Topic # 2 for ensigns (midshipmen), sergeants (petty officers), soldiers (sailors).

questions:

1. Fundamentals of the constitutional order of the Russian Federation

2. Measures taken by the country's leadership to strengthen Russian statehood.

The Russian state has been proclaimed and is being built as a democratic, federal, legal state with a republican form of government. These initial provisions reflect the most important and fundamental features of our state and form the basis of its constitutional system.

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Under a democratic political regime operating in accordance with the Constitution, all members of society should be subject to State law. This requires the State to exercise its power in accordance with certain principles. The most important of these principles are elevated to the rank of constitutional and form the basis of the system.

Thus, the foundations of the constitutional system ( * ) are the basic principles and principles underlying the political system of society, the form of government and state structure, and relations between the state and the citizen.

The Constitution of the Russian Federation establishes an integral system of principles of the constitutional system:

- human and civil rights and freedoms as the highest value;

- people's power and the republican form of government;

- federated device;

- separation of powers;

- state sovereignty;

- rule of law;

- political and ideological diversity;

- unity of the economic space and freedom of economic activity;

- social character of the state;

- the secular nature of the state;

- recognition and guarantee of local self-government.

All these provisions are collected in Chapter I of the Constitution of the Russian Federation "Fundamentals of the constitutional system". They determine the entire subsequent content of the Basic Law, and they cannot be contradicted by any of its other norms. The provisions of the chapter in the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which establish the foundations of the constitutional system, are not subject to revision by making amendments and changes to the Constitution - only the adoption of a new Constitution is possible.

Article 1 of the Constitution defines the Russian Federation as a democratic federal state governed by the rule of law with a republican form of government.

The characterization of Russia as a democratic state expresses the need to ensure the real operation of human rights and freedoms, democracy, ideological and political pluralism, separation of powers, and local self-government in the country.

The Constitution of the Russian Federation establishes the basic political rights of a person and citizen at the level of international standards (freedom of speech, the right to association, the right to participate in the management of state affairs, the right to vote and be elected, etc.). Human rights and freedoms are recognized as the highest value. The State has an obligation to respect and protect them.

The only source of power in Russia and the bearer of its sovereignty is the multinational people. This means that our country is declared a state of democracy. People's power means the ownership of all State power by the people, as well as the free exercise of this power by the people in accordance with their sovereign will and specific interests. The people of Russia exercise their power directly, as well as through State and local self-government bodies.

A characteristic attribute of a democratic state is ideological diversity. No ideology can be established

( * ) The fundamentals of the constitutional system are also described in detail in A. Chayevich's article "State-political development and Constitutional foundations of the Russian Federation" (Orientir No. 8, 2000).

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as a state or mandatory service. This principle is also complemented by the constitutional recognition of a multiparty system. This principle helps to increase the effectiveness of people's power, involve wider segments of the population in political activities, legalize political opposition, and help overcome apathy and alienation of citizens from power.

State power in the Russian Federation is divided into legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Legislative, executive, and judicial authorities are independent.

In order to ensure the implementation of the principle of separation of powers not only in the upper echelons of power, but also in its entire hierarchy, it is envisaged to combine this principle with the principle of differentiation of subjects of competence and powers between the Russian Federation and its republics, territories, regions, federal cities, autonomous regions, autonomous districts and local self-government.

The Constitution of the Russian Federation establishes that Russia is a state governed by the rule of law. This means that the state restricts itself to the legal norms in force in it, which all state bodies, officials, public organizations and citizens are obliged to obey without exception.

A State governed by the rule of law is a constitutional State. The Constitution is the center of the legal system, and the entire mechanism of the state's legality is built on its basis. It has the highest legal force, direct effect and is applied throughout Russia.

The foundations of the state and territorial structure of Russia are defined in Article 5 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation and are based on the principle of federalism.

