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7.39. National Reality, Constitution, and Human Rights (Mandatory)

7.39.1. Justification ↑ Back to top

National Reality, Constitution, and Human Rights introduces the historical, social, and economic reality of contemporary Peru; the relationship between law and society; the nature, history, and comparative models of constitutions and systems of government; the constitutional order of Peru under its 1993 Constitution and the constitutional guarantees that protect fundamental rights; and human rights and international humanitarian law, as a foundation for the informed and responsible civic and professional engagement of the engineer.

7.39.2. Generales Goals ↑ Back to top

1. Describe the historical, social, and economic reality of contemporary Peru.
2. Explain the relationship between law and society, and the nature, history, and comparative models of constitutions and systems of government.
3. Analyze the constitutional order of Peru under its 1993 Constitution and the constitutional guarantees that protect fundamental rights.
4. Apply the framework of human rights and international humanitarian law to the analysis of civic and professional questions.

7.39.3. Contribution to Outcomes ↑ Back to top

ABET-4) An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts. (Usage)

7.39.4. Content ↑ Back to top

7.39.4.1. Peruvian Society in the 21st Century (6 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Contreras and Cueto, 2013)

Topics

1. Peru's social structure in the 21st century: demographics, urbanization, migration, and social mobility.
2. Contemporary social challenges: inequality, informality, and regional disparities.

Learning Outcomes

1. Describe the main social characteristics and challenges of contemporary Peruvian society [Familiarity].

7.39.4.2. Peruvian Economic Landscape (6 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (de Estadística e Informática (INEI), 2024)

Topics

1. Structure of the Peruvian economy: productive sectors, informality, and regional disparities.
2. Peru's macroeconomic indicators and their social implications.

Learning Outcomes

1. Describe the structure and main indicators of the Peruvian economy [Familiarity].

7.39.4.3. Democracy and Citizenship (6 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Soldevilla, 2018)

Topics

1. Citizenship and civic participation in Peru: electoral processes, civil society, and citizen oversight.
2. Peru's contemporary political landscape and its challenges for democratic governance.

Learning Outcomes

1. Explain the mechanisms of civic participation available to Peruvian citizens and the challenges facing Peru's democratic governance [Usage].

7.39.4.4. Natural Law, Positivism, and Legal Realism (6 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Correa, 2009)

Topics

1. Classical and contemporary natural law: Aquinas, Finnis, and the relationship between law and moral obligation
2. Austin's command theory, Hart's concept of law (primary/secondary rules, rule of recognition), and Kelsen's pure theory of law
3. American legal realism (Holmes, Frank, Llewellyn): law as prediction, judicial psychology, and the indeterminacy thesis
4. Critical legal studies, feminist jurisprudence, and critical race theory: law as ideology and instrument of power

Learning Outcomes

1. Explain the central claims of natural law theory, legal positivism, and legal realism and identify the key points of disagreement between them [Familiarity]
2. Analyze a legal dispute using the conceptual tools of at least two competing jurisprudential schools [Usage]
3. Evaluate the Hart-Fuller debate on the minimum content of natural law and assess its implications for unjust legal systems [Assessment]

7.39.4.5. Nature and History of Constitutions (12 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Loewenstein, 1970; Correa, 1999)

Topics

1. The constitution as supreme law: constitutional supremacy, hierarchy of norms, and the constitution as both a legal and a political document
2. Historical development of constitutionalism: early charters (Magna Carta), the American and French revolutions, and the spread of written constitutions
3. Rigid vs. flexible constitutions: classification criteria and their implications for constitutional stability and adaptability
4. Constitutional amendment and reform procedures; unamendable clauses and the doctrine of unconstitutional constitutional amendments

Learning Outcomes

1. Explain the concept of constitutional supremacy and the historical origins of modern constitutionalism [Familiarity]
2. Compare the amendment procedures of rigid and flexible constitutions and their effect on constitutional stability [Usage]
3. Evaluate a proposed constitutional amendment against the doctrine of unconstitutional constitutional amendments [Assessment]

7.39.4.6. Comparative Constitutional Models and Systems of Government (18 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Ginsburg and Dixon, 2011; Loewenstein, 1970)

Topics

1. Comparative constitutional models: civil-law vs. common-law constitutionalism, and centralized vs. diffuse (decentralized) models of judicial review
2. Systems of government: presidential, parliamentary, and semi-presidential (mixed) systems; their institutional design and typical crisis points
3. Democratic theory: representative vs. participatory and deliberative democracy; citizen participation mechanisms (referendum, recall, popular initiative)
4. Separation of powers and checks and balances: the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and mechanisms of inter-branch accountability

Learning Outcomes

1. Compare presidential, parliamentary, and semi-presidential systems of government [Familiarity]
2. Analyze a country's constitutional design in terms of its model of judicial review and separation of powers [Usage]
3. Evaluate the adequacy of a country's citizen participation mechanisms against democratic theory's normative standards [Assessment]

