In this thesis, the concept of the procedural aspect of the Rule of Law will be distinguished from what I argue are conceptions that are falsely promulgated as concept. The different aspects of the Rule of Law—form, substance, and procedure— are helpful in making the distinction between concept and conception. Examining procedure within the Rule of Law is particularly important, and I define a broader set of requirements of the concept of the procedural aspect of the Rule of Law. This concept is applied to understand the Indian conception of the Rule of Law, a particularly interesting case that brings out questions about culture and economic capacity. Ultimately, I argue that this broader set of requirements is better suited to evaluate the realization of the Rule of Law in all contexts.

Depuis ses origines, la codification a toujours été officiellement réalisée en vue d’assurer l’accessibilité et l’intelligibilité de la norme ainsi que la sécurité juridique des individus. Cette conception téléologique de la codification est corroborée par les discours politiques contemporains qui l’associent plus généralement à l’Etat de droit auquel elle est censée contribuer. La seule récurrence de cette affirmation ne suffit pas à prouver sa pertinence. C’est pourquoi, en se fondant sur l’Etat de droit et ses multiples facettes, il est au préalable nécessaire de procéder à la conceptualisation de la codification. Il s’agit de la condition sine qua non pour une étude fiable de l’Etat de droit comme fin de la codification. / Since its origins, the codification has always been officially carried out in order to ensure the accessibility and intelligibility of the norm, as well as the legal security of the individuals. This teleological conception of the codification is corroborated by the contemporary political views which associate it, more generally, to the Rule of law to which it is supposed to contribute. The only recurrence of this assertion is not sufficient to prove its relevance. That is why, based on the rule of law and its many facets, it is necessary to proceed first to the conceptualization of the codification. It is the sine qua non for a reliable study of the Rule of law as being the aim of the codification.

Despite the rule of law being one of the founding values and objectives of the European Union, some of the Member States have disrespected the rule of law. In response, the European Commission has invented new tools to reinforce the rule of law. The newest tool is the Rule of Law Report, and the purpose of this thesis is to study the Report’s significance in ensuring respect for the rule of law in the EU. To do so a combination of legal methods and a range of sources, such as EU primary law, case-law, EU documents and doctrine, have been used. The Report is issued annually, so far it has been published in three editions stretching from 2020 to 2022. The Report builds on a general part and 27 country chapters assessing the rule of law situation in each Member State. From the 2022 Report onwards, the Report is also accompanied with recommendations to each Member State. The Report is to be considered soft law. It is non-binding and can, hence, not be subject to judicial review by the European Court of Justice, but it imposes a moral obligation on the institutions addressed. Mainly on the Member States, but also on the Council, the European Parliament, and other bodies of the EU. It is descriptive, interpretative and has a connection to hard law but can only be enforced by soft enforcement. Furthermore, the Report does not explicitly mention a legal basis, but the Commission appears to have the conferred powers to adopt the act. Moreover, the Report have had practical effects at national and EU-level, and it has potential to have even more effects. It urges national rule of law reforms and causes debate in the institutions and national parliaments about the rule of law situation. It could be subject to interpretation in the ECJ and in national courts and it could serve as a source to activate other hard tools in the rule of law toolbox. Despite being criticised, the Report has significance in ensuring respect for the rule of law in the EU. It might have a low legal status, but it has legal relevance, and it has the potential to have even higher legal relevance in the future.

The beginning of the 1990s saw many African countries embarking on the process of drafting new constitutions as they abandoned independence constitutions. Most of the independence constitutions were perceived as constitutions without constitutionalism and they were generally blamed for failure of democracy and the rule of law in Africa. The study analyses the state of democracy and constitutionalism and the impact that colonialism had on the African continent. Apart from the spurt of new constitutions adopted, democracy is growing very slowly in most African states with widespread human rights violations and disregard for the rule of law and the principle of separation of powers, still holding the centre stage. Judicial independence is an important component of democracy in the modern state. The study therefore scrutinizes how the principle of judicial independence can be promoted and protected to enhance democracy. One important mechanism which plays a crucial role in safeguarding judicial independence is the way judicial officers are appointed. The study selects four countries – Swaziland, Kenya, Zimbabwe and South Africa and analyses how judicial officers are appointed in these countries in an effort to find an effective and optimal approach.The premise of the study is centred on the role of constitutionalism and the process of appointing judges as a means of promoting and safeguarding democracy in these selected countries. / Public, Constitutional, & International Law / LLM

