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Rule of Law as a Framework within the ASEAN Community

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Abstract

As the ASEAN moves towards its vision of a ‘Community,’ enforceability and consistency of legal standards, broadly the “rule of law,” have drawn attention due to their impact on the predictability of social environments, with consequences for markets, people, and policy makers. This paper draws together recent findings and suggests ASEAN States have made significant progress but remain in a state of transition. These findings support Barry Weingast’s prediction that developing countries are more likely to create consistent rules and move to “open access orders” in line with requirements for development, rather than install artificial enforcement mechanisms before growth.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    J. Rawls, A TheoryOfJustice 207(Rev. ed. 1999).

  2. 2.

    See, e.g., UN, GuidanceNoteOfTheSecretary-General: UN ApproachToRuleOfLawAssistance (2008), Guiding Princ. at 2–4.

  3. 3.

    T. Bingham, The Rule Of Law 3 (2010).

  4. 4.

    H. Thoolen (ed.), Indonesia and the Rule of Law: Twenty Years of “New Order” Government, (F. Pinter ed., 1987). See also Bivitri Susanti, Indonesia, in Rule of Law for Human Rights in the ASEAN Region: A Base-line Study 95–96 (D. Cohen, K. Tan & M. Mohan eds., 2011).

  5. 5.

    R. Yatim, Freedom Under Executive Power In Malaysia A Study Of Executive Supremacy 27 (1995).

  6. 6.

    S. Jayakumar, The Meaning and Importance of the Rule of Law, Keynote address at the International Bar Association Conference, 2007, available athttp://app.subcourts.gov.sg/Data/Files/File/Speeches/2007Oct19_IBA_%20MinisterOfLaw.pdf (last visited on Sept. 24, 2012).

  7. 7.

    J. Raz, The Rule of Law and Its Virtue, in The Authority Of Law Essays & Morality 210 (J. Raz, ed., 1979).

  8. 8.

    B. Weingast, Why Developing Countries Prove So Resistant to the Rule of Law, StanfordCenterForInternationalDevelopmentWorkingPaper, no. 382, 18–19 (2009).

  9. 9.

    Id.

  10. 10.

    T. Ringer, Development, Reform, and the Rule of Law: Some Prescriptions for a Common Understanding of the ‘Rule of Law’ and its Place in Development Theory and Practice, 10 YaleHum.Rts. &Dev. L. J., 131 (2007).

  11. 11.

    Id.

  12. 12.

    G. Agamben, StateOfException 39 (2005).

  13. 13.

    Id.

  14. 14.

    Id.

  15. 15.

    M. Mohan, Rule of Law for Human Rights in the ASEAN Region: A Base-line Study, in Cohen, Tan & Mohan eds., supra note 4, at 8.

  16. 16.

    The World Justice Project, Rule of Law Index 2011, at 9, available athttp://worldjusticeproject.org/sites/default/files/WJP_Rule_of_Law_Index_2011_Report.pdf (last visited on Oct. 17, 2012).

  17. 17.

    Supra note 3.

  18. 18.

    ASEAN Charter art. 7(1).

  19. 19.

    ASEAN, RoadmapForAnASEAN Community 2009–2015 (2009), available athttp://www.aseansec.org/publications/RoadmapASEANCommunity.pdf (last visited on Aug. 29, 2012) at 6.

  20. 20.

    R. Severino, The ASEAN Way and the Rule of Law, speech presented at the International Law Conference on ASEAN Legal Systems and Regional Integration, Sept. 3, 2011, available athttp://www.aseansec.org/2849.htm (last visited on Oct. 17, 2012).

  21. 21.

    As Kelsen argues, descriptive observations of a system of rules can be formulated that avoid sociological jurisprudence. Nevertheless, the selection of indicators may emphasize certain aspects of law such that jurisprudent norms are implicit. See H. Kelsen, The Pure Theory of Law and Analytical Jurisprudence, 55 Harv. L. Rev. 52 (1941).

  22. 22.

    Supra note 16, at1.

  23. 23.

    Mohan, supra note 15, at 13, 24–25.

  24. 24.

    Supra note 21.

  25. 25.

    K. Jayangakula, The Kingdom of Thailand, in Cohen, Tan & Mohan eds., supra note 4, at 256.

  26. 26.

    Joel Ng, The State of Brunei Darussalam; Joel Ng & Giao Vu Cong, The Socialist Republic of Vietnam, in Cohen, Tan & Mohan eds., supra note 4.

  27. 27.

    The WJP survey increased the number of the ASEAN countries surveyed from four in 2010 to seven in 2011. Only Brunei, Lao PDR and Myanmar are not tracked at present.

  28. 28.

