The Constitution of the Republic of Hungary (A Magyar Köztársaság Alkotmánya), its fundamental law, was adopted on 20 August 1949, and heavily amended on 23 October 1989. It is the country's first and only permanent written constitution, and Hungary is the only former Eastern Bloc nation that did not adopt an entirely new constitution after the fall of Communism. The document contains a preamble and is divided into fifteen chapters with 79 articles.

Contents 1 Background 2 Communist era 3 1989 reform 4 Notes 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Background

For centuries, the Hungarian constitution was unwritten, based upon customary law.^[1] There was no civil code either; lawyers worked with the Corpus Iuris Hungarici.^[2] Among the laws that acquired constitutional force were a series of liberal statutes enacted during the 1848 Revolution; Statute XII of 1867 (enacting the Ausgleich); and further guarantees for constitutionalism, such as Statute IV of 1869, separating the executive and the judiciary; or the post-1870 statutes regulating local self-government and state administration.^[3]

Following the advent of the Hungarian Soviet Republic, the Revolutionary Governing Council adopted a Provisional Constitution on 2 April 1919, providing for a Soviet-style political system. On 23 June, the National Assembly of Allied Councils adopted Hungary's first charter-like constitution, the Constitution of the Socialist Allied Council Republic of Hungary. However, that regime was crushed two months later and Hungary returned to its historical, unwritten pre-1918 constitution.^[3] Several constitutional laws were however passed. Statute I of 1920 confirmed the monarchical form of government (albeit with a vacant throne, the king's powers being exercised by regent Miklós Horthy and his ministers) and vested legislative power in a national assembly. Statute XLVII dethroned the Habsburg dynasty. A second chamber was established by Statute XXII of 1926. Successive constitutional acts increased the power of the regent, who was empowered to nominate forty senators at first, and during World War II, eighty-seven.^[4]

[edit] Communist era

Democratic elections were held under Statute VIII of 1945. Then, Statute I of 1946, a provisional constitutional statute (or "little constitution") passed on 31 January, formally ended the thousand-year monarchy and introduced a republican form of government.^[1] Then in 1949, after the Hungarian Working People's Party had assumed undisputed control of the country, the Communist-controlled parliament adopted the present constitution as Act XX of 1949. The date of its adoption, 20 August, made a new national holiday that coincided with the traditional holiday of the feast of Saint Stephen. The document has been described as "a slavish imitation of the Soviet-type constitutions, with some variations resulting from the historical and political differences between the Soviet Union and Hungary". (Specifically, it was modelled on the "Stalin" 1936 Soviet Constitution.) Now, Hungary became a people's republic, which was "the state of the workers and working peasants".^[5] A Presidential Council elected by parliament was to be head of state, but real power rested with the Working People's Party, its leading role enshrined in the document. The National Assembly met for some ten days each year, with most rules taking the form of presidential and ministerial decrees. A variety of fundamental rights was guaranteed, but only for the working people (or in accordance with their interests). Church and state were separated.^[6]

Until 1989, the charter's basic features remained in effect, although the regime added important amendments in 1950, 1953, 1954, 1972 and 1983.^[7] Notably, Act I of 26 April 1972, comprehensively redrafted the constitution, proclaiming Hungary a socialist state. While the social, economic and political order remained the same, fundamental rights were now guaranteed for all citizens (but certain rights, like freedom of speech, press or assembly, still had to conform with the interests of socialism and the people). The preamble still paid tribute to the Soviet "liberators" but took a longer historical perspective, referring to the "millennium" of the people's struggle. The role of mass movements and trade unions (in addition to the party) in the building of socialism was acknowledged, the equal ranking of state and cooperative ownership asserted, and private producers recognised, so long as they did not "violate collective interests".^[8] As a moderate liberalisation continued to set in in the ensuing years, Act II of 1983 set up a Constitutional Council, intending to watch over the constitutionality of legal rules by giving internal review; and Act X of 1987 limited the Presidential Council's authority to issue law-decrees. Reforms were accelerated in 1989, with Act I envisaging the establishment of a Constitutional Court and lifting political restrictions on the exercise of all fundamental rights, and Act VIII introducing the motion of no confidence vis-à-vis the Council of Ministers and its members.^[9]

