The importance of constitutional control exercised by Courts, Chambers and Constitutional Courts in Latin America
13th Ibero-American Conference on Constitutional Justice
On September 24 and 25 we held the 13th Ibero-American Conference on Constitutional Justice, a meeting of constitutional authorities open to justice professionals and extended to citizens interested in the work of Constitutional Justice. It had to be held telematically because of the effects of the health crisis that prevented a face-to-face meeting in Colombia, the country hosting the event.
More than 150,000 users connected to the event through social networks, which gives a good indication of the success of the Conference in quantitative terms, but I would also like to highlight the quality of the content and the speeches made by the representatives of the Constitutional Courts who attended.
The purpose of convening this international meeting was to "consolidate the Ibero-American dialogue to share reflections from the prism of constitutionalism, on the role of constitutional judges in relation to the social and institutional consequences of the global health crisis".
The decisions adopted by the executive bodies due to the health emergency have led to restrictions on constitutionally protected rights and freedoms, a circumstance that mobilised the concern and reaction of the constitutional courts in the face of the widespread declarations of states of emergency.
In a context of a worrying decline in the quality of world democracy in recent years, as the latest Freedom House 2020 report showed, the pandemic has aggravated the economic and social situation in countries with greater democratic fragility and has severely affected the rights and fundamental freedoms of groups that suffer from greater vulnerability and precariousness.
The institutional reaction of the Constitutional Courts to this extraordinary situation was reflected in the Bogotá Final Declaration, which was unanimously approved in a plenary meeting convened at the end of the meeting.
I take the opportunity of this publication to address the entire community of readers and subscribers of Ideas for Democracy, encouraging and thanking them for the extraordinary task of building democracy from every corner and position in which we find ourselves.
I subscribe with the assurance of my highest consideration and appreciation.
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