PrintConstitution Making, Peacebuilding, and National Reconciliation
part of the Rule of Law
Featured
November 2008
In this innovative and stimulating volume, Francis Deng outlines a new relationship between governments and societies—a relationship informed by Western concepts but based on traditional African values such as respect for human dignity, equality, and self-rule.
Program Specialists
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Senior Rule of Law Adviser, Rule of Law Center of Innovation
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Nations in every region of the world recognize the role of constitutionalism in their political and legal systems. In many countries making the transition from conflict, oppression, or other major political crises, one of the first tasks undertaken is the drafting of a new constitution- a key element of democratization and state-building.
This step is crucial to outlining the vision of a new society, defining the fundamental principles by which a country will be reorganized, and redistributing political power. Moreover, the constitution making process provides an opportunity for competing perspectives and claims in a post-conflict or transitional society to be aired and reflected in the state's foundational document.
Although a variety of projects and publications have focused on the substance of constitutions created during times of transition, less work has been done to examine the ways in which the process of creating a constitution can be a vehicle for national dialogue and the consolidation of peace. Looking forward to the likelihood of future constitution making processes, a need exists to explore the options for how such processes can be designed to meet the needs of particular social and political circumstances, and to create the basis for effective democratic government.
USIP created the project on Constitution Making, Peacebuilding and National Reconciliation to provide guidance to policymakers, negotiators, and practitioners involved in constitution making processes regarding tools and options at their disposal. At present, the constitution making project has five components:
Framing the State in Times of Transition: A Comparative Study of Constitution Making Processes (USIP, 2009)
USIP will complete and publish an edited volume in 2009 containing 19 case studies of constitution making experiences over the past thirty years along with several analytical chapters. Most chapters in Framing the State in Times of Transition were written by individuals directly involved in the respective constitutional processes, providing an extraordinary depth of first-hand detail and reflection.
Mediator's Handbook on Constitution Making
Constitution making has become a key element of many peace processes, and therefore a critical aspect of the work of mediators engaged in the drafting and implementation of peace agreements. In 2009, USIP will publish a handbook for mediators outlining the potential and pitfalls of engagement in constitution making as part of broader peace processes. This handbook is part of a series of mediator handbooks USIP is creating in cooperation with the Mediation Support Unit in the UN Department of Political Affairs. In preparation for the handbook, USIP conducted a workshop in New York in 2008, in partnership with the Bobst Center at Princeton University. The workshop engaged experienced mediators and constitutional experts to learn lessons on the critical role that constitutional design issues play in peace-processes, and on the role of mediators in relation to these issues
Placing drafting tools and other intellectual resources into the hands of practitioners when and where they need them can be an essential input during constitution making processes. USIP and the Constitutional Design Group/Comparative Constitutions Project (CCP) of the University of Illinois has developed a web-based resource for constitutional drafting, the Constitutionmaking.org. This interface will allow those engaged in drafting processes direct access to a digital library of essential provisions of numerous constitutions, as well as comparative analysis of a variety of issues for comparative use. The site was launched in February of 2009.
Public Participation in Constitution Making
In countries coming out of conflict, the perceived legitimacy of a constitution, and how it was created, may be as essential to success as the outcome of any particular substantive issue. Therefore, public consultation and participation accompanied by robust public information campaigns are a fundamental element of constitutional processes. Building on its past groundbreaking work on this issue, in 2009 USIP will co-host, with International Interpeace and International IDEA, a conference that focused on public participation in constitution making, drawing also on lessons from non-constitutional contexts.
The Constitution Making Project engages directly in ongoing constitution making processes, providing support and advice to relevant national and international actors on issues of substance, process, and implementation. This includes past and ongoing engagement with government, international, and NGO/civil society organizations in Afghanistan, Bosnia, DRC, Iraq, and Sudan, among others. Building on the lessons of the project, USIP produced a Special Report in 2005 on Iraq's Constitutional Process: Shaping a Vision for the Country's Future
Of Related Interest
Iraq's Federal Executive: Options for Executive Power Sharing (English Translation)
Iraq's Federal Executive: Options for Executive Power Sharing (Arabic Translation)
Constitution of Iraq: United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) (English Translation)
For more information, please contact Jason Gluck at 202.429.3886 or jgluck@usip.org.