The collective in the constitution of 1991

Abstract

This article explains how the discussion on court decisions and legal scholarship in Colombia have strongly focused on the field of fundamental rights, neglecting a balanced development of social rights, specially, the collective rights and interests. The 1991 Constitution has been interpreted through the fundamental rights perspective. In consequence, much of its potential has been left aside until interpretative models that overcome this unjustified fragmentation of their meaning appear. This paper presents some proposals for the reading of the "collective" in the constitutional chart, that will allow to overcome the unilateral meanings that have prevailed so far.