Russian federalism is not only a form of resolving the national issue in a multinational country, but also a form of democratizing state governance. Decentralizing State power and distributing it across regions is an important guarantee of democracy. Based on the principle of federalism, the decentralization of a single state power is ensured by the differentiation of the subjects of competence of powers between the Russian Federation and its subjects and local self-government bodies.

The Constitution of the Russian Federation established a republican form of government in Russia. The Russian Federation is a mixed (semi-presidential) republic, as it simultaneously has the characteristics of both a presidential and a parliamentary republic. Supreme State power and local self-government in the country are carried out by elective bodies elected by the population for a certain period of time, which provides ample opportunities for the real implementation of the principle of democracy.

The Constitution of the Russian Federation stipulates that Russia is a secular state. No religion can be established in the country as a State or compulsory religion. Religious associations are separated from the State and are equal before the law. Article 28 guarantees everyone freedom of conscience and freedom of religion.

Article 7 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation lays the foundation of the constitutional system for the concept of a "social state", the main task of which is to achieve such social progress that would be characterized by an increase in the well-being of citizens, an improvement in their lives, and the satisfaction of their material and spiritual needs. At the same time, the Basic Law assumes that ensuring a decent life and free development of a person should also be a matter of his mind, hands, initiative, and the basis of social statehood is to create the necessary conditions for this.

The basis of the economic system of any state is the regulation of property relations. The Constitution of the Russian Federation regulates property much more broadly than in most foreign constitutions. First of all, the existence of various forms of ownership, equally protected by the state, is fixed. According to Article 6 of the Constitution, these are: private, state, municipal and other forms of ownership. Of particular note is Article 36, which established the right of citizens and their associations to own land in private ownership, giving it the status of one of the basic constitutional rights of citizens and their associations.

The existence of a constitution in a State does not mean that it has already established a constitutional system. In the constitutional system, first of all, the subordination of the State to law must be ensured. As practice has shown, this is a long process, which implies a conscious need for all Russian citizens to strictly comply with the Basic Law of the country.

2

Over the past decade, fundamental changes have taken place in the country - the Constitution guarantees individual rights and freedoms, a democratic political system has been formed, and multi-party system has become a reality. Russians elect the President, State Duma deputies, governors, mayors, and local governments.

However, only the framework of a State governed by the rule of law has been built. Its further strengthening required solving a number of urgent tasks.

One of the first steps to strengthen Russian statehood was the creation of federal districts and the appointment of presidential representatives to them.

On May 13, 2000, the President of the Russian Federation signed a Decree in order to ensure that the Head of State exercises his constitutional powers, increases the efficiency of federal government bodies and improves the system of control over the implementation of their decisions.

According to the Decree, seven federal districts were formed on the territory of the country-structural units of the new political division of Russia: The Central Federal District, the Northwestern Federal District, the North Caucasus Federal District, the Volga Federal District, the Ural Federal District, the Siberian Federal District, and the Far Eastern Federal District.

In each district, the President appoints an authorized representative who is subordinate only to him. The authorized representative ensures the implementation of the constitutional powers of the head of State within the limits of his "possessions". The tasks of this official include organizing control over the implementation of decisions of federal authorities in the federal district, submitting regular reports to the President on ensuring national security in the district, as well as on the political, social and economic situation in it, and mediating in the interaction of presidential structures with state authorities of the constituent entities of the federation. The authorized representative should also ensure the implementation of

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personnel policy of the head of state.

It is noteworthy that five of the seven presidential representatives come from law enforcement agencies. The nomination of this type of people for key positions in the state is undoubtedly justified. This is a special type of statesman, more disciplined, who has retained the skills of management, who believes that power is given not in self-interest, but for the benefit of the whole country, the whole people. This is also evidence that both ordinary people and the authorities have begun to see the military as their future.

