Editing Constitution of Greece

{{Short description|Fundamental law of Greece, in effect since 1974}}
{{more footnotes needed|date=February 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2023}}
{{Infobox constitution
|name=The Constitution of Hellenic Republic
|image = [[File:Coat of arms of Greece.svg|150px]]
|caption = [[Coat of arms of Greece]]
|supersedes=Constitution of 1952
|chambers=Unicameral ([[Hellenic Parliament]])
|head_of_state=[[President of the Hellenic Republic]]{{efn|holds legislative and executive powers according to article 26, paragraphs 1 and 2}}
|number_amendments= 4 ([[Greek constitutional amendment of 1986|1986]], [[Greek constitutional amendment of 2001|2001]], [[Greek constitutional amendment of 2008|2008]], 2019)
|date_last_amended=25 November 2019 (published 24 December)
|title_orig = Σύνταγμα της Ελλάδος (1975, 1986)<br />Σύνταγμα της Ελλάδας (2001, 2008, 2019)
|orig_lang_code=el-GR
|jurisdiction=Greece
|branches=3
|system=[[Unitary state|Unitary]], [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary]], constitutional [[republic]]
|executive=[[President of Greece]] <br /> [[Government of Greece]]
|courts=[[Supreme Civil and Criminal Court of Greece]] <br /> [[Court of Audit (Greece)|Court of Audit]]<br /> [[Council of State (Greece)|Supreme Administrative Court]] <br />  [[Supreme Special Court]] <br /> Administrative, civil and criminal courts
|wikisource = Constitution of Greece
|date_effective=June 11, 1975}}
{{Politics of Greece}}

The '''Constitution of Greece''' ({{langx|el|Σύνταγμα της Ελλάδας|Syntagma tis Elladas}}) was created by the Fifth Revisionary [[Hellenic Parliament|Parliament of the Hellenes]] in 1974, after the fall of the [[Greek military junta]] and the start of the [[Third Hellenic Republic]]. It came into force on 11 June 1975 (adopted two days prior) and has been [[Constitutional amendment|amended]] in [[Greek constitutional amendment of 1986|1986]], [[Greek constitutional amendment of 2001|2001]], [[Greek constitutional amendment of 2008|2008]] and 2019.

The [[constitutional history of Greece]] goes back to the [[Greek War of Independence]] (1821&ndash;1832), during which the first three Greek constitutions were adopted by the revolutionary [[Greek national assemblies|national assemblies]]. [[Syntagma Square]] (''Plateia Syntagmatos'') in [[Athens]] is named after the first constitution adopted in the modern Greek State.

==Context==
The [[Constitution]] consists of 120 articles, in four parts:
*The first part (articles 1–3), '''''Basic Provisions''''', establishes Greece as a ''[[Presidential system|president]]ial [[parliamentary republic|parliamentary]] [[democracy]]'' (or ''[[republic]]'' – the [[Greek language|Greek]] δημοκρατία can be translated both ways), and confirms the prevalence of the [[Church of Greece|Orthodox Church]] in Greece.
*The second part ('''''Individual and Social Rights''''', articles 4–25), concerns individual and social rights, whose protection has been reinforced after the Revision of 2001. The new provisions regulate subjects such as the protection of personal data and the competence of certain independent authorities.
*The third part ('''''Organization and functions of the State''''', articles 26–105) describes the organization and function of the [[Sovereign state|State]]. Article 28 formally integrates [[international law]]s and [[international convention]]s into Greek [[law]].
*The fourth part ('''''Special, Final and Transitory Provisions''''', articles 106–[[Article 120 of the Greek Constitution|120]]) comprises special, final and transitory provisions.

==Constitutional amendments==
{{main|Greek constitutional amendment of 1986|Greek constitutional amendment of 2001|Greek constitutional amendment of 2008}}

The Constitution of 1975 has been revised four times: in 1986, 2001, 2008 and 2019.

