The Guarantee of Local Self-Government in the Japanese Constitution: The Theory and Practice

日本憲法對地方自治之保障:理論與實踐

二次大戰之後,日本新憲針對地方自治設置了一獨立章節,共計四個條款。地方政府因此在憲法保障下,享有得以管理自己事務與行政的權利。然而事實上,這些權利並未真正依照憲法所規範的方式來獲得行使。地方政府受到中央政府許多的限制,尤其政府的財政體系大大限制了地方政府的獨立性。因此,地方政府在過去一直試圖追求合乎憲法規範的真正地方自治。許多關於去中央化的政策漸漸在1990年代獲得落實,地方政府因此獲得較多管理其自身事務與行政的權利。本文試圖檢驗日本憲法對於地方自治的保障,以及其實踐面上的實況。

After the Second World War, the new Japanese Constitution established a separate chapter with four articles concerning local self-government. Local governments, therefore, shall have the right to manage their affairs and administration under the guarantee of the Constitution. In fact, however, local governments cannot exercise their rights as precisely as the Constitution designed. Local governments are circumscribed by the central government; especially the fiscal system hinders the independence of local governments. Therefore, local governments attempted to achieve genuine autonomy that would comply with the constitutional demand. Many policies of decentralization were executed in the 1990s, local governments gained more rights to manage their affairs and administration. This paper intends to examine the guarantee of local self-government in the Japanese Constitution and its practice in reality.