Democracy’s Guardians
In its Resolution 1/24, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights recognizes electoral observers as human rights defenders. By equating observers with human rights defenders, the Resolution obliges States to guarantee their work, including non-interference, accreditation, and protection against risks, both in physical and digital realms. Setting out clear state obligations, the Resolution marks a significant step forward for democracy and human rights.
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Ruling by Bullying?
On September 8th, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals of the United States partially upheld a decision that found several public officials had coerced social media companies into censoring speech protected by the First Amendment. Americans call this area of the law jawboning, in reference to the jawbone that is moved when we talk, which is the mechanism through which pressures of these sorts are exerted. It is an extremely complex area of law, in part because distinguishing when public officials cross that fuzzy legal line depends on assessing the nature actions that happen in private settings in light of vague and ambiguous criteria. In this piece, I explain why the occurrence of jawboning might be an inevitable feature of modern administrative governance, and outline both the unique challenge that underpins any attempt to legally regulate it as well as the urgency of doing so.
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Restoring the Validity of Law in Democratic Societies
The questions posed by Professors Andrew Arato and András Sajó in their open letter Restoring Constitutionalism are pressing and of utmost public importance. Many of the issues and controversies raised in the letter arise after “democratic backsliding has taken place” and when the constitution already includes “entrenched authoritarian enclaves”. Taking this context into consideration, I will examine a more basic issue, namely the validity of law in a democratic society.
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