Beyond Sham: The North Korean Constitution

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The Constitution of the Democratic People’s Republic of Ko rea is often dismissed as a valid legal instrument within the larger framework of the North Korean legal system. This is an unsurprising outcome given the portrayal of North Ko rea as a totalitarian dictatorship, documented human rights abuses, and the lack of access to the country’s lawmaking processes. It is also a foreseeable result if comparisons are made to liberal democratic constitutions where rights guar antees and judicial review are defining elements. However, the North Korean Constitution deserves more nuanced scru tiny in light of evolving research on socialist and authori tarian constitutionalism in Asia. This article argues that the DPRK Constitution should be included more substantively within the analytical frameworks of Asian, socialist, and au thoritarian constitutionalism by virtue of how it functions to nation-build, legitimate institutional leadership, signal ideological shifts, regulate society on collectivist, duty-based principles, and guide economic reforms for development and modernization.

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