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6 - Pathways of Failure

The Importance of Constitutional Design

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 March 2022

Tofigh Maboudi
Affiliation:
Loyola University, Chicago
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Summary

When the constitutional bargain process is non-inclusive and nonparticipatory, and when civil society fails to operate as a democratizing force, the constitutional outcome is not likely to resolve the political and societal ills of authoritarianism. Chapter 6 addressed several of these constitutional design issues. It first examines cases where constitutions failed to limit the arbitrary powers of the monarchs (Morocco and Jordan) or presidents (Egypt and Algeria) by utilizing a constitutional design that lacked textual clarity, adopting contradictory provisions, and creating parallel institutions. Next, the chapter examines “non-consensual” constitutional designs in deeply divided societies. First, in countries where an ethnoreligious minority ruled against the majority’s will (Bahrain and Syria), new constitutions failed to institutionalize power-sharing. Second, where regional cleavages, rivalries, and grievances were prominent issues, as in Yemen and Libya, federalist and region-based power-sharing constitutional arrangements failed to prevent conflict. Lastly, where a country was deeply divided across ideological and identity lines (as was Egypt in 2012), winner-take-all approach to constitutional drafting alienated half of the population, leading to the failure of the constitution and the democratic transitional process.

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Chapter
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The 'Fall' of the Arab Spring
Democracy's Challenges and Efforts to Reconstitute the Middle East
, pp. 193 - 228
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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  • Pathways of Failure
  • Tofigh Maboudi, Loyola University, Chicago
  • Book: The 'Fall' of the Arab Spring
  • Online publication: 31 March 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009023382.007
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  • Pathways of Failure
  • Tofigh Maboudi, Loyola University, Chicago
  • Book: The 'Fall' of the Arab Spring
  • Online publication: 31 March 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009023382.007
Available formats
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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.

  • Pathways of Failure
  • Tofigh Maboudi, Loyola University, Chicago
  • Book: The 'Fall' of the Arab Spring
  • Online publication: 31 March 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009023382.007
Available formats
×