The Asian experience also is distinctive from the standpoint of constitutional
convergence. All Asian constitutions have been influenced by constitutional
arrangements that developed elsewhere and international experience is a continu-
ing force, through a familiar variety of means. By and large, however, the reception
of influence now is voluntary and the hegemonic pressures that presently are
evident in Africa and the Pacific are less apparent in the Asian region. Typically,
Asian states have a considerable and growing measure of constitutional self-
confidence, which enables borrowing without subjugation and encourages theor-
isation that draws on local as well as international understandings.^118 Notably also,
unlike much of the rest of the world, there are no developed Asian arrangements for
regional integration or human rights monitoring, and none are imminent.^119 There
is, however, a growing consciousness of regional constitutional identity, which
encourages close comparison and enhances the cross-fertilisation of ideas. The
influence of the Constitutional Court of Korea both generally and on the establish-
ment of the new Constitutional Court of Indonesia is a case in point.
Not surprisingly, greater cohesion can be identified in sub-regions: such as those
of Eastern, Southern and Southeastern Asia. Yeh and Chang have demonstrated
the synergies between the constitutional arrangements of key East Asian states in a
considerable body of work over several years.
120
There are regional organisations in
both Southeast Asia and South Asia, although neither is deeply integrated, and both
stipulate a principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of member states.
121
On the Indian subcontinent, there is evidence not only of cultural similarities,
reinforced by a shared colonial experience, but also of considerable cross-
fertilisation in constitutional design, principle and practice. Inevitably, intra-
regional links and influences compete with the forces of internationalisation, but
they are significant factors nevertheless.
There can be little doubt that sub-regional groupings in Asia assist constitutional
comparison. For obvious reasons, an Asia-wide perspective is less of a guide.
Even at this level, however, there are insights to be gained from using regional
affiliation as a factor for comparative purposes. The value of doing so can be
expected to increase over time, as regional ties strengthen under the influence of
internationalisation.
(^118) See, e.g., Chaihark Hahm, ‘Conceptualizing Korean constitutionalism: foreign transplant
or indigenous tradition?’ ( 2001 ) 1 Journal of Korean Law 151.
(^119) Tom Ginsburg, ‘Eastphalia and Asian regionalism’ ( 2011 ) 44 University of California Davis
Law Review 859.
(^120) Yeh and Chang, ‘The emergence of East Asian constitutionalism’; Yeh and Chang, ‘The
emergence of transnational constitutionalism’; Yeh and Chang, ‘The changing landscapes
of modern constitutionalism’.
(^121) Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC). The principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of one
another is enshrined in ASEAN’s 1976 Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia
( 1976 ) and in Article 1 of the SAARCCharter( 1985 ).