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Democracy is understood by many to be a government for the people by the people. As far as academic or scholarly traditions are concerned however, this is a rather populist depiction of the concept. According to the intellectual tradition, democracy is such when a system of governance meets several conditions. For the purpose of this study, the institutionalist tradition or theory of democracy which sees democracy as being dependent on institutions of contestation (elections) and participation (parliament) as well as others, is an important variable. However, the very same theory on democracy is not limited to institutions as the sole requirements for democracy. For the economic determinists, the point is that whilst institutions are important for democracy, they are not sufficient. In order for there to be such, favourable socio-economic conditions are important as well and these include affluence amongst other issues. The scientific orientation of this study being comparative, it seeks to take both the institutionalist variable of elections and the economic determinist variable of affluence as operational measures of the state of democracy in South Africa and Zimbabwe. As an additional operationalisation, the issue of civil and political liberties as per Freedom House classifications is also investigated in a similar comparative manner. The outcomes of the study show that at an electoral level, South Africa's model of proportional representation in the seat allocation system gives minorities a voice as opposed to Zimbabwe's fast past the post system based on the winner takes all principle. It was also established that the electoral machinery in Zimbabwe is more chaotically arranged and thus susceptible to abuse than in South Africa. At a socio-economic level, conditions have also been found to be a lot more favourable to the consolidation of democracy in South Africa than in Zimbabwe because of a wide array of issues, the most serious one being the declining income patterns for the average Zimbabwean as compared to the South African. Though the issue of high income inequality in South Africa should be highlighted as a threat, it should also be noted that in Zimbabwe, the apparent disrespect of the rule of law has an added negative implication for Zimbabwe as Freedom House has highlighted the declining of the country from partly free of 3.4 in 1980 to a partly free of 6.5 in 2000. The overall analysis comes to the conclusion that given the findings above, it seems South Africa's democracy can still hold stronger given an accelerated equitable distribution of wealth whilst for Zimbabwe, the revitalisation of democracy needs to start from the re-engineering of institutions to the regeneration of the concept of respect for the rule of law. Thus the comparison seems to show a democracy better suited for consolidation than the other. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Demokrasie word deur talle verstaan as regering van die volk deur die volk. Hierdie is egter 'n populêre voorstelling van die konsep. Volgens intellektuele tradisies, moet 'n demokrasie aan sekere vereistes voldoen. Vir die doel van hierdie studie, word die institusionele denke aanvaar wat die demokrasie as afhanklik van sulke instellings soos mededinging (verkiesings) en deelname ('n parlement) beskou. Dieselfde denke beklemtoon ook dat instellings nie die enigste vereistes is me, byvoorbeeld vir ekonomiese deterministe, is instellings nodig maar nie genoegsaam nie. Dit beteken dat gunstige sosio-ekonomiese toestande ook moet geld, spesifieke relatiewe hoë welvaartspeile. Die wetenskaplike orientasie van hierdie studie is vergelykend. Dit vergelyk sowel ekonomiese as institusionele kriteria, asook twee state, Suid-Afrika en Zimbabwe. 'n Addisionele saak word ook geoperasionaliseer, te wete burgerlike vryhede en politieke regte. Hier word Freedom House se klassifikasies aanvaar. Die studie toon dat op die vlak van verkiesings, Suid-Afrika se proporsionele verteenwoordigingstelsel kleiner partye en minderheidspartye verteenwoordiging bied, teenoor Zimbabwe se wenner-vat-alles-stelsel. Die Zimbabwiese stelsel was meer vatbaar vir wanbestuur en onvrye en onregverdige verkiesings. Op die sosio-ekonomiese vlakke is toestande vir die konsolidasie van demokrasie in Suid-Afrika veel beter as in Zimbabwe, waarvan die vernaamste die afname in welvaartspeile in Zimbabwe is. Hierteenoor is die styging van ongelykheidsvlakke in Suid-Afrika 'n negatiewe faktor. In Suid-Afrika is vryheidsindekse van Freedom House egter steeds op 'n hoë vlak, terwyl die Zimbabwiese vlakke drasties agteruitgaan, byvoorbeeld vanaf 3.4 in 1980 tot 'n onvrye vlak van 6.5 in 2000 waar 'n punt van 7 totaal onvry is. Die konklusie is dat demokrasie in Suid-Afrika konsolideerbaar is, terwyl Zimbabwe ook instellings sal moet red van ondergang. Die herstel van regsoewereiniteit kan 'n beginpunt wees. Die vergelykings wys dus uit dat Suid-Afrika veel beter daaraan toe is as Zimbabwe.

Dans l'histoire des idéologies philosophiques de l'humanité, les philosophes politiques français du XVIIIème siècle, et particulièrement Montesquieu et Rousseau, ont eu une importance décisive, non seulement dans la fondation de la république en France mais aussi pour leur contribution à la définition de ce qu'est un Etat de droit ou Etat juridique. C'est à ce titre que ces deux penseurs nous intéressent ici, comme autant de contributions idéologiques majeures à la détermination du pouvoir d'Etat et de l'Etat de droit. C'est pour ces raisons d'ailleurs que ces deux théoriciens jouent actuellement un grand rôle dans la construction d'un état juridique au Vietnam, et c'est ce rôle que nous entendons éclairer dans cette thèse. / In the history of philosophical ideologies of humanity, the French political philosophers of the eighteenth century had a decisive importance, especially Montesquieu and Rousseau, not only in the founding of the republic in France but also for their contribution to the definition of the Rule of law or legal state. These two thinkers are of central interest to understand their evolution of political concepts, because of their major ideological contributions to the determination of the State power and the Rule of law. Likewise, their influence has been extended through the time until our days, playing a big role in the configuration of a legal state in Vietnam. This thesis aims to illuminate this role.

