Domestizierung des Leviathan? Südostasiens Verfassungen und ASEAN's neues Homogenitätskriterium demokratischer Verfassungsstaatlichkeit

• Published in: Verfassung und Recht in Übersee 2008-01, Vol.41 (4), p.534-559
• Main Author: Menzel, Jörg
• Format: Article
• Language: eng ; ger
• ISSN: 0506-7286
• DOI: 10.5771/0506-7286-2008-4-534

Southeast Asia is a diverse region with a dynamic development of its constitutional landscape in recent history. In 2007, the ASEAN Member States signed a new Charter, a regional constitution, as some would call it, which will enter into force in the end of 2008. This Charter defines the purposes and principles of ASEAN and among the concepts enshrined are democracy, human rights, rule of law, constitutionalism and adherence to international law. In reality, Southeast Asian States are far away from being united under such concepts for the time being. Brunei is an absolute monarchy, Myanmar military dictatorship. Laos and Vietnam are economically liberal communist one-party systems. Cambodia, althoughhaving a democratic constitution since 1993, is currently more often qualified as elected strongmanship than living constitutionalism. Thailand and the Philippines, both under democratic constitutions, have been in severe crisis in recent years. Indonesia is widely considered to be the best practice example in Southeast Asia, when it comes to the development of constitutionalism. Compared to the situation more than twenty years ago, the balance of democracy, human rights and constitutionalism seems much improved, however. The new ASEAN Charter therefore does not reflect the current situation, but a strong tendency. ASEAN should be applauded to have included a somewhat visionary agenda in its Charter. The provisions concerning constitutionalism may not be hard law for the time being, but they formalize an agenda, which has not been appreciated by all leaders in Southeast Asia in recent history.