The constitutional right to water and its puzzling satisfaction in Colombian law

Authors

  • Carlos Bernal Pulido Macquarie Law School (Australia)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5380/rinc.v2i1.43101

Keywords:

right to water, socio-economic rights, proportionality, economic freedoms, constitucional right

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to determine whether the case law of the Colombian Constitutional Court about the constitutional nature of the right to water and on the duty to satisfy it that it allocates to service providers is sound. The strategy for achieving this objective is an analysis of the Judgment T-740 of 2011. This judgment defies a trend in comparative law diminishing the protection of social rights, as a consequence of the attempt by the judges to harmonize the social rights protected by the Constitution and the guiding principles of neo-liberal globalization. The Colombian constitutional jurisprudence not only affirms the constitutional nature of the right to water, but it also allocates to public and private providers, and not the State, the duty to satisfy it. This allocation implies strengthening social rights against the economic freedoms of water companies.

Author Biography

Carlos Bernal Pulido, Macquarie Law School (Australia)

Professor associado da Macquarie Law School (Sydney, Austrália). Doutor em Filosofia pela University of Florida (Gainesville, Estados Unidos). Doutor em Direito pela Universidad de Salamanca (Salamanca, Espanha). Mestre em Filosofia pela University of Florida (Gainesville, Estados Unidos). E-mail: carlos.bernal-pulido@mq.edu.au

References

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ALEXY, Robert. Teoría de los derechos fundamentales. 2 ed. Madrid: Centro de Estudios Políticos y Constitucionales, 2008.

BERNAL, Carlos. El concepto de servicio público en el orden jurídico colombiano. Letras Jurídicas, vol. 10, n. 1, 2005.

BERNAL, Carlos. El derecho de los derechos. Bogotá: Universidad Externado de Colombia, 2005.

BERNAL, Carlos. El principio de proporcionalidad y los derechos fundamentales. 3 ed. Madrid: Centro de Estudios Políticos y Constitucionales, 2007.

ORTIZ, G. Ariño. Principios de Derecho Público Económico. Granada: Comares, 1999.

ORTS, F. Hurtado. La iniciativa pública local en la actividad económica. Madrid: Civitas, 1994.

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How to Cite

BERNAL PULIDO, Carlos. The constitutional right to water and its puzzling satisfaction in Colombian law. Revista de Investigações Constitucionais, [S. l.], v. 2, n. 1, p. 65–87, 2015. DOI: 10.5380/rinc.v2i1.43101. Disponível em: https://revistas.ufpr.br/rinc/article/view/43101. Acesso em: 27 dec. 2025.

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2015): January/April

Section

Original articles

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