assesses the governments’ approaches to introducing and enforcing covid-19 legal measures, and shows examples of how covid-19 has exposed more openly the weaknesses in the existing system of checks and balances in the Western Balkans. The article offers new insights into how covid-19 presented a new opportunity for leaders in the Western Balkans to implement further their authoritarian model of governance in undermining the rule of law. This article offers suggestions on how the EU could respond, through its accession conditionality instruments and civil society, to redirect this trend towards more state capture.

Central and Eastern Europe: The New Core or the Periphery of Europe?

2020 ◽  
pp. 162-181
Author(s):  
Ireneusz Paweł Karolewski
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Refugee Crisis ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Policy Fields ◽  
Visegrad Group ◽  
The Eu

This chapter focuses on Central and Eastern European (CEE) member states of the EU, and how they positioned themselves in the new constellation of conflicts within the EU in the aftermath of the multiple crisis. It deals mainly with the Visegrad Group (V4) and explores its ‘repositioning’ in regard to two crisis-ridden policy fields of the EU: controversies about the rule of law and the refugee crisis. With regard to the former issue, the chapter discusses Poland as the most prominent case among the CEE countries. Against this background, it highlights two specific aspects of domestic politics: the memory games that the V4 countries play with their past and the Euroscepticism of government circles as well as a broader public.

Part III The Relationship Between the Judiciary and the Political Branches, 7 Super-presidentialism in Angola and the Angolan Judiciary

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomashausen André
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
The Political ◽  
Constitutional Court ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Constitutional State ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Parliamentary Oversight ◽  
Supply Information

This chapter recounts the history of constitutional developments in Angola leading up to the 2010 constitution. It introduces the new Angolan Constitutional Court and discusses the first and thus far only substantive decision of this Court—the Parliamentary Oversight Judgment of 9 October 2013—a serious constitutional conflict between parliament and the president. The Court held that the 2010 constitution had reduced the powers of parliament as compared to the previous text and that parliament lacked the power to question the executive or to summon ministers to hearings before it. Since these are presidential powers, the Court held, parliament may not arrogate them, though it may request the president to supply information or order his ministers before it. Although the conservative leaning of the Court in this dispute disappointed the opposition and many commentators, the judgment strengthened the rule of law and of the constitutional state.

A Tale about Poland – Introduction to the Situation in Poland

2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 600-606
Author(s):  
Peter Oliver Loew
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Current Situation ◽  
Cultural Discourse ◽  
The Political ◽  
Liberal Politics ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
The Government ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
The Eu

This article provides an in-depth insight into the “Polish peculiarities” that substantially continue to affect the current situation in the country - a country where the rule of law is in danger, where politics and society are dramatically divided, and where images of existent or invented enemies seem to dominate the political and cultural discourse. The article concludes that many questions remain open regarding the respect for the rule of law. The “tale of Poland” is not yet finished: there are several possible scenarios for Poland, ranging from progressing radicalization, to maneuvering of the government in order to satisfy the EU as well as the domestic national-Catholics, to the destruction of the government camp and the return of a majority of the electorate towards pro-European, liberal politics.

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