Written versus unwritten: two views on the form of an international constitution
Series
Research Handbooks on Globalisation and the Law
ISBN
978-1-78347-725 8
Type
book section
Date Issued
2017
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Lang, Anthony F.
Wiener, Antje
Abstract
Today, concepts of constitutionalism are widely used in international legal scholarship, both to describe and to promote changes in the international legal order in support of the rule of law, the protection of human rights and other common values of the international community. Against this background, the present chapter deals with a question so far addressed only cursorily — the “writtenness” of international constitutional law. Can we assume the existence of an “unwritten” international constitution, or does the very concept of a constitution in the modern sense require that a constitution is laid down in written form? The chapter discusses the importance of “writtenness” in modern constitutionalism and addresses the “English exception”, that is the absence, in the United Kingdom, of a document called “the constitution”. The chapter concludes with a plea for taking the constitutional character of the UN Charter more seriously, arguing that the idea of an unwritten constitution of the international community does not provide a viable alternative.
Language
English
Keywords
United Nations Charter
international law
international community
international constitutional law
United Kingdom
British constitution
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Book title
Handbook on Global Constitutionalism
Publisher
Edward Elgar
Publisher place
Cheltenham, UK / Northampton, MA, USA
Volume
1. Auflage
Start page
265
End page
274
Pages
10
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
252821