All around the world (e.g. United Kingdom, Spain, etc.) mechanisms for participatory democracy (e.g. referendum, plebiscite, popular consultation, citizen law proposal, etc.) have emerged, mainly as a result of the failure of the representative democracy model to capture society´s needs, socioeconomic inequality, the increase of corruption and the lack of rule of law. This has generated both anger and the rise of social movements demanding justice and the recovery of all sort of rights. Latin America and, particularly Mexico, have not been the exception. However, considering the Latin American history with repressive governments and the recent popular consultations that have been conducted by the Mexican government, under no compliance with constitutional and legal procedural rules, this type of mechanisms can open the door for authoritarian governments. Should this type of mechanisms be restricted to certain matters or should the representative democracy model renovate itself?
We look forward to welcoming you on July 3-5, 2023 for our Annual Conference entitled "Islands and Ocean: Public Law in a Plural World." The conference will take place at the Victoria University of Wellington, in New Zealand. We will be announcing more details about the conference soon, including financial support to early career and global south scholars!