Rights, Emergencies and Judicial Review

Rights, Emergencies and Judicial Review PDF

Author: Imtiaz Omar

Publisher: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers

Published: 2023-07-03

Total Pages: 409

ISBN-13: 9004633758

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This book makes a significant contribution to the understanding of issues of comparative constitutionalism in emergent politics. Recurrent states of emergency in Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh provide the background for a comparative examination of constitutional emergency powers, individual rights, and judicial review. This work examines the extent to which the Court in these countries has performed its expected role, identifies problems in approaches to interpretation which have been adopted, and suggests alternatives to constitutional interpretation and judicial review. The alternatives explored are drawn from contemporary western jurisprudence, including those of Ronald Dworkin and writers of the Critical Legal Studies tradition. The juxtaposition of western jurisprudential development to issues of constitutionalism in the countries under survey is a bold attempt to seek some common ground in conceptualizing rights and techniques of juristic interpretation in western and eastern legal cultures. The theoretical framework of the study is well-perceived, the arguments convincing. This carefully researched work makes a valuable and scholarly contribution to the study of comparative constitutional law and jurisprudence.

Law, Government and the Constitution in Malaysia

Law, Government and the Constitution in Malaysia PDF

Author: Andrew Harding

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2024-01-22

Total Pages: 331

ISBN-13: 900463309X

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This book aims to give a comprehensive picture of law, government and the constitution in Malaysia, and to set constitutional developments in their proper political and social context. It is written in such a way that lawyers may see how perspectives other than the purely legal can enrich the understanding of constitutional issues in Malaysia and that others may comprehend the lawyer's perspective on these issues. There has been an increasing interest in constitutional issues in Malaysia since the mid-1980s following a number of important events, including the advent of judicial activism and the curtailment of royal powers. There is now a pressing need for a reappraisal of the Malaysian constitution in terms of its political and social dimensions and dynamics, and the extent of its adherence to, or its interpretation of, those principles which are collectively known as `constitutionalism', that is, democratic government, the rule of law, the separation of powers, and the observance of fundamental human rights and liberties. The book examines how the constitution has adjusted to its environment, how it actually operates and how its abstractions differ from reality. The author concludes that the principles of the constitution have been eroded to such a degree that a new constitutional settlement is needed - one which makes it clear what the basic tenets of the Malaysian polity are.

The Constitution of Malaysia

The Constitution of Malaysia PDF

Author: Andrew Harding

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2022-05-19

Total Pages: 287

ISBN-13: 1509927441

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“This book should find its place in every person's library...[it is] a resource for engagement and vital critical discourse.” Philip T. N. Koh, Star2 This is a much-welcome new edition of the seminal introduction to Malaysia's constitution by the leading expert in the field. Retaining its comprehensive approach, it examines constitutional governance in light of authoritarianism and continuing inter-communal strife, as well as examining the impact of colonisation on Malaysia's legal public law structure. Updated throughout to include all statutory and case law developments, it also retains its socio-political perspective. A must read for all students and scholars of Malaysian law.

Malaysia, State and Civil Society in Transition

Malaysia, State and Civil Society in Transition PDF

Author: Vidhu Verma

Publisher: Lynne Rienner Publishers

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 268

ISBN-13: 9781588260918

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Tracing historical and political dynamics underlying nearly 20 years of authoritarian rule, Verma addresses five issues: Islam, secular nationalism, citizenship, democracy and human rights, arguing that modernization has led to tensions in Malaysia.

New Courts in Asia

New Courts in Asia PDF

Author: Andrew Harding

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2010-01-21

Total Pages: 589

ISBN-13: 113518271X

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This book discusses court-oriented legal reforms across Asia with a focus on the creation of ‘new courts’ over the last 20 years. Contributors discuss how to judge new courts and examine whether the many new courts introduced over this period in Asia have succeeded or failed. The ‘new courts’ under scrutiny are mainly specialist courts, including those established to hear cases involving intellectual property disputes, bankruptcy petitions, commercial contracts, public law adjudication, personal law issues and industrial disputes. The justification of the trend to ‘judicialize’ disputes has seen the invocation of Western-style rule of law as necessary for the development of the market economy, democratization, good governance and the upholding of human rights. This book also includes critics of court building who allege that it serves a Western agenda rather than serving local interests, and that the emphasis on judicialization marginalises alternative local and traditional modes of dispute resolution. Adopting an explicitly comparative perspective, and contrasting the experiences of important Asian states - China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei, Thailand and Indonesia - this book considers critical questions including: Why has the ‘new-court model’ been adopted, and why do international development agencies and nation-states tend to favour it? What difficulties have the new courts encountered? How have the new courts performed? What are the broader implications of the trend towards the adoption of judicial solutions to economic, social and political problems? Written by world authorities on court development in Asia, this book will not only be of interest to legal scholars and practitioners, but also to development specialists, economists and political scientists.

