强势司法的政治逻辑:匈牙利宪法法院的启示

The Political Logic of a Strong Judiciary:the Revelation of the Hungarian Constitutional Court

二十世纪九十年代初期匈牙利建立的宪法法院一度被誉为世界上最强大的宪法法院,它主动介入政治、社会、民生保障等热点问题,成为匈牙利转型过程中不可小觑的政治力量。匈牙利宪法法院的强势并不是产生于制度真空中,而是宪法制度和具体政治力量复杂交互作用的产物。建立宪法法院是各派政治力量寻求"政治保险"的结果;修宪赋予了宪法法院较高的宪法地位;而宪法的不完善又迫切需要宪法法院弥补疏漏并赋予宪法全新的内涵;同时,转型阶段的匈牙利迫切需要获得国际承认,宪法法院成为该国在西方首要的国际关系资产,各派政治力量接受了宪法法院的强势;匈牙利转型初期多党格局稳定但民主治理效能低下的政治生态,也构成了宪法法院强势运行的政治需求。

The Hungarian Constitutional Court established in 1990 was once the most powerful constitutional court in the world. The Court actively intervened in the politics, society and people＇ s livelihood, thereby becoming an important political force in the process of social transitional in Hungary. The strong position of the Court did not come from an institutional vac- uum, but rather was the product of the complex interaction between the constitutional system and specific political forces. The Constitutional Court was the result of the pursuit of ＂political insurance＂ by various political forces; the constitutional amendment gave the Court a higher constitutional status ; and because of the imperfections the Constitution, there is an urgently need for the Constitutional Court to fill in the gaps and give new meaning to the Constitution. Meanwhile, since Hungary in the transitional period urgently needs international recognition, the Constitutional Court had become the country＇ s primary international relations assets and was accepted and tolerated by various political forces in the country. Finally, the political ecology of stable muhi-party structure and low-efficient democratic governance in the early transition period also led to the political demand for a stronz constitutional court.