7.39.4.7. Peru's 1993 Constitution (6 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Correa, 1999)

Topics

1. Historical context of the 1993 Constitution: the 1992 autogolpe, the Democratic Constituent Congress, and its replacement of the 1979 Constitution
2. Structure and guiding principles of the 1993 Constitution: its titles and organization, and the principles of a social and democratic state of law
3. Peru's economic constitution: the social market economy, free private initiative, and the state's subsidiary role in economic activity
4. The fundamental rights catalog of Art. 2 and related provisions: equality, due process, and other constitutionally entrenched rights specific to the Peruvian order

Learning Outcomes

1. Describe the historical context in which the 1993 Constitution was adopted and its structural organization [Familiarity]
2. Explain the principles of Peru's economic constitution and their application to a specific economic policy question [Usage]
3. Analyze a real or hypothetical case involving a right from the Art. 2 catalog under the Peruvian constitutional framework [Assessment]

7.39.4.8. Civil, Political, Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (6 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Smith, 2020)

Topics

1. Right to life (absolute prohibition of arbitrary deprivation), personal liberty and security, fair trial guarantees, privacy, freedom of expression and peaceful assembly
2. Right to work, just conditions of work, education, health, housing, social security, and participation in cultural life; progressive realization obligation
3. Indivisibility of rights: interdependence of civil/political and economic/social rights; justiciability of socioeconomic rights in domestic courts
4. Special protections for women, children, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, migrants, and LGBTQ+ persons under international law

Learning Outcomes

1. Identify the civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights protected by the core international human rights instruments [Familiarity]
2. Analyze whether a state measure violates specific human rights standards, applying the tests of legality, legitimate aim, and proportionality [Usage]
3. Assess the justiciability of an economic, social, or cultural right in a domestic legal order and evaluate the remedies available [Assessment]

7.39.4.9. Peaceful Settlement and the Use of Force (6 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Dinstein, 2016)

Topics

1. UN Charter Art. 2(4) prohibition; definition of aggression (UNGA Res. 3314); humanitarian intervention and the Responsibility to Protect (R2P)
2. Art. 51 self-defense: necessity, proportionality, armed attack threshold, anticipatory and pre-emptive self-defense; Chapter VII collective security measures
3. ICJ jurisdiction (contentious and advisory), arbitration (PCA, ICSID), WTO Dispute Settlement Body, and diplomatic means (negotiation, mediation, inquiry)
4. Applicability of jus ad bellum to cyber operations; attribution challenges; hybrid warfare and the Tallinn Manual framework
5. International humanitarian law (jus in bello): the four Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols, distinction between combatants and civilians, proportionality and precaution in attack, and the relationship between IHL and international human rights law

Learning Outcomes

1. Describe the UN Charter framework for the prohibition on the use of force and the permitted exceptions [Familiarity]
2. Apply the criteria for lawful self-defense under Art. 51 to assess the legality of a state's use of force [Usage]
3. Evaluate the effectiveness of the UN collective security system and the role of the ICJ in maintaining international peace and security [Assessment]

7.39.4.10. Constitutional Guarantees (Procesos Constitucionales) (8 hours) [Skills ABET-4] ↑ Back to top

Bibliography: (Arroyo, 2018)

Topics

1. Habeas corpus: protection of personal liberty and related rights against arbitrary detention or restriction
2. Amparo: protection of constitutional rights other than personal liberty and data, against acts or omissions of any authority, official, or person
3. Habeas data: protection of the rights of access to public information and to informational self-determination
4. Action of unconstitutionality: abstract judicial review of the constitutionality of laws with the force of law, before the Constitutional Tribunal

Learning Outcomes

1. Distinguish the scope of protection of habeas corpus, amparo, and habeas data [Familiarity]
2. Select the appropriate constitutional guarantee for a given rights-violation scenario, justifying the choice [Usage]
3. Evaluate the effectiveness of Peru's constitutional guarantees as a system for protecting fundamental rights and constitutional supremacy [Assessment]

7.39.5. Bibliography ↑ Back to top

Contreras, C. and Cueto, M. (2013). Historia del Perú Contemporáneo. Instituto de Estudios Peruanos, 5th edition.

de Estadística e Informática (INEI), I. N. (2024). Compendio estadístico del perú. Technical report, INEI.

Soldevilla, F. T. (2018). Perú Político en Cifras: Élite Política y Elecciones. Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, 3rd edition.

Correa, M. R. (2009). El Sistema Jurídico: Introducción al Derecho. Fondo Editorial de la Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, 10th edition.

Loewenstein, K. (1970). Teoría de la Constitución. Ariel, 2nd edition.

Correa, M. R. (1999). Estudio de la Constitución Política de 1993. Fondo Editorial de la Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú.

Ginsburg, T. and Dixon, R., editors (2011). Comparative Constitutional Law. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Smith, R. K. M. (2020). International Human Rights Law. Oxford University Press, 9th edition.

Dinstein, Y. (2016). The Conduct of Hostilities under the Law of International Armed Conflict. Cambridge University Press, 3rd edition.

Arroyo, C. L. (2018). Derecho Procesal Constitucional. Palestra Editores.