The Constitution of Singapore

The Constitution of Singapore PDF

Author: Kevin YL Tan

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2015-04-30

Total Pages: 278

ISBN-13: 1782258094

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Singapore's Constitution was hastily cobbled together after her secession from the Federation of Malaysia in 1965. In the subsequent 50 years, the Constitution has been amended many times to evolve a Constitution like no other in the world. Outwardly, Singapore has a Westminster-type constitutional democracy, with an elected legislature, fundamental liberties and safeguards to ensure the independence of the judiciary. On closer inspection, the Constitution displays many innovative and unusual characteristics. Most notable among them are the various types of Members of Parliament that have been introduced since the mid-1980s, the office of the Elected President and the fact that there is no constitutional right to property. This volume seeks to explain the nature and context of these constitutional innovations in the context of a pluralistic, multi-ethnic state obsessed with public order and security. The volatile racial mix of Singapore, with its majority Chinese population nestled in a largely Malay/Islamic world, compels the state to search for ethnic management solutions through the Constitution to guarantee to the Malays and other ethnic minorities their status in the polity. In addition, it examines how the concept of the rule of law is perceived by the strong centrist state governed by a political party that has been in power since 1959 and continues to hold almost hegemonic power.

Pluralist Constitutions in Southeast Asia

Pluralist Constitutions in Southeast Asia PDF

Author: Jaclyn L Neo

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2019-04-04

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1509920471

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This book examines the presence of ethnic, religious, political, and ideational pluralities in Southeast Asian societies and how their respective constitutions respond to these pluralities. Countries covered in this book are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The chapters examine: first, the range of pluralist constitutional values and ideas embodied in the constitutions; secondly, the pluralist sources of constitutional norms; thirdly, the design of constitutional structures responding to various pluralities; and fourthly, the construction and interpretation of bills of rights in response to existing pluralities. The 'pluralist constitution' is thus one that recognises internal pluralities within society and makes arrangements to accommodate, rather than eliminate, these pluralities.

Constitution-making in Asia

Constitution-making in Asia PDF

Author: H. Kumarasingham

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-03-31

Total Pages: 212

ISBN-13: 1317245105

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Britain’s main imperial possessions in Asia were granted independence in the 1940s and 1950s and needed to craft constitutions for their new states. Invariably the indigenous elites drew upon British constitutional ideas and institutions regardless of the political conditions that prevailed in their very different lands. Many Asian nations called upon the services of Englishman and Law Professor Sir Ivor Jennings to advise or assist their own constitution making. Although he was one of the twentieth century’s most prominent constitutional scholars, his opinion and influence were often controversial and remain so due to his advocating British norms in Asian form. This book examines the process of constitutional formation in the era of decolonisation and state building in Asia. It sheds light upon the influence and participation of Jennings in particular and British ideas in general on democracy and institutions across the Asian continent. Critical cases studies on India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Nepal – all linked by Britain and Jennings – assess the distinctive methods and outcomes of constitution making and how British ideas fared in these major states. The book offers chapters on the Westminster model in Asia, Human Rights, Nationalism, Ethnic politics, Federalism, Foreign influence, Decolonisation, Authoritarianism, the Rule of Law, Parliamentary democracy and the power and influence of key political actors. Taking an original stance on constitution making in Asia after British rule, it also puts forward ideas of contemporary significance for Asian states and other emerging democracies engaged in constitution making, regime change and seeking to understand their colonial past. The first political, historical or constitutional analysis comparing Asia’s experience with its indelible British constitutional legacy, this book is a critical resource on state building and constitution making in Asia following independence. It will appeal to students and scholars of world history, public law and politics.

Monarchy in South East Asia

Monarchy in South East Asia PDF

Author: Roger Kershaw

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2002-01-04

Total Pages: 304

ISBN-13: 1134667078

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This title is the first study to relate the history and contemporary role of the South East Asian monarchy to the politics of the region today. Comprehensive & up-to-date, Monarchy in South East Asia features an historical and political overview of *Cambodia *Thailand *Malaysia *Brunei *Indonesia *Laos *as well as the region in general. The excellent coverage of this fascinating subject should be of interest to general reader as well as to specialists focusing on region.