On June 28 Ukraine celebrates the state holiday – the Constitution Day of Ukraine.
The same day 17 years ago the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the first Constitution of the new independent Ukrainian state, new main law of the country.
The Constitution consolidated legal principles of the independent Ukraine, its sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Constitution contained the historical experience of the Ukrainian nation as well as the best world practices.
One of the most important pages in the history of the world constitutions belongs to Pylyp Orlyk elected as a Hetman of Ukraine in exile in the 18th century. “Pacts and Constitutions of Rights and Freedoms of the Zaporizhian Host” (1710), written by him, are considered to be the first Constitution of the Ukrainian state. In general Pylyp Orlyk’s Constitution was in keeping with the then trends of the European political thought development (especially, in consolidation of church’s independence from secular power), and in some aspects the “Pacts and Constitutions of Rights and Freedoms of the Zaporizhian Host” even passed ahead of the European political theory and practice giving preference to the principles of constitutionalism as compared to the idea of the state absolutism and harmony enforcement prevailing in Europe at that time.
The next important step of the state-building process in Ukraine was the adoption of the “Statute on the state government, rights and freedoms of the Ukrainian People’s Republic” (Constitution of the Ukrainian People’s Republic). The document was approved by the Central Rada of the Ukrainian People’s Republic on April 29, 1918. On November 13, 1918 the West Ukrainian People’s Republic (ZUNR) adopted the Temporary Constitution. But tragic events of that epoch prevented both documents from being properly implemented.
It’s worth mentioning that the Constitution of the Ukrainian People’s Republic was based on the democratic standards acknowledged nowadays as fundamental principles of state-building by the international community. The document declared the national sovereignty as a main source of state power. It also declared indivisibility of territory, cultural rights of the national minorities, local governing and the principle of separation of powers. It should be noticed that the Constitution defined all citizens’ equality regardless of age, religion, race and sex, consolidating basic rights and freedoms. Death penalty was canceled.
Taking into account such a rich constitutional heritage, creation of the new Constitution of our country has been started immediately after declaration of independence of Ukraine in 1991, involving the world’s best experts and local professionals. It was completed in 1996 when the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the Constitution of Ukraine.
Long and difficult path of political self-determination proved immortal will of Ukrainian people to have its own statehood and to be sovereign among other free nations of Europe and the world.
Extremely significant is that the Constitution of Ukraine of 1996 not only incorporates key principles of statehood, democracy and fundamental rights and freedoms, but also determines Ukraine’s foreign policy as the one directed at ensuring its national interests and security by maintaining peaceful and mutually beneficial cooperation with the international community on the basis of universally recognized principles and norms of international law.
Adoption of the Constitution of Ukraine was a starting point of the new epoch in the history of our state. It contributed to the stabilization of social, political and economic situation in the country.
However, the development of the Ukrainian statehood has demonstrated the need for further improvement of the Basic Law of our country.
There was a try to conduct such a reform in December 2004. However, this process has not reached the goal, because of the violation of the constitutional procedure of amending the Constitution of Ukraine and became the embodiment of a complex compromise between various political forces.
Therefore, continuation of constitutional reform is a priority in the comprehensive process of reforms taking place in Ukraine. It was launched by the President of Ukraine and is aimed at ensuring the correspondence of modernization processes in Ukrainian public life to European standards and values.
A proof of firm intention of the Head of Ukrainian state to conduct a constitutional reform in Ukraine was the decision to support public initiatives to establish a Constitutional Assembly as an effective mechanism that will ensure strict compliance with existing law and attract the widest possible potential of society.
For the purpose of working out the proposals for amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine on the basis of generalization of the practice of the Constitution of Ukraine, the Constitutional Assembly was established by the Decree of the President of Ukraine on May 17, 2012. President of Ukraine in 1991-1994 H.E. Mr. Leonid Kravchuk was appointed as the Head of the Constitutional Assembly. The members of the Assembly are the best scientific and community experts in the field of the Ukrainian constitutionalism.
The revised Constitution of Ukraine should be focused on the establishment of a human being as the superior value of society and state. The priorities in the modernization of the Constitution, in particular, are to strengthen the constitutional guarantees of the rights and freedoms of citizens, expansion of the constitutional control of the institutions of direct democracy, increase the effectiveness of the organization and balance of state power. Enhanced Constitution of Ukraine should be an act that establishes principles of an innovative model of social and state development, defines a clear division of powers, which will provide balance in power, secure state from conflict and authoritarianism.
Establishment of the Constitution of Ukraine as a real contemporary national political and legal agreement, the fundamental law of the national legislation will become a reliable foundation for future development of the Ukrainian state.
Improvement of the Basic Law will be taking place exclusively in the legal framework of the current Constitution, principles of transparency, accessibility, democracy and depolitization.
Providing reliable protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, the formation of the balanced system of European-style representative democracy, strengthening of parliamentarism, building of an effective system of checks and balances, creating of effective mechanisms for “direct democracy” – is the main purpose of the constitutional reform in Ukraine.
To achieve this goal, the Ukrainian side will continue to hold the dialogue with all the interested foreign partners, especially with the experts of the Council of Europe and the Venice Commission.
June 27, 2013 Embassy of Ukraine in the Kingdom of Thailand