EU Enlargement and the Constitutions of Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract

In the wake of the EU's biggest enlargement, this book explores the adaptation of the constitutions of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) for membership in the European Union. In response to the painful past, these new constitutions were notably closed to transfer of powers to international organizations, and accorded a prominent status to sovereignty and independence. A little more than a decade later, the process of amending these provisions in view of the transfer of sovereign powers to a supranational organization has proved a sensitive and controversial exercise. This book analyses the amendments against the background of comparative experience and theory of sovereignty, as well as the context of political sensitivities, such as rising euroscepticism ahead of accession referendums.

Constitutionalism and Constitutional Anomie in the New Europe

“…Tully 1995], it can be argued that the state-centred nature of modern constitutionalism is a key problem in current times of poly-centric globalization, in that it seems to correspond less and less to political and legal reality, in particular so within the complex context of European integration. In this regard, the "souverainist" constitutional projects of the new democracies [Albi 2005] can be seen as subject to eroding tendencies, such as the transfer of elements of sovereignty to the European level, as well as tendencies into the opposite direction, i.e., the transfer of prerogatives to the regional and local levels. Despite tendencies to the contrary 5 , the eroding trends seem part of a structural trend that will perhaps not so much undermine state sovereignty altogether, but certainly contributes to its modification, not least in terms of the fragmentation of sovereignty and the multiplication of its sites [cf.…”

Constitutional Implications of EU Membership: A View from the Commission

“…188 This partially explains the considerable number of amendments concerning the position of the judiciary in the 2001 constitutional reform of Slovakia. 189 Similarly, a signifi cant number of amendments of the 2003 constitutional package in Romania related to the judiciary, 190 following relevant remarks in the European Commission Regular Reports on this country. 191 The same can be said for Bulgaria, where a separate constitutional package of September 2003 was passed in order to comply with concerns from Brussels.…”

“…189 Similarly, a signifi cant number of amendments of the 2003 constitutional package in Romania related to the judiciary, 190 following relevant remarks in the European Commission Regular Reports on this country. 191 The same can be said for Bulgaria, where a separate constitutional package of September 2003 was passed in order to comply with concerns from Brussels. The reform limited the immunity for top-level magistrates, clarifi ed the conditions of removal and fi xed their terms of offi ce.…”

Selected EU Judgments by CEE Constitutional Courts: Lessons on How (Not) to Amend Constitutions?

“…The judgments considered in this paper, while taking a favourable approach towards participation in the European Union, seem to reinforce concerns that had been voiced earlier regarding a certain degree of devaluation of the constitutions in Central and Eastern European countries in the process of European integration. 73 Constitutions in general have been classifi ed according to two main types, 'historic' and 'revolutionary'. 74 The former, which include the British and Dutch constitutions, for example, have developed incrementally over a long-term period; they are non-formalistic, and at least as much political as legal by nature.…”

“…This prompts the question of whether constitutions continue to be 'taken seriously' in CEE. 77 Concerns about a 'European defi cit' have also been raised with regard to the constitutions of 'old' Member States, a number of which, as seen above, contain no or only minimal references to the EU, and might thus gradually become somewhat obsolete in terms of the real exercise of powers. 78 As Claes notes, '[t]he way in which European integration is dealt with in the constitutional texts [of the old Member States] is often disappointing, often inconsistent, at times downright clumsy […] and in many cases underdeveloped'.…”