作为元宪法的社会契约

Social Contract as a Metaconstitution

制宪权不是无限的,而是必须建立在社会契约的基础上并受其约束。社会契约不是宪法本身,而是作为宪法基础及其存在前提的"元宪法"。这部"元宪法"是人民之间达成的基本契约。它在授权制宪立国的同时,规定了国家的基本目的和功能、国家不得侵犯的基本权利以及国家权力结构与运行程序所必须遵循的基本原则。一部正当制定的宪法建立在"元宪法"基础上,直接吸收了社会契约的基本原则与内涵。这样,宪法本身也就产生了一个等级规范结构,至少分为普通条款和一般修宪程序所不能修改的"契约条款",进而产生了修宪合宪性及其司法审查等问题。要有效防止制宪权的滥用,不妨借鉴南非的制宪经验,先通过临时宪法规定各方均自愿接受的契约原则,在此基础上再制定永久宪法。

The constituent power is not unlimited, but ought to be constructed on the basis of and limited by the social contract. The social contract is not the constitution; it is the social foundation and raison d＇ etre of the constitution - in other words, the ＂metaconstitution＂, in the same sense as meta- physics to physics. Such a metaconstitution is the basic contract agreed to by the people in the real world. It authorizes to establish a state with its constitution, which defines the basic purpose and func- tion of the state, the fundamental rights of individuals and principles that govern the power structure and operating procedures of the state. A legitimate constitution is to be founded on the metaconstitution by directly incorporating the foundational principles and spirit of the social contract. As a result the consti- tution itself constitutes a hierarchical normative order, and is divided into ordinary clauses and ＂contrac- tual clauses＂, so to speak, that is not amendable by ordinary amendment process and, in its turn, pro- duces the issues relating to the constitutionality of constitutional amendments and the scope of judicial review. In order to prevent the abuse of the constituent power, it is advisable to borrow from the South African experience and enact an interim constitution that embodies the social contract, which serves as basis for enacting the final constitution.