Fundamental values in new democracies: The principle of representation in the Serbian Constitution

Abstract

In this paper, the author analyzes the process of establishing a system of fundamental values in the rule of law in the context of constitutional discontinuity by exploring the concept of representative mandate as a basic constitutional principle in new democracies. The first part contains general considerations on the relationship between the constituent power and the fundamental values, as well as the (non)legal factors which should provide both for the establishment of constitutional rules and their interpretation for the purpose of upholding the fundamental values. The subject matter of analysis in the second part are citizens' value judgments on the representative mandate, which point out to the evolutive pattern underlying this principle both in the developed and in the developing democracies. Taking into account a discrepancy between the existing and the proclaimed constitutional system in Serbia, the third part of the paper contains a proposal for instituting a set of prospective constitutional measures to support citizens' value judgments on the representative mandate.