Eternity clause – a realistic or merely an illusory way of protecting the state’s constitutional identity?

Abstract

Eternity clauses can be defined as constitutional provisions or constitutional principles that are immune from amendment. The eternity clauses should be understood as protecting the core of fundamental constitutional principles and therefore leaving space for evolutive interpretation of these principles. Therefore, these clauses function as barriers or “stop lines” to constitutional amendment. Legal scholars observe that eternity clauses can aspire to protect two types of values serving as foundations of the state’s constitutional identity. In the first group unmodifiable provisions protect such universal values as democracy, natural and inalienable human rights, or the principle of the rule of law. The principles in the second group, by contrast, protect specific values reflecting the special characteristic features of a given state’s constitutional identity. Those could include federalism, the role of religion in the state, or the principle of separation of the powers. The analysis of the constitutional regulations and the case-law of the Constitutional Courts should allow us to answer whether the eternity clauses are a realistic or merely an illusory way of protecting the state’s constitutional identity?