[edit] 1989 reform

From 1988 on, as the economic situation deteriorated and opposition groups emerged, the idea of preparing a new constitution emerged. Reform Communists and the opposition took account of this development at the Hungarian Round Table Talks in mid-1989, desiring a document that would establish a multiparty system, parliamentary democracy and a social market economy. However, time pressure did not allow a new constitution to be written and on 18 October, the National Assembly adopted a new comprehensive amendment to the 1949 Constitution, which was to prevail until a new constitution was framed. This reform (Act XXXI of 1989) was the first thoroughgoing constitutional transformation in the Soviet bloc. It was adopted like a normal constitutional amendment, with at least ⅔ of MPs approving, and went into effect on 23 October, the anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.^[10]

The 1989 reform established Hungary as a republic, an independent, democratic, constitutional state that was both civil democratic and democratic socialist. The economy was to be a social market one, with planning employed and public and private property enjoying equal protection. The people were sovereign, with parties functioning freely. Among the new features introduced were a weak presidency and strong parliament with oversight powers, checks and balances, limitations on the authority of the prime minister, provisions for referendums, and an independent judiciary. Outside the preamble, all references to "socialism" were carefully deleted. The Constitutional Court, whose members are elected by ⅔ of parliament, can annul laws declared unconstitutional, and has broad jurisdiction. The parliamentary term was reduced from five to four years. Human rights were emphasized, with reference to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.^[10] The changes were all-encompassing: it has been said, with some exaggeration, that only one provision remained untouched: "Budapest is the capital of Hungary".^[11] However, the form of the state was not changed; it was still described as a parliamentary democracy with parliament as "a supreme organ of state power and popular representation" that retained the power to elect the highest executive and judicial officers of the state.^[12]

Since 1989, the constitution has been amended multiple times, beginning in 1990 when, after free elections brought the opposition to power, references to democratic socialism and the planned economy were dropped (these had been included at a time when the Communists were thought much more popular than elections showed them to be).^[13] In 1994, the list of issues to be decided by parliament with a ⅔ majority was shortened, and the Constitutional Court was shrunk from 15 to 11 judges.^[11] In 1997 an amendment streamlined the judicial system, while later modifications allowed Hungary to join the European Union.^[14]

At first, as the only Communist-era constitution retained in Eastern Europe, Hungary's charter and by extension its political system did not command a great deal of respect. The fact that it was preserved reflected a tradition of gradualism in Hungarian constitutional history; there was no constitutional assembly or referendum to confer additional legitimacy on the new system.^[1] And in particular, the enthusiastic Constitutional Court seemed more intent on applying German case law than the Hungarian constitution. However, it has gained stature since the early 1990s for three reasons. First, the process of gradual amendments allowed for experimentation that remedied some of its weaknesses. Second, the 1989 document became stable in 1997 when the government abandoned plans for drafting a new constitution. Finally, the Court never disregarded the constitution altogether, indeed remaining acutely aware of its text.^[15]

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Dupré, Catherine. Importing the Law in Post-communist Transitions (2003), Hart Publishing, ISBN 1841131318
• Harmathy, Attila (ed.). Introduction to Hungarian Law (1998), Kluwer Law International, ISBN 9041110666
• Körösényi, András. Government and Politics in Hungary (2000), Central European University Press, ISBN 9639116769
• Ludwikowski, Rett R. Constitution-making in the Region of Former Soviet Dominance (1996), Duke University Press, ISBN 0822318024
• Mezhikovskii, S. M. et al. Law and Religion in Post-Communist Europe (2003), Peeters Publishers, ISBN 9042912626
• Mullerson, Rein et al. Constitutional Reform and International Law in Central and Eastern Europe (1998), Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, ISBN 9041105263
• Rakowska-Harmstone, Teresa. Communism in Eastern Europe (1984), Indiana University Press, ISBN 0253313910

[edit] External links

Wikisource has original text related to this article: Constitution of Hungary

• Constitutional background, with full list of amendments from 1989 to 2003

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