An analyze of the concept of citizen from the perspective of the first Romanian Constitution Adina Laura Nasta West University Timioara

This work was partially supported by the strategic grant POSDRU/CPP107/DMI1.5/S/78421, Project ID (2010), co-financed by the European Social Fund – Investing in People, within the Sectoral Operational Programme Human Resources Development 2007 – 2013.

In this study I propose to analyze the concept of citizen through the legal language reflected by the first Romanian Constitution. The importance of this study is given by the increased interest manifested in European historiography for the conceptual history in general and for the decoding of the concept of citizen, especially in French, Britain and German cultural spaces in particular.

All democratic regimes are built based on the concept of citizen. This became the center of the political project and had a key role in redefining social identities. The problem of political rights concerned the Romanian society especially in the second half of the 19th century, when the establishment of the modern state brought to the foreground of debates the right to vote and the political participation. The legislation regulating the right to vote, understood as a discursive product of the time and interpreted in the ideational, social and cultural context in wich appears may open new research directions.

 The term ”Citizenship” was used in Romanian law for the first time în 1948, but the first legal definition appears in 1971, citizenship is viewed as an expresion of social, economical, political and legal relations between individuals and the state.  Until that time, the notions used for defining the citizen were: indigen, sudit, supus, naional, resortisant, pământean, român.

 The Constitution does not use the term “citizen”, insted of this term it uses “Romanian”.  From the point of view of the political rights, the Constitution distinguishes between active and passive citizens, the right to vote and the right of being elected were based on the income.  Until the modification in 1879, the Constitution condition for obtaining citizenship was the Christian religion of the appliant, although the Civil Code previously adopted did not contained such a provision, this one was introduced after a pressure from the public.

 The recognition of the state independence was conditioned by the abolition of the non- Christians’ interdiction to obtain citizenship (The Berlin Treaty 1878).  The provision was abolished, but was introduced the principle of individual naturalization.  The parliamentary debate regarding the amendation of the Constitution revealed the anti-Semite position of the many Romanian politicians such as V. Conta, N. Blaremberg, T. Maiorescu, I. Campineanu, P.P. Carp.

 Romanians enjoy freedom of conscience, freedom of education, freedom of the press, freedom of meeting (article 5).  Only Romanians can occupy public, civil and military service (article 10).  Romanians have the right to forgather peacefully (article 26).  Romanians have the right to associate (article 27).

 The primary education will be mandatory for the young Romanians (article 23).  No Romanian can serve another state without government permission (article 30).  Every Romanian has military duties (article 118).

 The first condition for eligibility is to be Romanian or to be denizen.  For the Senate, the minimum income is 800 galbeni and the age of 40.  The position of Minister can be occupied only by Romanians or denizen.

 Historical significance from the horizontal view (space) and vertical (time).  Ideological significance oppose the citizen to the non-citizen (the excleded, the stranger).  Juridical significance – citizen defined as a subject of rights and obligations, is placed in a legal relationship with the State.  Social significance – the right to vote was available only for men, women and poors being excluded.

PhD candidate at the History Departament, West University of Timişoara, Faculty of Letters, History and Theology, POSDRU scholarship, studied Law at the University of Craiova, Faculty of Law and Administrative Science and BA in History at the West University of Timişoara, Faculty of Letters, History and Theology, History teacher at Technical College Electrotimiş in Timişoara, member of the Romanian Society of Historical Science.

 „This work was partially supported by the strategic grant POSDRU/CPP107/DMI1.5/S/78421, Project ID (2010), co-financed by the European Social Fund – Investing in People, within the Sectoral Operational Programme Human Resources Development 2007 – 2013.”