12 May 2022
The Placeless Parliament
Parliaments form a structural fixture in government districts around the world, they are the pivotal place where public affairs are negotiated and formulated. The Russian assault on Ukraine has made it abundantly clear that this place no longer exists in Kiev. At least it is no longer available to the representatives, and the parliament is forced to reinvent itself as a "placeless actor“. It is not very surprising that this reinvention is taking place in the digital space. Continue reading >>
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10 May 2022
The United Parliament
While we frequently hear about Presidents taking the role of a commander in chief in times of war, the legislature, too, can play an important role. Whether a country succeeds in a war depends not least on how well its legislature is able to adjust to face the challenges of war. This blog post takes a closer look at the Ukrainian Parliament – the Verkhovna Rada (the Rada hereafter) – and its roles and activities during the war of the Russian Federation on Ukraine. Continue reading >>
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05 May 2022
Democracy Under Total War
Ukraine is engaged in an existential war for survival. One need not accept the full role of the exception from Carl Schmitt to acknowledge that the struggle to withstand a brutal assault on civilians transcends all other issues. Ukrainian constitutional law recognizes the need for exceptional powers during a state of emergency, as does every other constitutional order whether expressly or tacitly. Necessarily, a war for survival shifts authority from parliament to the executive and many of the founding principles of democracy may be suspended during the emergency, even such defining features of democracy as popular selection of the government. Continue reading >>
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05 May 2022
Ukraine’s Parliament in Wartime
To defend Ukraine is to defend constitutional democracy and the rule of law. But the defence of Ukraine must occur through constitutional democracy and the rule of law. The Verkhovna Rada is a central institution in the Ukrainian constitutional order. The Verkhovna Rada’s legislative authority continues to exist during armed conflict and states of emergency. Indeed, the Verkhovna Rada plays a vital role in such situations. However, the routine operations of the Verkhovna Rada in these extraordinary circumstances have been very challenging.
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19 August 2015
Im Spiegelkabinett des Parlamentarismus – Macht und Ohnmacht der europäischen Bürgervertretungen
Einziger Tagesordnungspunkt des Bundestages auf seiner Sondersitzung am 19. August 2015 war die Zustimmung zum dritten Hilfspaket für Griechenland. Wieder einmal hat ganz Europa auf ein nationales Parlament geschaut und sich gefragt, ob es dem Weg zustimmen wird, den die Gubernativen Europas ausgehandelt haben. Dabei stellt sich die grundsätzliche Frage, welche Rolle Parlamenten überhaupt zukommen kann, zukommen soll, wenn die zugrundeliegenden politischen Projekte gekennzeichnet sind durch Inter- und Transnationalität, große Geheimhaltung und oftmals Zeitdruck. Die These ist: Es zeigen sich widersprüchliche Tendenzen in Europa. Einerseits gewinnen Parlamente an Bedeutung – während das Bundesverfassungsgericht eine Stärkung des deutschen Parlamentarismus vorgibt, stärkt sich das Europäische Parlament aus eigener Kraft. Die Wertschätzung für das Prinzip Parlamentarismus findet andererseits aber in der politischen Realität zur Zeit dort ihre Grenzen, wo die Bürgervertretung ein „Nehmer-Land“ repräsentiert. Continue reading >>
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