==Constitutional revision==
Parliament has the right to revise or amend the Constitution, except for the articles dealing with the "Form of the State" (the establishment of the presidential, parliamentary republic) and the articles safeguarding human rights and freedoms, which are unalterable. Revision of the Constitution is initiated by a motion by at least one sixth of MPs, and approved by a supermajority of three fifths of MPs, expressed twice, in two separate votes at least one month apart. In this case, the business of revision is transferred to the next term of Parliament, ''i.e.'', after the following legislative elections. Parliament may then ratify the revision by a 50% plus one majority. If the initial motion for revision only achieved a 50% plus one majority, then a three fifths supermajority of the new Parliament is required. A Parliament thus endowed by its predecessor with the powers of revising the Constitution is officially named a "Revisional Parliament" and is enumerated separately from "Ordinary" Parliamentary terms. In recent years, the 1974 Parliament was titled "5th Revisional", as it operated under, and amended, the 1952 constitution. The resulting constitution of 1975 was essentially an entirely new constitution, especially so since it incorporated the outcome of the [[1974 Greek republic referendum|1974 plebiscite]] that established the republic in the place of constitutional monarchy. Nevertheless, it was officially deemed a revision of the 1952 one. The 1986 parliament was the "6th Revisional"; the 2001 one the "7th Revisional Parliament"; the 2004 Parliament was the "11th Ordinary Parliament" of the [[Third Hellenic Republic]]; the 2007 Parliament was the "8th Revisional Parliament"; the 2009 Parliament was the "12th Ordinary"; the first 2012 Parliament which resulted from the national election held on 6 May was the "13th Ordinary" (also referred to as the "Parliament of one day", because it formed for one day, only to be dismissed again in order for 17 June national election to be held, since no governmental majority could be secured) and the sitting 2012 Parliament is the "14th Ordinary". A minimum of five years must elapse after the successful conclusion of the revision process, before another may be initiated.

==Constitutional history of Greece==
{{main|Constitutional history of Greece}}

[[File:Constitution 1844.jpg|thumb|right|200px|First words of the Greek Constitution of 1844.]]

During the [[history of modern Greece|modern history of Greece]], the Constitution of 1975/1986/2001/2008/2019 is the last in a series of democratically adopted Constitutions (with the exception of the Constitutions of 1968 and 1973 imposed by a  [[Regime of the Colonels|dictatorship]]). The first of these Constitutions was adopted in 1822.<ref>George Katrougalos: [http://www.servat.unibe.ch/icl/gr00m___.html ''The constitutional history of Greece, in the Balkan context''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514051257/http://www.servat.unibe.ch/icl/gr00m___.html |date=2013-05-14 }}</ref>  
The current constitution is formally a major revision of the constitution of 1952, as effected by the 5th Revisional Parliament.

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal
 | last = Eleftheriadis
 | first = Pavlos
 |date= March 2005
 | title = Constitutional Reform and the Rule of Law in Greece
 | journal = [[West European Politics]]
 | volume = 28
 | issue = 2
 | pages = 317–334
 | doi = 10.1080/01402380500059777
 | s2cid = 154304533
 }}

==External links==
{{Wikisource|Constitution of Greece}}
*{{Commons category-inline|Constitutions of Greece}}
* {{cite web |title=Βιβλιοθήκη της Βουλής > Ψηφιακή Βιβλιοθήκη > Συντάγματα και Κανονισμοί |url=https://library.parliament.gr/Ψηφιακή-Βιβλιοθήκη/Συντάγματα-και-Κανονισμοί |website=library.parliament.gr}}
*{{in lang|el}} [http://www.hellenicparliament.gr/UserFiles/8c3e9046-78fb-48f4-bd82-bbba28ca1ef5/SYNTAGMA.pdf The official text of the Greek Constitution as of 27 May 2008], source: Hellenic Parliament.
*[http://www.hellenicparliament.gr/UserFiles/f3c70a23-7696-49db-9148-f24dce6a27c8/001-156%20aggliko.pdf The official English language translation of the Greek Constitution as of 27 May 2008], source: Hellenic Parliament
*[http://www.hri.org/docs/syntagma/ An English translation with a link to the Greek text (1986 version)]

{{Constitution of Greece}}
{{Constitution of Europe}}
{{Greece topics}}

[[Category:1975 establishments in Greece]]
[[Category:1970s in Greek politics]]
[[Category:1975 in law]]
[[Category:1975 documents]]
[[Category:Constitution of Greece| ]]
[[Category:Law of Greece]]
[[Category:Judiciary of Greece]]