Conference on Constitutions in Authoritarian Regimes: Session VI

Constitutions, it is conventionally believed, are institutions that define and limit the boundaries of government.  Yet the formal constitution is an institution adopted by virtually every modern political regime, including many that would appear to have no interest in codifying any form of limitation on government power. We have very little understanding of the logics and dynamics of constitutional design and practice in countries that have “constitutions without constitutionalism”. This conference, held on October 21-22, 2011, explored the roles that constitutions play in authoritarian regimes, drawing on a wide range of cases to try to produce some general conclusions.

Session VI

• Paper: Randall Peerenboom, La Trobe University, “Social Foundations of China’s Living Constitution”
  • Commentator: Dali Yang, University of Chicago
• Paper: He Xin, City University of Hong Kong, “The Party’s Leadership as Living Constitution in Reform China”
  • Commentator: Nicholas Howson, University of Michigan