On 20 May 2016, high level experts in constitutional law from the EU and Moldova discussed the theoretical and practical aspects of review by Constitutional Courts of the amendments to the Constitution. The event was attended by about 100 guests.

The roundtable on "The constitutionality of constitutional amendments" started with opening speeches of Mr Alexandru Tănase, the President of the Constitutional Court of Moldova (CCM),     Mrs Liliana Palihovici, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, H.E. Pirkka Tapiola, the Head of EU Delegation in Moldova and Prof. Dr. Boguslaw Banaszak on behalf of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe.

At the event presented the experience of European Constitutional Courts on issues related to the legal force of the Constitution as the fundamental law which establishes the principles governing the organisation of the state and of the society, as well as its limits of revision. These messages were conveyed by judges of the Constitutional Courts of Austria, Bulgaria, Georgia and Lithuania, as well as by the renowned expert in constitutional law from Germany - Prof. Dr. Rainer Arnold.

The local audience consisted of guests from Parliament, Superior Council of Magistrates, Ministry of Justice, Ombudsman, Prosecutor General's Office, the Bar Association, academia and civil society.

In his speech, Mr Alexandru Tănase, the President of CCM presented the ways to amend the Constitution - by parliamentary way and by referendum - as well as the competence of the Constitutional Court to rule on such amendments. Mr Alexandru Tanase highlighted the limits of revision of the Constitution enshrined in the legal framework, but also those provided by way of jurisprudence.

Also, the President of CCM made reference to the effects of the CCM Judgment no.7 of 4 March 2016 and the experience of the years that followed the constitutional reform of 2000, when the modality to elect the President of Moldova was changed, a period when Moldova had a decade and a half of political and institutional instability.

The President of the CC of Lithuania Mr Dainius Žalimas, presented the experience of his country on the application of constitutional review of constitutional amendments. In his view, when applying the constitutional review of constitutional amendments shall be taken into consideration that the Constitution is an integral act, which cannot contain any gaps.

The Judge of the CC of Austria, Dr. Johannes Schnizer in his speech presented a set of reflections on the activity of a constitutional court. Thus he declared that CC's decisions should be respected by society and all public authorities.

The Judge of the CC of Bulgaria, Dr. Mariana Todorova Karagiozova-Finkova presented relevant cases of Bulgarian constitutional jurisprudence on the constitutional review of laws.

Prof. Dr. Rainer Arnold of the University of Regensburg (Germany) made reference to the evolving nature of the Constitution and the necessity to address in this aspect the current limits of revision of the fundamental law. In this regard, in his vision the judicial dynamism is indispensable and is best guaranteed by an effective constitutional justice.

The President of the CC of Georgia, Mr Papuashvili sent a message by which he welcomed the opportunity of organizing the event and underscored the importance of the title of the roundtable.

The experience of the Czech Republic was delivered by Dr. Jan Kudrna from Charles University in Prague (Czech Republic). He came with a message supporting the rule of law - any amendment to the Constitution that would violate this principle is inadmissible.

The Member of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe, Prof. Dr. Boguslaw Banaszak in his presentation reasoned the necessity to review Constitutional amendments. In his view, the constitutional doctrine recognizes the importance of reviewing by the Constitutional Court Constitutional of constitutional amendments. In this regard, the Venice Commission representative recalled that democracy needs procedures, as democracy itself is only a way, a method of functioning of society.

At the end of the program of the roundtable, Prof. Dr. Toma Birmontiene, expert of the EU Project supporting the CCM and former judge of the CC of Lithuania, presented the conclusions of the speeches and discussions.

In his closing remark of the roundtable, the President of CCM, Mr Alexandru Tănase expressed his high appreciation for the success of the event, which allowed for the most important aspects of reviewing by the Constitutional Court of constitutional amendments to be addressed: the experience of other constitutional courts in this regard, the status and role of eternity clauses and the importance of observing the supremacy of the Constitution in the State.

The event was held with the support of the EU Project "Support to the Constitutional Court of Moldova."

To view the video of the roundtable, visit the live coverage by Privesc.eu and Realitatea TV.