Enacting Bills of Rights: Canada and the Curious Case of New Zealand's "Thin" Democracy

This article looks to the legal and political contexts of two liberal democracies--New Zealand and Canada--and their respective Bill of Rights experiences. In contrast to Canada's constitutionally entrenched Charter of Rights and Freedoms, New Zealand presents an image of a liberal rights ideol...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Human rights quarterly 2004-02, Vol.26 (1), p.152-188
Main Author: Leane, G. W. G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bill of Rights
Canada
Civil Rights
Common law
Constitution
Constitutional amendments
Constitutions
Democracy
Freedom
Government and politics
History
Human Rights
Ideology
Indigenous Populations
Judicial system
Legal rights
Legal status, laws, etc
Legislation
Liberal democracy
Native peoples
Native races
New Zealand
Parliamentary system
Parliaments
Political parties
Politics
Rights
Treaties
Citations: Items that cite this one
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Summary:This article looks to the legal and political contexts of two liberal democracies--New Zealand and Canada--and their respective Bill of Rights experiences. In contrast to Canada's constitutionally entrenched Charter of Rights and Freedoms, New Zealand presents an image of a liberal rights ideology incompletely realized in a "weak" Bill of Rights. As an important subtext, both states must consider indigenous minorities--one litmus test for rights protection. It is argued that New Zealand manifests a very different, and problematic, rights consciousness which might properly be addressed in any future constitutional reforms.
ISSN:0275-0392
1085-794X
1085-794X
DOI:10.1353/hrq.2004.0006