Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-84b7d79bbc-c654p Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-29T23:17:49.375Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

5 - On the History and Theory of Global Constitutionalism

from Part I - Groundwork

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 November 2018

Takao Suami
Affiliation:
Waseda University, Japan
Anne Peters
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institut für ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht, Germany
Dimitri Vanoverbeke
Affiliation:
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
Mattias Kumm
Affiliation:
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Get access

Summary

Concluding the first part, Mattias Kumm retraces the history of Global Constitutionalism, explaining that narratives are very much part and parcel of the history of western legal and political thought and have been connected to periods of western hegemony. With such a historical background, can Global Constitutionalism be sufficiently civilizationally and culturally inclusive? Can it be relevant when western hegemony seems to be receding and the balance of power shifting in favour of other regions? After clarifying concepts, the chapter provides some basic ideas toward an affirmative genealogy of Global Constitutionalism. Drawing on examples from Asian and European history, it shows first that universal categories and their meaning have often been shaped by contestations between different actors, not simply dictated by "the west". It shows also that anti-constitutionalist claims, often made in the name of national tradition, culture, or sovereignty, have served as a cover for the continuation of practices of domination by national elites and as a shield for these from challenges by the oppressed. Third, the chapter shows that to the extent that international legal structures perpetuate forms of domination, constitutionalism has demonstrated the internal resources to criticize these and to guide efforts of progressive development and reform.
Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2018

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×