Thesis (doctoral)--Deutsche Hochschule für Verwaltungswissenschaften, Speyer, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [520]-564).

The United Arab Emirates' legal system has developed though the continued negotiation between the Shari’a and the Civil Courts over the spheres of criminal law and commercial law. The framework that has emerged, as a result of regime politics and Supreme Court rulings, provides the regime the flexibility to continue their commercial development and integration into the modern global economy, while retaining the domestic authority structures that legitimate their power.

The beginning of the 1990s saw many African countries embarking on the process of drafting new constitutions as they abandoned independence constitutions. Most of the independence constitutions were perceived as constitutions without constitutionalism and they were generally blamed for failure of democracy and the rule of law in Africa. The study analyses the state of democracy and constitutionalism and the impact that colonialism had on the African continent. Apart from the spurt of new constitutions adopted, democracy is growing very slowly in most African states with widespread human rights violations and disregard for the rule of law and the principle of separation of powers, still holding the centre stage. Judicial independence is an important component of democracy in the modern state. The study therefore scrutinizes how the principle of judicial independence can be promoted and protected to enhance democracy. One important mechanism which plays a crucial role in safeguarding judicial independence is the way judicial officers are appointed. The study selects four countries – Swaziland, Kenya, Zimbabwe and South Africa and analyses how judicial officers are appointed in these countries in an effort to find an effective and optimal approach.The premise of the study is centred on the role of constitutionalism and the process of appointing judges as a means of promoting and safeguarding democracy in these selected countries. / Public, Constitutional, and International Law / LLM

Le contrôle de l’exécutif dans la création de l’État de droit en Afrique aura été au centre de tous les débats doctrinaux depuis la décennie 1990. L’omnipotence de l’exécutif sur les autres pouvoirs en Afrique, sapant l’existence de l’équilibre des pouvoirs (exécutif, législatif, judiciaire) a donné lieu à toutes sortes de spéculations. C’est ainsi que dés 1990 l’accent était mis sur les mécanismes de limitation des pouvoirs de l’exécutif. Cette question de la séparation et de l’équilibre des pouvoirs dont la paternité revient à John Locke mais dotée de sa résonance actuelle par Montesquieu reste aujourd’hui une question non encore résolue en Afrique afin de permettre une réalisation effective de l’État de droit. Cette étude a pour objet de mettre en lumière les obstacles qu’il faudrait lever , les causes sociologiques concourant à de telles conséquences ainsi que les voies et moyens devant mener à la limitation des pouvoirs de l’exécutif , laissant la voie aux conditions naturelles de préservation des libertés individuelles pour la mise en œuvre de l’Etat de droit en Afrique. Force est de constater que bien des progrès ont été réalisés depuis 1990, notamment avec l’édiction de nouveaux textes constitutionnels et une volonté affichée des uns (pouvoirs politiques) et des autres (société civile et associations de défense des droits de l’homme) de mettre en place des régimes démocratiques. Toutefois, depuis la chute du mur de Berlin, cet espoir des lendemains prometteurs semble céder la place au pessimisme. Il convient ainsi de déterminer les raisons de cette décadence tout en mettant l’accent sur des indices de nature à fleurir l’espoir des lendemains meilleurs. C’est dans cette ligne droite que s’inscrit l’objet de notre projet de thèse. / The control of the executive in the creation of the Rule of law in Africa will have been in the center of all the doctrinal debates since the decade 1990. The omnipotence of the executive on the other powers in Africa, sapping the existence of the balance of power (executive, legislative, legal) caused all kinds of speculations. Thus by 1990 the emphasis was placed on the mechanisms of limitation of the powers of the executive. This question of the separation and the balance of power whose paternity returns to John Locke but equipped with his current resonance by Montesquieu remains today a question not yet solved in Africa in order to allow an effective realization of the Rule of law. This study has the aim of clarifying the obstacles which would have to be raised, sociological causes contributing to such consequences as well as the ways and means having to lead to the limitation of the powers of the executive, leaving the way to the natural conditions of safeguarding of individual freedoms for the implementation of the Rule of law in Africa. Force is to note that many progress were realized since 1990, in particular with the édiction of new constitutional texts and a will displayed of the ones (political powers) and others (civil society and defense associations of the human rights) to set up democratic regimes. However, since the fall of the Berlin Wall, this hope of the promising following days seems to give way to pessimism. It is thus advisable to determine the reasons of this decline while focussing on indices likely to flower the hope of the better following days. It is in this straight line that the object of our project of thesis is registered.