O n january 10, 1923, the presidium of the new vtsik elected by the first allunion congress of soviets appointed a commission of to draft the terms of the constitution. Smith seeks to explain how and why constitutional rights to welfare be. Adopted at the seventh special session of the supreme soviet of the ussr ninth convocation on october 7, 1977 preamble. The constitution of the soviet union promises its citizens freedom of conscience and religion, as is obvious in this statement from article 52 of the soviet constitution. Russian federations constitution of 1993 with amendments. The constitutions of the soviet union were three versions of the constitution of the union of. The soviets of working peoples deputies, which grew and attained strength as a result of the overthrow of the landlords and capitalists and the achievement of the. The declaration of rights of the labouring and exploited people approved by the third allrussian congress of soviets in january 1918, together with the constitution of the soviet republic, approved by the fifth congress, constitutes a single fundamental law of the russian socialist federated soviet republic.
An analysis of the 1977 ussr constitution into communism,7 that is, into a free association of workers in which there will be no governmental influence and no state constitution. From the soviet committee of constitutional supervision to. The 1977 constitution of the soviet union, officially the constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics, was the constitution of the. The bill of rights of the former evil empire, the union of soviet socialist republics, was much better than ours. The 1924 soviet constitution with additional articles on trade unions and social insurance in russia hx15. These have included unusual laws, littleknown laws, and laws that were never implemented. Soviet republics in international law sciencedirect. By combining material and moral incentives and encouraging innovation and a creative attitude to work, the state helps transform labour into the. The cold war was fought in the aftermath of world war two, from the collapse of the wartime alliance between the angloamerican led allies and the ussr to the collapse of the ussr itself, with the most common dates for these identified as 1945 to 1991. Soviet constitutional structures were formulated by successive heads of the. Constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet. An example of the latter includes the 1977 constitution introducing an.
The official russian language text of the 1977 ussr constitution was. To the western student of soviet constitutional law, however, the adoption of the longawaited 8 ussr constitution of 1977 will. Let us first recall that the 1977 ussr constitution proclaimed, in article 6, the role of the communist party of the soviet union 1 in leading and guiding soviet society. The sovereignty of the ussr extends throughout its territory. In the late 1980s, constituent republics of the soviet union started asserting sovereignty over their territories or even declaring independence, citing article 72 of the ussr constitution, which stated that any constituent republic was free to secede. This was in response to the submission of the project constitution by the general secretary. The capital of the union of soviet socialist republics is the city of moscow.
Treaty on the creation of the soviet union signed, sealed, and delivered. The new soviet constitution of 1977 analysis and text. The evolution of the soviet constitution university center for. Of course, like most historical events, the seeds from which the war grew were planted much earlier, and this timeline starts.
Includes constitution of 1977 translated into english. A constitution is the general plan for the organization and functioning of the state. The soviet constitution of 1936, also known as the stalin constitution, was approved by the eighth congress of soviets and became law on december 5, 1936. The constitution of the russian soviet federative socialist republic. The soviet constitutions of 1936 and 1977 defined a wide range of social rights. The new constitution of the ussr in action springerlink. The constitution now in force, adopted in 1924, was the first constitution of the u. Russian federations constitution of 1993 with amendments through 2008. T he declaration of rights the laboring and exploited peo ple approved by the third allrussian congress of soviets. Constitution established by the russian socialist federative soviet republic, the immediate predecessor of. Party, the interests of the ussr increasingly merged with those of the rsfsr. Constitution of the union of socialist soviet republics january 1924 abridged part i declaration since the foundation of the soviet republics, the states of the world have been divided into two camps. The union of soviet socialist republics abbreviated. Yet the soviet union was a dictatorship, and even in the 1970s internal and external critics alike denied the existence of any form of rights there.
Constitution of 1936 the soviet constitution of 1936, also known as the stalin constitution, was approved by the eighth congress of soviets and became law on december 5, 1936. For another interesting study of the 1977 soviet constitution, see osakwe, the. Stalins constitution guaranteed the people the right to work, the right to rest and leisure no overtime, maintenance in old age social security, right to education, economic. What the soviet constitution says about freedom and religion. Speaking of its content, the 1993 russian constitution puts an end to the socialist regime. It is the duty of, and a matter of honour for, every ablebodied citizen of the ussr to. Foreign relations of the united states, 19771980, volume. Outside the system file, box 69, union of soviet socialist republics ussr. Feb 20, 2020 this is the constitution and fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics as adopted at the seventh special session of the supreme council of the ussr ninth convocation on 7 october 1977. The 1977 constitution was repealed upon the dissolution of the soviet union on 21 december 1991 and the postsoviet states adopted.
It is the basis on which the territorial administrative divisions, the system of state agencies, etc. Part ix legal force and amendments article 173 the constitution of the ussr shall have supreme legal force. The territory of the union of soviet socialist republics is a single entity and comprises the territories of the union republics. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves. Excerpts from the constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics october 7, 1977.
Constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics. Department of state, office of the secretariat staff, special adviser to the secretary sms on soviet affairs marshall shulman jan 21, 77jan 19, 81, lot 81d109, box 8, vance to moscow, 32830, 1977. There were three versions of the constitution of the union of soviet socialist republics, modeled after the 1918 constitution established by the russian soviet federative socialist republic rsfsr, the immediate predecessor of the soviet union. Citizens of the ussr are guaranteed freedom of conscience, that is, the right to profess or not to profess any religion, and to conduct religious worship or atheistic. This constitution remained in force until 1977 when leonid brezhnev based his new brezhnev constitution on the 1936 document. The union of soviet socialist republics is a socialist state of workers and peasants. Theories and realities of modern soviet constitutional law. The official name of the constitution was constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics russian. What the soviet constitution says about freedom and.
Thus constitution is an attempt to construct politics, both institutionally and rhetorically. Foreign relations of the united states, 19771980, volume vi, soviet union. Soviet constitution was adopted by the supreme soviet of the ussr on. Constitution of the union of soviet socialist republics 1977.
It was formed on the principles of equality and the voluntary affiliation of the peoples of the u. The state anthem of the union of soviet socialist republics is confirmed by the presidium of the supreme soviet of the ussr. At the seventh special session of the supreme soviet of the ussr ninth convocation on october 7, 1977, the third and last soviet constitution, also known as the brezhnev constitution, was unanimously adopted. Citizenship of the ussr equality of citizens rights. From the soviet committee of constitutional supervision to the russian constitutional court introduction in june 1988 the 19th party conference of the communist party of the soviet union cpsu recognized the need to develop a socialist state under the rule of law and consequently approved the introduction of a.
The stalin constitution seventeen moments in soviet history. The union of soviet socialist republics, as you know, was formed in 1922, at the first congress of soviets of the u. Treaty on the creation of the soviet union signed, sealed. Constitution of the ussr 1977 constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics adopted at the seventh special session of the supreme soviet of the ussr, ninth convocation, on october 7, 1977 novosti press agency publishing house moscow, 1985 constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics the great october socialist revolution, made by the. Uniform federal citizenship is established for the ussr. The 1977 ussr constitution uc hastings scholarship.
Ssrs, nationalist movements cited articles 70 and 72 of the 1977 constitution to back their demands for greater autonomy or even independence. The declaration of rights of the labouring and exploited people approved by the third allrussian congress of soviets in january 1918, together with the constitution of the soviet republic, approved by the fifth congress, constitutes a single fundamental law of the russian socialist federated soviet republic this fundamental law. The soviet unions constitution was much better than ours. The soviet socialist constitution by soviet union abebooks. Federalism and the soviet constitution of 1977 uw law digital. Sidney and beatrice webb, 1937 many who lauded stalins soviet union as the most democratic country on earth lived to regret their words. January 8, 20 by kelly buchanan the following is a guest post by peter roudik, director of the global legal research center and a specialist on the laws of eastern european and former soviet union jurisdictions. Constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics with ammendments and additions adopted by the first, second, third, sixth, seventh and eighth sessions of the supreme soviet of the u. If the ussr had lived up to its constitution it would have been the greatest nation on the planet, though im sure thomas paine said much the same about frenchs. The new soviet constitution of 1977 analysis and text sharlet, robert on. This is the constitution and fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics as adopted at the seventh special session of the supreme council of the ussr ninth convocation on 7 october 1977. If the ussr had lived up to its constitution it would have been the greatest nation on the planet. Many held their first free elections in the soviet era for their own national legislatures in. Constitution established by the russian socialist federative soviet republic, the immediate predecessor of the union of soviet socialist republics.
Citizens of the ussr are obliged to observe the constitution of the ussr and soviet laws, comply with the standards of socialist conduct, and uphold the honour and dignity of soviet citizenship. The soviet unions constitution was much better than. The westward expansion of the ussr 1977 wilson center. Constitution of the russian federation adopted by referendum on. Jun 11, 2014 the soviet constitutions of 1936 and 1977 defined a wide range of social rights.
Let us first recall that the 1977 ussr constitution proclaimed, in. The 1977 constitution was repealed upon the dissolution of the soviet union on 21 december 1991 and the post soviet states adopted. Constitution fundamenta law l of the union of soviet socialist republics adopted at the extraordinary eight congresh of soviets s of th u. Constitution of the ussr 1977 constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics adopted at the seventh special session of the supreme soviet of the ussr, ninth convocation, on october 7, 1977 novosti press agency publishing house moscow, 1985 constitution fundamental law of the union of soviet socialist republics the. Foreign relations of the united states, 19771980, volume vi. Soviet union started legal moves towards or even declaration of sovereignty over their territories, citing article 72 of the ussr constitution, which stated that perestroika restructuring poster featuring soviet leader mikhail gorbachev. After all, the soviet constitution of 1936 was adopted on the eve of the great terror.
The russian constitution constitution fundamental law the russian socialist feder, ated soviet republic resolution of the 5th allrussian congress of soviets, adopted on july 10, 1918. The breakup of the ussr and the resurgence of national identities. The following is a guest post by peter roudik, director of the global legal research center and a specialist on the laws of eastern european and former soviet union jurisdictions in previous posts, my colleagues have discussed different types of laws from various countries. Constitution day of the ussr article about constitution. Citizens of the ussr are guaranteed freedom of conscience, that is, the right to profess or not to profess any.