Constitution of Romania

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The Romanian Constitution is the fundamental law that establishes the structure of the government of Romania, the rights and obligations of the country's citizens, and its mode of passing laws. It stands as the basis of the legitimacy of the Romanian government.

The constitution was most recently revised by a national referendum on October 18-19, 2003. The new constitution, which took effect October 29, 2003, follows the structure of the Constitution of 1991, but makes significant revisions.

[edit] Structure

The Constitution of 1991, as revised in 2003, contains 156 articles, divided into 8 major sections or "Titles":

• Title I - General principles
• Title II - Fundamental rights, liberties, and duties
• Title III - Public authorities
• Title IV - The economy and public finance
• Title V - Constitutional Court
• Title VI - Euroatlantic integration
• Title VII - Revising the Constitution
• Title VIII - Final and transitional provisions

[edit] History

Regulamentul Organic, voted by the respective Assemblies of Moldavia and Wallachia under Imperial Russian occupation in 1831-1832, was the first organic law resembling a constitution ever awarded to the Danubian Principalities. It remained in place until 1858, when the Crimean War removed the two countries from Russian influence and confirmed the rule by several European powers first established by the Treaty of Paris; the Paris Convention of 1858 remained the governing document following the election of Alexander John Cuza as Domnitor over the united countries (1859), but was replaced by Cuza's own organic law, entitled Statutul dezvoltător al Convenţiei de la Paris ("Statute expanding the Paris Convention"), in 1864.

The first constitution of the United Principality (later Kingdom) of Romania was adopted July 1, 1866. After the extension of national territory in 1918, a new constitution was approved March 29, 1923. It was repealed by King Carol II in 1938, when an authoritarian regime formed around the National Renaissance Front adopted a new, corporatist constitution on February 27; this document was, in turn, cancelled in 1940 by the Iron Guard's National Legionary State government. The 1923 constitution was reinstated after the fall of the Ion Antonescu dictatorship in 1944 (see Romania during World War II).

The new Constitution of the communist period was modified in 1948, 1952, and 1965 (the latter notably made the change from a People's Republic to a Socialist Republic). After the Revolution of 1989, the present document was adopted in 1991.

[edit] The Referendum of October 18-19, 2003

A sign in front of Cercul Militar Naţional counts down to the "complete professionalization" of the Romanian military, that is, the end of conscription (May 2006).

The revision of the 1991 Constitution was approved by the Romanian Parliament, and was adopted by a constitutional referendum held October 18-19, 2003. A total of 55.7% of eligible voters turned out, with 89.7% of those voting in favour of the changes. The new text of the Constitution took effect October 29, 2003.

More than half of the articles of the constitution underwent changes, large and small. The most important changes were:

• National minorities have the right to use their native language in dealing with the governmental administration and the courts.
• Private property is guaranteed the protection of the law. (previously property was only "protected", not "guaranteed")
• The mandate of the President of Romania is extended to 5 years (previously it had been 4 years).
• Military conscription is regulated by organic law (previously it was made mandatory by the Constitution and since October 23, 2006 it is no longer mandatory)
• Parliamentary immunity is limited.
• Once Romania accedes to the European Union (EU), citizens of EU countries will have the right to vote and to run as candidates in local elections (if they live in the relevant locality).
• Entry into the European Union and NATO will not require a further referendum. A parliamentary vote (by a 2/3 majority) would be sufficient.

The 2003 referendum was contested by some NGOs and the press, because of misleading information given to the public, use of public funds for the Yes advertisement campaign, and extensive allegations of fraud. For example, the number of votes cast increased by 20% in the last 5 hours of the two-day referendum, the electoral committee attributing these to mobile voting booths being set up in public places (such as markets and plazas) and results being centralised during the last hours of the referendum.

[edit] External links

• (English) The Romanian Constitution, translated into English, on the site of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies.
• (Romanian) The Romanian Constitution, in Romanian, on the site of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies.
• (Romanian) Information about the referendum of October 18-19, 2003
• (English) Article about the referendum controversy