The 9th Annual Democratic Transition Conference:
In Cooperation with
the Arab Association of Constitutional Law
Tunis, 25-27 September 2020
The issue of a constitution is of great importance in countries undergoing democratic transition, given the importance of constitutions within the framework of democratic states, as they form the essence of the political and social contract between the rulers and the public. This contract defines the nature of the state and the basic elements upon which its political system is based, the powers of the public authorities, the relationship between different authorities, the rights and freedoms of citizens, and the rules for the distribution of power and wealth among state regions.
The Arab countries have witnessed many kinds of unrest, during which many demands concerning the adoption of political and constitutional reforms have been raised and are necessary to the success of the democratic transition and building the rule of law. These demands were part of the “Arab Reform Projects” that flourished before the Arab revolutions in 2011. However, the widespread involvement in the issue of the constitution, involving intellectuals, civil activists, and academic and political elites, only occurred with the Arab revolutions. The demands expressed in the context of these revolutions in 2011, as well as during the popular movements in Sudan and Algeria, were very similar, and summed up by the slogans of political freedom, social justice, and the overthrow of corruption and tyranny.
Based on the above, and with the aim of clearly highlighting the status of constitution in democratic transition in the Arab region, this conference is organized by the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies in cooperation with the Arab Association of Constitutional Law. It comes within the series of annual conferences on the issues of democracy and democratic transition, which is supervised by The Project of Democratic Transformation and Transition Phases in The Arab Countries. The conference will track how the issue of a constitution has been managed in Arab countries that have embarked on transitions, drafted new constitutions (or constitutional documents), or made amendments to previous ones. The conference poses a central question that has occupied Arab intellectuals since the beginning of the twentieth century: How can a political authority that is effectively constrained by the constitution be established; that is, how can the modern constitutional state be achieved?
