Authoritarian Straightjacket or Vehicle for Democratic Transition?: The Risky Struggle to Change Myanmar’s Constitution

in Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Huq (eds) From Parchment to Practise: Implementing New Constitutions. Cambridge University Press.

15 Pages Posted: 17 Mar 2021

See all articles by Melissa Crouch

Melissa Crouch

University of New South Wales (UNSW) - UNSW Law & Justice

Date Written: August 7, 2020

Abstract

How hard is it to change a constitution that was drafted by an authoritarian regime? What strategies might democratic actors adopt to change such a constitution, and what risks may they face? These dilemmas face democratic actors in Myanmar who seek to change the 2008 Constitution. In this chapter I introduce the contours and practice of Myanmar’s Constitution as a political order set in place by the former military regime. I identify and explore the different strategies that have been used to change the 2008 Constitution – formal constitutional amendment proposals in 2013-2015; informal constitutional change through judicial interpretation in the Constitutional Tribunal; and informal constitutional change in the form of the legislative innovation of the Office of the State Counsellor. These attempts at constitutional reform come with particular risks to democratic actors, personal, political and institutional. I suggest that the risks of constitutional change are heightened during the first period of a constitution, particularly if the constitution has been designed to protect the interests of the former authoritarian regime.

Keywords: Myanmar, Risk, Constitution, Authoritarian Regimes

Suggested Citation

Crouch, Melissa Amy, Authoritarian Straightjacket or Vehicle for Democratic Transition?: The Risky Struggle to Change Myanmar’s Constitution (August 7, 2020). in Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Huq (eds) From Parchment to Practise: Implementing New Constitutions. Cambridge University Press., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3777656 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3777656

Melissa Amy Crouch (Contact Author)

University of New South Wales (UNSW) - UNSW Law & Justice ( email )

Kensington, New South Wales 2052
Australia

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