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Hungary CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The theoretical foundations of Marxist-Leninist
constitutions
differ from those underlying Western, democratic
constitutions.
The latter are fundamentally prescriptive: they define a
set of
political relations between government and people that
ought to
exist. By contrast, Marxist-Leninist constitutions attempt
to
reflect reality by describing an existing set of political
relationships. As these political relationships evolve
over time,
the regime alters the constitution to reflect these
changes. The
Hungarian Constitution serves several political purposes.
It
attempts to mobilize the populace in support of the
regime's
goals. The Preamble of the Constitution formally calls
upon the
people to promote the construction of socialism and
communism. In
addition, the Constitution demands that the most loyal
sections
of the population advance the regime's goals through
greater
efforts and initiative. The Preamble also offers
justifications
for the regime's existence by describing the historical
past that
led to Marxist-Leninist rule.
The Constitution does, however, bear some similarity to
democratic constitutions. Like Western constitutions, the
Hungarian Constitution establishes the rights and duties
of the
citizenry, although it devotes more attention to the
latter than
democratic constitutions. In addition, the Constitution
specifies
the institutions of government and the relations among
them. It
is, however, much more detailed in this regard than most
democratic constitutions.
The Constitutional Law Council, formed in 1983, has
some
power to enforce observance of constitutional principles.
The
council, a fifteen-member body subordinate to the National
Assembly, monitors decrees, laws, and resolutions issued
by
government bodies to ensure their conformity with the
Constitution.
Data as of September 1989
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