The second step in strengthening our statehood determines the possibility of federal intervention in situations where local authorities violate the Russian Constitution and federal laws, and violate the common rights and freedoms of Russian citizens. After all, the absence of a single constitutional and legal space in the state is one of the most dangerous manifestations of disintegration. And such a space is formed, as is well known, only if the country's legal system ensures the real supremacy of the federal Constitution and federal law. This supremacy proclaimed in the Russian Constitution is being torpedoed by numerous regional regulations, including constitutions that contradict federal constitutional principles and norms, federal laws, and frequent deviations from federal law in local law enforcement. So, in 1998, 2000 inconsistencies of regional legislation with the norms of federal legislation were recorded, and in 2000 - already 6000 such contradictions.

In most republics, the Constitution has already been amended. The main thing, however, is that ensuring the supremacy of the Russian Constitution, creating a single constitutional space in which the rights and interests of the Federation and its subjects are guaranteed, and the common rights and freedoms of man and citizen become the daily concern of all those who are endowed with the relevant constitutional powers and responsibilities - the President, the Federal Assembly, the Government, and legislative bodies. executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, courts, and prosecutor's offices.

As life has shown, the consequences of such violations are catastrophic. From such seemingly private issues, separatism is gradually maturing, which sometimes becomes a springboard for an even more dangerous evil - terrorism.

So it was in Chechnya. The situation in the republic has become so complicated that its territory has become such a springboard for the expansion of international terrorism into Russia. The initial reason here was also the lack of state unity. And Chechnya on the 99th reminded about the mistakes made earlier. Only the counterterrorism operation was able to avert the threat of the collapse of Russia. The professional military helped preserve the dignity and integrity of the state.

Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop legal grounds for the introduction of direct federal government on the territory of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, where constitutional principles are violated and human rights and freedoms are violated. In addition, the system of instruments of federal control over the legality of regulatory acts of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation should be legislated as soon as possible, which provides, in particular, for maintaining the federal Register of legal acts of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and establishing sanctions for deliberate disobedience of officials to legal acts of federal authorities.

The next step in strengthening power in the country is the reform of the Federation Council. President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stressed that the government in the country should be working. Everyone should do their own thing. Legislators in both the upper and lower chambers must pass laws. And the governors, who have a huge responsibility for the social well-being of people, for the success of the regional economy, must do their job. The President of the Russian Federation signed the Law "On the procedure for forming the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation". According to the Law, the formation of the new composition of the Federation Council must be completed no later than January 1, 2002.

The new procedure for forming the Federation Council provides that it includes two representatives from each subject of the Russian Federation-from the legislative and executive authorities. The head of the executive branch, that is, the governor or president of a federal subject, independently appoints a member of the upper house. However, its decision comes into force only if at the next meeting of the regional parliament it is not protested by two-thirds of the votes. Representatives from legislative bodies are elected by the regional Parliament for the term of office of this body.

The powers of a member of the Federation Council may be terminated prematurely by the state power body of a subject of the Russian Federation that elected or appointed him / her in the same manner as the election or appointment was carried out.

The change in the principle of forming the Federation Council raised the question of organizing a permanent dialogue between the subjects of the Russian Federation and the head of state on the main problems of state life, on the form of participation of regions in the preparation and adoption of major national decisions. This form became the State Council of the Russian Federation. The new advisory body will include the heads of all 89 regions of the country. The decree on the formation of the State Council of the Russian Federation was signed by the President of the Russian Federation on September 1, 2000.

All these measures are primarily aimed at restoring order in the authorities. But this is not the ultimate goal, but only the very first stage of state modernization. Connecting the resources of federal, regional and local authorities will be required to solve other complex tasks. The main ones among them are:

- improving the political system and building an effective state as a guarantor of stable social development, a guarantor of respect for individual rights;

- the actual equalization of the capabilities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation in order to provide citizens with full political and socio-economic rights;

- creating legal guarantees for the development of the Russian economy as an economy of free enterprise and business initiative of citizens, ensuring accurate and effective implementation of economic strategy throughout Russia.

These tasks will be consistently addressed to strengthen the Russian statehood.

Captain of the 2nd rank Veniamin SHASHKAROV, lecturer of the Department of Military Law of the Military University

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