The Sources and Causes of Constitutional Reform in the South Caucasian Republics

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 No.1 Yekom alley Kharazm st. Phase 4 Shahrak e Gharb

2 Regional studies, UT, Tehran, iran

Abstract

The three republics of Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia ratified their first constitutions as independent countries in 1995 and amended them at least 2 or 3 times in the subsequent years. The simultaneity of these amendments with elections and transitions of power has made their political effects broader and more noteworthy. Taking this into account, the main research question of this paper is, what has been the most important factor leading to constitutional amendments in these South Caucasian republics? The comparative analysis of this issue illustrates both homogeneities and heterogeneities among these republics, and the same may also be observed in other developing countries. To answer the main question, the context of reform, especially the political atmosphere, the main actors, and beneficiaries of reform must be taken into account and analyzed, as well as legal and political consequences of each amendment. The main hypothesis of this article is that in all three republics, the main reason for constitutional amendment, both in presidential and parliamentary forms, has been to design a mechanism to prevent the circulation of ruling elites. The comparison of these three republics shows that these amendments have not resulted in improvement of democracy in these republics. This research uses a descriptive-analytical method.

Keywords

References

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Journal of Iran and Central Eurasia Studies
Volume 2, Issue 1
2019
Pages 43-61

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