It took 15 years, but on Wednesday and Thursday, deputies will vote on the four proposals to revise the constitution in the second constitutional vote.

The suspense will be slight: between October 2021 and July 2022, deputies have already given their approval in the first vote on each of the four chapters of this reform. Each time, the result was the same: the CSV, DP, LSAP, déi Gréng and Piraten MPs voted for a two-thirds majority, the déi Lénk MPs abstained and the ADR MPs voted against.

This second vote will pave the way for the entry into force of the new constitution, which will take place within six months after the publication of the text in the Official Journal, probably in the summer of 2023.

The formal starting point for the constitutional reform was in 2009, when MP (CSV) tabled proposal 6030, with the main objective of reforming the monarchy and moving towards a more liberal model. But the discussions drag on and are extended to justice, the legal system of government and fundamental rights.

Breakdown into 4 chapters

Proposal 6030 was finally abandoned and the reform was divided into four chapters, with a first chapter on ‘Justice,’ a second on the organisation of the State, the monarchy, the government and the religious communities, a third chapter on ‘Rights and Freedoms’ and finally a fourth one on the Chamber of Deputies and the Council of State.

The chapter on ‘Justice’ tackles, among other things, the issue of the independence of the judiciary, by drawing a clear line between the judiciary and the public prosecutor’s office, guaranteeing the independence of the public prosecutor’s office and, above all, (CNJ) to guarantee this independence.

Through the chapter on the organisation of the State, the Luxembourg language is enshrined in the constitution, as are the flag, the coat of arms and the national anthem. The reform of the monarchy was also enshrined, including the abolition of princely rights and the introduction of the possibility of the Grand Duke being dismissed by the chamber.

An evolution, not a revolution

The chapter on ‘Rights and Freedoms’ enshrines new fundamental rights in the constitution--prohibition of torture, inviolability of human dignity, right to physical and mental integrity--as well as new public freedoms--right to found a family, interest of the child, protection of personal data and the right of asylum.

The last chapter on the Chamber of Deputies and the Council of State introduces a new instrument: the citizens’ legislative initiative, which allows citizens to propose a law (under certain conditions). It also facilitates recourse to a committee of enquiry, which can be set up if at least one-third of the deputies request it.

This modernisation of a constitution that dated from 1868 and did not “fully respond to today’s institutional and societal realities,” in the words of the chairman of the parliamentary committee on constitutional revision, (LSAP), was imperative. This reform however “does not constitute a revolution, but an evolution,” he said.

Notable but limited progress

 with Delano’s sister publication Paperjam, Luc Heuschling, professor of constitutional and administrative law at the University of Luxembourg, welcomed an “undeniable” progress, in particular thanks to measures such as those on the independence of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the reform of the monarchy or the CNJ. But he regretted some notable omissions, notably the question of the immunity of the Grand Duke, the right to euthanasia, the right to life or the primacy of international law over the constitution. This made him feel “partly happy, partly disappointed” by this reform.

, professor of public law at the University of Strasbourg, made a . He welcomed the “notable advances” but deplored the fact that the text was not very innovative, “particularly as regards the protection of fundamental rights and the reinforcement of the place of human rights treaties in Luxembourg.”

The participation of citizens in this important reform was also a blind spot in the process. The majority can congratulate itself on the recourse to a referendum on three issues in June 2015--notably on the controversial right of non-Luxembourgers to vote in parliamentary elections, which was rejected by a very large majority--but this will not have been enough to compensate for the impression of a lack of participation left by the . “This was a missed opportunity to explain to people what a constitution is and to strengthen our culture of semi-direct democracy,” according to Heuschling. This would not have been a bad thing in these times of crisis for democracy and human rights in Europe.

This story was first published in French on . It has been translated and edited for Delano.