The Forgotten Constitution

The Promulgation of the 1952 Constitution of the Romanian People’s Republic Took Place 70 Years Ago

Abstract

After World War II, Romania, like the other states of the Soviet bloc, introduced so-called people’s democratic constitutions. These constitutions were characterized by the ideological values and class approach of communism, and Romania was forced to reject its earlier constitutional legacy. During the communist era, Romania adopted three constitutions, in 1948, 1952, and 1965, of which the 1952 Constitution is a particular intersection and a paradox in terms of history and constitutional law. It is an intersection in the sense that it is the culmination of the first stage of the radical social, economic, political, and legal transformation formally initiated by the 1948 Constitution and a transition to the 1965 Constitution, which also introduced some specific Romanian characteristics. It is special in the sense that it is the first fundamental law in the history of the Romanian Constitution to be drafted in accordance with the rules of formal constitutionalism. From the substantive point of view, its value lies in the fact that, despite the formal and economic egalitarian social theory of communist ideology and its violent implementation, it has elevated nationality issues to a state organization issue on the basis of the Stalinist model and nationality policy, proving that taking them into account does not conflict with the territorial integrity of the state from a state organization point of view.