HONG KONG JOURNAL OF LAW AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS 香港法律與公共事務學刊 INAUGURAL VOLUME 2019 CONFUCIAN DEMOCRACY AND CONSTITUTIONALISM HONG KONG JOURNAL OF LAW AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS 香港法律與公共事務學刊 THE HONG KONG JOURNAL OF LAW AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS (HKJLPA) The Hong Kong Journal of Law and Public Affairs (HKJLPA) is the first student-edited law and political science journal in all of Asia, established by the Government and Laws Committee, Politics and Public Administration Association SSS HKUSU (GLC) with full support from the Bachelor of Social Sciences (Government and Laws) and Bachelor of Laws Programme (BSocSc (Govt&Laws) & LLB / Government and Laws / GLaws) at The University of Hong Kong in 2018. The Journal publishes articles in both English and Traditional Chinese from researchers, teachers, practitioners, and students all over the world. It accepts submissions in all areas broadly related to the intersection between law and politics, including but not limited to comparative constitutional law and politics, international law and relations, jurisprudence and political philosophy, and administrative law and public administration. As the GLC’s in-house flagship publication, the Journal is committed to promoting a stronger understanding of cutting-edge issues that lie at the nexus of law and politics at the international and domestic levels, and to offering a robust platform for the exploration of ideas that will guide how societies are organised and governed. THE INAUGURAL VOLUME: CONFUCIAN DEMOCRACY AND CONSTITUTIONALISM The Inaugural Volume of the Hong Kong Journal of Law and Public Affairs will be published in Fall 2019, in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Government and Laws Programme at The University of Hong Kong. The theme of the inaugural volume is “Confucian Democracy and Constitutionalism”. For decades, scholars and practitioners have been theorizing and debating possible models for Western political institutions such as representative democracy and constitutionalism to operate in East Asian countries in which the traditional Confucian culture is deeply embedded within. This interdisciplinary study features essays from leading political science, philosophy and legal scholars that engage these theories and debates through investigating multiple East Asian jurisdictions such as China, Vietnam and Korea to further illuminate our understanding on the Region’s political and constitutional future. This inaugural volume also features a review of the GLC's initiatives over the past year, including various forums, visits to legal and political institutions and career events. CONFUCIAN DEMOCRACY AND CONSTITUTIONALISM A publication by In celebration of The Hong Kong Journal of Law and Public Affairs is published by the Government and Laws Committee, Politics and Public Administration Association SSS HKUSU with full support from the BSocSc (Govt&Laws) & LLB Programme at The University of Hong Kong. Copyright ©All Rights Reserved Copyright by Government and Laws Committee Politics and Public Administration Association SSS HKUSU. No part of this publication may be reprinted or reproduced in any form without the permission of the Committee and the authors. Editorial Statement The views expressed in the various articles represent those of the authors and not the Government and Laws Committee, Politics and Public Administration Association SSS HKUSU, the BSocSc (Govt&Laws) & LLB Programme, the Department of Politics and Public Administration, and the Faculty of Law at The University of Hong Kong. Subscription Office c/o Department of Politics and Public Administration The Universtiy of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong Email: [email protected] Website: www.hkuglc.org Facebook: www.facebook.com/hkuglc HONORARY EDITORIAL BOARD Professor Eliza W. Y. Lee Director (Politics and Public Administration), BSocSc (Govt&Laws) & LLB Programme Professor, Department of Politics and Public Administration, The University of Hong Kong Dr. Eric C. Ip Director (Law), BSocSc (Govt&Laws) & LLB Programme Associate Professor of Law, Faculty of Law, The University of Hong Kong Dr. Ngoc Son Bui Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, The Chinese University of Hong Kong EDITORIAL BOARD Trevor T. W. Wan Editor-in-Chief, Hong Kong Journal of Law and Public Affairs BSocSc (Govt & Laws) & LLB III Undergraduate Representative, Board of Studies for the BSocSc (Govt&Laws) & LLB Programme, Senate, The University of Hong Kong Undergraduate Fellow, Asian Institute of International Financial Law, Faculty of Law, The University of Hong Kong GOVERNMENT AND LAWS COMMITTEE, POLITICS AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION ASSOCIATION SSS HKUSU The Government and Laws Committee, Politics and Public Administration Association SSS HKUSU was established in April 