Lithuanian Constitution of 1928
The Lithuanian Constitution of 1928 was the second valid constitution of the Republic of Lithuania in the interwar period . It was resolved on May 15, 1928, proclaimed on May 25, and came into force on May 26.
On December 17, 1926, there was a military coup in Lithuania under Antanas Smetona . A new constitution was drawn up after two years. It was the basis of an authoritarian government until the dictatorial Lithuanian constitution of 1938 came into force .
The constitution of 1928 was almost identical to the previous democratic constitution of 1922 in terms of the paragraph series and structure , but the changes in the content of the constitution of 1928 by President Antanas Smetona were so serious that this new constitution can be considered authoritarian.
Emergence
Constitutions from 1918 to 1940:
- Provisional Constitution of November 2, 1918
- Provisional Constitution of April 4, 1919
- Provisional Constitution of June 10, 1920
- Constitution of August 1, 1922
- Constitution of May 15, 1928
The constitution of 1928 came (after a coup d'état by conservatives) without democratic participation of the people through enforcement with the help of a presidential decree of the later President of the Republic of Smetona.
content
The constitution consisted of the preamble and 25 chapters.
Preamble :
The President of the Republic, in agreement with the entire Cabinet of Ministers, held a solemn session on May 15, 1928, the military holiday, to thank the Lithuanians, and especially his best sons, who were armed for independence Having protected Lithuania and constantly on its watch to commemorate achievements over the course of 10 years, decided to promulgate the following constitution of the Lithuanian state.
The constitution itself consisted of 107 paragraphs, which were divided into:
I. General provisions
II. Citizens and their rights
III. Seimas (Parliament)
IV. The government
V. The court
VI. Local self-government
VII. Rights of national minorities
VIII. Defense of the Republic
IX. Education
X. Cult and religious matters
XI. State budget and finances
XII. The public finances
XIII. Social care
XIV. Constitutional amendments and amendments to the constitution
XV. Transitional provisions
Constitutional reality
The constitution remained largely ineffective, as an (undemocratic) new election to the Seimas was not announced until 1936.
Even if there has been a Seimas since June 10, 1936, it was not democratically elected and free, but a puppet parliament of the ruling Unity Party under Antanas Smetona. President Antanas Smetona continued to rule as a dictator, backed by his Nationalist Party , which was the only party allowed.
Eventually it was replaced by the February 11, 1938 Constitution, which also reflected the dictatorial leadership of President Antanas Smetona in the Constitution.
literature
- Kyril Kascian: The Lithuanian constitution and the interpretation of the term “people” from a historical perspective . In: Eastern European Law. Questions about legal developments in Central and Eastern Europe and the CIS countries . 54th vol., No. 5, 2008, ISSN 0030-6444 , pp. 290-297.
See also
Web links and receipts
- Constitutional text (German)
- Lithuanian Constitutional Law: History, Fundamental Rights Summary from Juozas Galginaitis, Institute for Eastern European Law of the Faculty of Law at Kiel University , 2003
Individual evidence
- ↑ www.verfassungen.eu (last paragraph)
