Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UC): UC Law professors addressed the principles in the draft of the new Constitution
The first session of the Miradas Derecho UC cycle of talks included the participation of constitutional law academics who analyzed and reflected on the principles present in the first chapter of the draft constitutional text.
As an important part of the academic contribution made by the UC School of Law , through its different departments and the UC Constitutional Forum initiative , with a view to the next exit plebiscite, during the afternoon of last Wednesday, July 6, the first session of the Miradas UC series of meetings. What does the draft of the new Constitution say? where professors José Luis Cea and Patricio Zapata, under the moderation of the director of the UC Constitutional Forum, Alejandra Ovalle, analyzed the fundamental principles contemplated in the proposal for the new Constitution.
In context, chapter one of the draft new Constitution entitled Principles and General Provisions, is made up of 16 articles that refer to the human person; families; parity democracy; sovereignty, territory, the social state of law, multinational, regional and ecological; among others.
In this sense, the person in charge of opening the reflections was Professor Zapata, who in his speech named four axes that the Convention proposal includes and that are typical of a 21st century Constitution: feminism, environmentalism, regionalism and original towns. “I am critical of the way some of these ideas, principles and values are collected. I am far from thinking that the project was perfect, but it does seem good to me to understand from the outset the sense that in the first chapter of the draft of the new Constitution there is talk of parity, the environment, regions, indigenous peoples and other issues”, assured the Professor Zapata.
“I am far from thinking that the project was perfect, but it does seem good to me to understand from the outset the sense that in the first chapter of the draft of the new Constitution there is talk of parity, the environment, regions, indigenous peoples and other issues” – Patricio Zapata, UC Law academic
Professor Cea, meanwhile, began by explaining that the essential thing to arrive informed at the exit plebiscite is for each one to prepare thoughtfully to decide what to do with the draft of the new Constitution, clarifying that people must take an attitude of “overcoming ideological dogmatism, respect for ideas and values, and also an openness to change and not denial, but not just any change”. After that, and like Professor Zapata, he chose five principles of the draft of the new Constitution which, he clarified, have shortcomings: Chile is a social State of Law, the sovereignty of the peoples, parity, the protection of families and the international recognition of human rights at the constitutional level.
Rule of Law
Regarding the social state of law, Professor Cea explained that it is correct to affirm that Chile is a social state, despite, he assured, that what is drawn in the articles that come later in the constitutional project do not reflect that. “What is being done is a socialist welfare state in which civil society disappears. The concept of common good disappears. I believe that it is the socialist state that they want to establish and not a social state as it exists in Germany or Belgium”.
For his part, Professor Zapata argued that the social rule of law goes beyond a certain set of public policies. “It’s the concept that really gives meat to that we are a nation.” And what is a nation, he asked himself, “a human group where what happens to one matters to the others. I think it is fantastic that we talk about the nation, about what it means to be a nation and that has to do with social rights, because otherwise it is nationalism, which is something else.”
Plurinationality
Plurinationality was another of the topics analyzed by both academics. Professor Zapata invited to read the proposed text and especially article two, number 1 referring to Plurinationality, which says that “sovereignty resides in the people of Chile made up of various nations.” In this sense, the academic stressed that article 3 reinforces that Chile is a unique and indivisible territory, while article 4 strengthens the idea that Chile recognizes the coexistence of diverse peoples and nations within the framework of the state unit. “Plurinationality is a challenge to the self-understanding of what we are. It seems to me that the idea that a nation harbors nations within itself is not something absurd or new,
“We have always been a demonstrably such a nation, with triumphs and defeats, a people with a history, with an honorable tradition of founding institutions and successfully maintaining them, we have suffered the losses, but we have been able to overcome them with exemplary democratic decisions. I believe that sovereignty must continue to belong to the nation, unique, united”- José Luis Cea, UC Law academic
For his part, Professor Cea said he agreed to recognize, respect, help and promote the identity of the original peoples, “but another thing is to believe that they are nations because that is not effective (…) It is a mistake to establish sovereignty in 12 towns. I think it has to be the other way around. We have always been such a proven nation, with triumphs and defeats, a people with a history, with an honorable tradition of founding institutions and successfully maintaining them, we have suffered the losses, but we have been able to overcome them with democratically exemplary decisions. I believe that sovereignty must continue to belong to the nation, unique, united”, he concluded.