2018 with a rich historical heritage and is the official student community of the BSocSc (Govt & Laws) & LLB Programme at The University of Hong Kong. GLC was born out of a strategic vision to become the Region’s first-ever non-partisan, student-driven think tank specialising in law and politics. Bringing together current students, alumni, and professors, it is committed to promoting a stronger understanding of cutting-edge legal-political issues at the international and domestic levels. To this end GLC offers a robust platform for the dissemination of legal and political knowledge to students and the general public alike. The GLC maintains close partnerships with the GLaws Programme and the Department of Politics and Public Administration and communicates GLaws students' views to the University. It also delivers tailor-made services to GLaws students such as mentorship schemes, career workshops, and examination support. The GLC has organised a range of exciting initiatives, including face-to-face meetings between students and prominent practitioners of government and laws such as leaders of the European Union, Hong Kong Bar Association and the Department of Justice, forums on a range of internationally prominent issues such as Brexit and visits to legal and political institutions such as the Court of Final Appeal. GLC also publishes the Hong Kong Journal of Law and Public Affairs and Public Jurist, which has quickly established itself as a leading student magazine on law and public affairs in the entire Region. HONG KONG JOURNAL OF LAW AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS 香港法律與公共事務學刊 CONTENTS Foreword and Introduction Foreword Professor Ian Holliday 10 Vice President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching & Learning) The University of Hong Kong Introduction: Confucian Democracy and Constitutionalism 12 Mr. Trevor T. W. Wan Editor-in-Chief, Hong Kong Journal of Law and Public Affairs Part I: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Confucian Democracy and Constitutionalism Chinese Democracy Isn't Inevitable 18 Can a political system be democratically legitimate without being democratic? Professor Daniel A. Bell Dean, School of Political Science and Public Administration, Shandong University Professor, Tsinghua University A Comparison of Confucian and Liberal Constitutionalisms and Its Implications 23 Dr. Chengyi Peng Associate Research Fellow, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Confucian Constitutionalism and Democracy and the Risk of Inventing 37 Traditions Dr. Maria Adele Carrai Senior Researcher, Leuven Centre for Global Governance Fellow, Harvard University Asia Centre The Battle for the Global Future 43 The Christians in America and the Confucians in China? Professor Patrick Mendis Distinguished Visiting Professor of Sino-American Relations, the Yenching Academy of Peking University Part II: Centre for Asian Legal Studies, National University of Singapore Faculty of Law Roundtable Discussion on Public Reason Confucianism Introduction 57 Dr. Dan W. Puchniak Associate Professor and Director, Centre for Asian Legal Studies, National University of Singapore Faculty of Law Kim’s Confucian Democracy in Context 58 10 Professor Bryan William Van Norden Chair Professor, School of Philosophy, Wuhan University Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple Professor, Yale-NUS College James Monroe Taylor Chair in Philosophy, Vassar College 12 Comments on Part III: Civic Virtue 66 Dr. Hui-Chieh Loy Associate Professor, National University of Singapore Department of Philosophy Pluralist Constitutionalism in Asia and Public Reason Confucianism 72 Dr. Jaclyn L. Neo 18 Associate Professor, National University of Singapore Faculty of Law Values and Constitutionalism: 77 A Comment on Kim Sungmoon and The Case of The Daughters’ Rebellion Professor Andrew Harding Professor, National University of Singapore Faculty of Law 23 The Practice of Public Reason Confucianism: 84 Reply to Van Norden, Loy, Neo, and Harding Professor Sungmoon Kim Professor, City University of Hong Kong College of Liberal Arts and Social 37 Sciences Chronicles of the Government and Laws Committee 91 43 HKU Government and Laws Programme 115 Acknowledgements and Special Thanks 121 FOREWORD AND INTRODUCTION 10 Foreword HONG KONG JOURNAL OF LAW AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS 香港法律與公共事務學刊 Inaugural Volume 2019 FOREWORD Professor Ian Holliday Vice President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching & Learning), The University of Hong Kong The Hong Kong Journal of Law and Public Affairs is an ambitious attempt by undergraduate students at the University of Hong Kong to establish a forum for analysis and debate of the interaction between law and politics. Capitalizing on its situation on one of the region’s leading global campuses, the journal aims to do so chiefly from an East Asian perspective. Inspired by its