    The World Justice Project, Effective Regulatory Enforcement, available athttp://worldjusticeproject.org/factors/effective-regulatory-enforcement (last visited on Aug. 29, 2012).

  29. 29.

    Ng & Cong, supra note 26, at 284.

  30. 30.

    Mohan, supra note 15, at 16, 19.

  31. 31.

    Id.

  32. 32.

    Weingast, supra note 8, at 10.

  33. 33.

    Id.

  34. 34.

    Id.

  35. 35.

    Id.

  36. 36.

    G. Helmke & F. Rosenbluth, Regimes and the Rule of Law: Judicial Independence in Comparative Perspective, 12 Annu.Rev. Polit.Sci. 348 (2009).

  37. 37.

    Const. of Brunei (2008), Sec. 84B(1), available athttp://www.wipo.int/clea/docs_new/pdf/en/bn/bn016en.pdf (last visited on Oct. 18, 2012).

  38. 38.

    Ng, supra note 26, at 40.

  39. 39.

    onst. of Myanmar (2008) Secs. 71, 233, 238 & 302, available athttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Constitution_of_Myanmar_of_2008.pdf (last visited on Oct. 18,2012).

  40. 40.

    Const. of Cambodia (1993) arts. 1 & 51, available athttp://cambodia.ohchr.org/klc_pages/KLC_files/section_001/section_01_01_ENG.pdf (last visited on Oct. 18,2012).

  41. 41.

    Susanti, supra note 4, at 93–94.

  42. 42.

    For both sources, see Transparency International, The Global Corruption Barometer is the only world-wide public opinion survey on corruption, available athttp://gcb.transparency.org/gcb201011 (last visited on Sept. 6, 2012).

  43. 43.

    See e.g., Amnesty International, Human rights should dominate ASEAN agenda (2009), available athttp://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/human-rights-should-dominate-asean-agenda-20090225 (last visited on Mar. 20, 2012).

  44. 44.

    For details on the activities of the Commission, see AICHR, available at, http://www.aseansec.org/22769.htm (last visited on Aug. 1, 2012).

  45. 45.

    Susanti, supra note 4, at 94.

  46. 46.

    Malaysia has since repealed its Internal Security Act.

  47. 47.

    Li-Ann Thio, The Theory and Practice of Judicial Review of Administrative Action in Singapore: Trends and Perspectives, in DevelopmentsInSingaporeLaw 2006–2010:TrendsAndPerspectives (SAL Conference Proc., Singapore, Feb. 2011).

  48. 48.

    Id.

  49. 49.

    Mohan, supra note 15.

  50. 50.

    C. Roberts & Poh On Lee, Brunei Darussalam: Cautious on Political Reform, Comfortable in ASEAN, Pushing for Economic Diversification, in 2009 SoutheastAsianAffairs 63(2009).

  51. 51.

    Vietnam Penal Code arts. 79, 80, 86, 87, 88, 91 & 258.

  52. 52.

    M. Saloman, M. & Vu Doan Ket, Achievements and challenges in developing a law-based state in contemporary Vietnam: How to shoe a turtle, in LegalReformsInChinaAndVietnam:A ComparisonOfAsianCommunistRegimes 141 (J. Gillespie & A. Chen, eds., 2010).

  53. 53.

    UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Vietnam, ¶ 75, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/12/11 (Sept. 17, 2009), available athttp://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/vietnam_upr_report_of_wg.pdf (last visited on Sept. 21, 2012).

  54. 54.

    Weingast, supra note 8, at 10.

  55. 55.

    ASEAN, RoadmapforAn ASEAN Community 2009–2015, 21–25 (2009).

  56. 56.

    Ng & Cong, supra note 26, at 285.

  57. 57.

    Susanti, supra note 4, at 95–97.

  58. 58.

    Mohan, supra note 15, at 18.

  59. 59.

    Ng & Cong, supra note 26, at 291.

  60. 60.

    Id. at 46.

  61. 61.

    A. Sharom, Malaysia, in Cohen, Tan & Mohan, supra note 4, at 148.

  62. 62.

    ASEAN Law Association, The Honourable Chief Justice, Chen Sek Keong, available at http://www.aseanlawassociation.org/chairman-sing.html (last visited on Oct. 15, 2012).

  63. 63.

    Ng & Cong, supra note 26, at 294.

  64. 64.

    Supra note 32.

  65. 65.

    World Justice Project, Singapore, available athttp://worldjusticeproject.org/country/singapore (last visited on Oct. 15, 2012).

  66. 66.

    Weingast, supra note 8.

  67. 67.

    Id.

  68. 68.

    G. Agamben, StateOfException 39 (2005).

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Ng, J. (2022). Rule of Law as a Framework within the ASEAN Community. In: Lee, E.Y.J. (eds) ASEAN International Law. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-3195-5_10

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