Constitutional Law

Author: Liu Maolin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: This book is written based on the needs of constitutional law teaching, with the Chinese Constitution as the primary research object. It incorporates the latest theoretical achievements in constitutional law research and comprehensively and systematically elaborates on the basic theories and fundamental systems of the constitution. It also specifically explores a series of major constitutional issues during China's social transformation period. The book consists of an introduction and eleven chapters, which can be broadly divided into four parts: the basic theories of the constitution, the state theory in constitutional law, the theory of citizens and citizen rights, and the theories derived from the mutual relationship between the state and citizens.
The basic theories of the constitution include two chapters: "Constitutional Principles" and "Historical Development of the Constitution." These chapters trace the internal logic, operational process, and historical development of the constitution, aiming to explore the general theory of the constitution that unifies logic and history.
The state theory in constitutional law includes seven chapters: "Nature of the State," "Form of Government," "Form of State Structure," "Economic System," "Cultural System," "State Organs," and "State Symbols." This part seeks to construct a constitutional theory of the state centered on the composition of the state (organization), state power, and state responsibility. It systematically introduces and discusses the various systems related to the state in the constitution.
The theory of citizens and citizen rights includes one chapter: "Basic Rights and Obligations of Citizens." It introduces the basic knowledge and theories of citizens' basic rights and obligations, analyzes the content, characteristics, and implementation pathways of citizens' basic rights and freedoms in China, and elaborates on the ideas, approaches, and significance of further improving China's constitutional rights system for citizens at the current stage.
The theories derived from the mutual relationship between the state and citizens include only one chapter: "Grassroots Mass Self-Governing Organizations." The party system, the political consultation system, and other issues also belong to this field. This part mainly explores the constitutional significance of these systems by introducing the party system, the political consultation system, and grassroots mass self-governing systems, reflecting the theoretical attention of constitutional law to the "third domain."
The book also makes some new attempts in terms of content and format. Each chapter begins with key points and difficulties; at the end of each chapter, there are discussions on academic frontiers related to the chapter in the past two decades, key terms, and reflection questions, which are intended for further thinking and research by undergraduate and graduate students.