Ample commentary of Constitution published in Moldova for the first time

Comprehensive commentaries on the Constitution based on the general law theory and on the local and international constitutional doctrine has been made available for lawyers, politicians and other interested stakeholders with the appearance of the the volume titled “Constitution of the Republic of Moldova. Commentary”, published with the support of German Foundation Hanns Seidel, Info-Prim Neo reports. The work group that edited the book mainly included members of the scientific-consultative council attached to the Constitutional Court (CC). Some articles of the Constitution are commented by practitioners and some by theoreticians. CC president Alexandru Tanase stated at the volume's launch event on Tuesday that the commentary was a result of the efforts of CC judges and of the legal community as a whole. “It’s an important tool for politicians. The times we are living in have required such a volume. Specialists will have at hand a comprehensive material amid increasing talks about the need to amend the Constitution”, said Alexandru Tanase. The CC president added that the legislation was a living organism and should correspond to society’s reality. “Even if a new Constitution is adopted, 80% of the text of the current law will remain unchanged. Some incoherent issues will be changed. But if politicians don’t act in good faith, no Constitution will ever be able to fill in the already known gaps”, said Alexandru Tanase. Attending the event, Speaker Marian Lupu said the work would bring added value to the interpretation of the Constitution’s provision. The volume is important not only for jurists, but for politicians as well. “We’ll take these commentaries as guidelines in our future work. The book is important for those who are working know on constitutional amendments or even on a new version of the supreme law”, said the official. “The supreme law is not a whim of the politicians. It is not written for one year, for a person or for a party”, added Marian Lupu. Christian Hegemer, director of the Munich-based Hanns Seidel Foundation’s Institute for International Cooperation, said that the Constitution provided the basis of all democratic forms of government. A country’s supreme law cannot be changed to one’s own liking, but it cannot be rigid either. It must correspond to the reality of the times. This published commentary completes the text of the Constitution and can be of help to Moldovan jurists. The Hanns Seidel Foundation had similar cooperation projects with Mongolia and Morocco. The authors of the commentary are Boris Negru, Nicolae Osmochescu, Andrei Smochina, Corneliu Gurin, Ion Creanga, Victor Popa, Sergiu Cobasneanu, Veaceslav Zaporojan, Sergiu Turcan, Valeria Sterbet, Alexandru Armeanic and Dumitru Pulbere. The volume has 571 pages and 500 copies have been printed. In concluding the event, the Constitutional Court and the Hanns Seidel Foundation signed a memorandum for future cooperation.