History and Culture: Complexities in Studying Southeast Asian Constitutionalism

歷史與文化:東南亞憲政主義的研究複雜性

傳統上,東南亞並不存在國家認同與國家邊界的概念。本區域中,文化與地貌的繁多差異也使得關於東南亞憲政主義的研究變得更為困難與複雜。國立台灣大學法律學院很榮幸邀請到國立新加坡大學法律學院的陳有利教授,前來與我們討論潛藏在東南亞各國憲政主義發展中的各種文化與歷史糾結。陳教授重視本區域的巨大歷史與文化遺產,並且使用三種樣板:殖民主義、共產主義、進化與革命,來解釋及描述本區域中的憲法發展。本論壇並邀請了三位傑出的學者參與討論,從極為不同的幾個角度,包括歷史、女性主義、文化與憲政主義,尤其著重於台灣的經驗,來評論陳教授的演講。本論壇使得我們對於憲政主義與東南亞的,甚至不限於東南亞的,文化與歷史的關係,有了全新的認識。

Traditionally, Southeast Asia lacks a sense of national identity and the notion of borders. The variety of landscapes and cultural divisions in this region also makes the study of Southeast Asian constitutionalism much more difficult and complex. The College of Law, National Taiwan University, is honored to invite Professor Kevin YL Tan from Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, to discuss cultural and historical complexities underlying the development of constitutionalism in Southeast Asian countries. Professor Tan considers the great abundance of historical and cultural legacies of this region, and uses three templates—colonialism, communism and evolution and revolution—to explain and describe the development of constitutions in this area. Three distinguished commentators were invited to join the discussion by reflecting on Professor Tan's speech from different perspectives as diverse such as history, feminism, culture and constitutionalism, with a particular focus on Taiwan's experience. This roundtable sheds a new light on our understanding of constitutionalism and its relationship with culture and history in Southeast Asia and even beyond.