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MESSAGE FROM THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT, ON THE OCCASION OF THE 13TH A...
Today, 5 February 2023, the Country marks 13 years since the entry into force of the 2010 Constitution of the Republic. The current Angolan constitutional order, established as a result of the approval and promulgation of the 2010 Constitution, is an achievement of our young democracy, since the Constituent Legislator enshrined a whole universe of principles and fundamental rights and guarantees that have contributed to strengthening the Democratic State based on the Rule of Law in Angola. The result of a constitutional historical process that went through several metamorphoses, the Constitution of the Republic of Angola entered into force in February 2010 and underwent a targeted revision in 2021, which sought to reinforce the basic foundations of the Angolan State, anchored in democratic principles and in the separation and interdependence of powers, and which also made it possible to give concrete form to and clarify specific matters, conferring greater objectivity and harmony on the functioning of, and inter-institutional relations between, the various public bodies and organisations. The constitutional revision highlighted the dynamic nature of the Constitution of the Republic of Angola, the fact that it is not a locked and therefore unalterable document, but one that can indeed be improved on specific points and adapted to different contexts, so that it may always serve the principal aspirations and interests of the Angolan People. The Magna Carta itself establishes the timing, the method, the forms and the limits for such evolution to take place, without jeopardising legal certainty and the confidence of citizens. As we celebrate 13 years since the entry into force of the Constitution of the Republic of Angola, the Constitutional Court invites society to reflect deeply on the Protection of the Rights of the Child, which must be the absolute priority of the family, the State and society, as illustrated by Article 35(6) of the Constitution. However, it is important to note and bear in mind that the protection of children does not rest solely on the enshrinement of their rights. Such norms must be given material effect by the family, the State and society, through measures of an institutional, administrative, moral and affective nature conducive to the implementation of such precepts. To this end, during Constitution Week, the Constitutional Court promoted the launch of the Constituição para Criança (Constitution for Children), a work that portrays various provisions of the Constitution of the Republic in comic-strip form, in language that enables schoolchildren, and others too, to understand the constitutional foundations, as well as the scope of their Rights and Duties. This recognises the importance of constitutional literacy, based on the universalisation of knowledge of the text of the Constitution from childhood onwards. To that end, the translation of the Constitution into the main Angolan languages of African origin is likewise a fundamental task, reinforcing the sense of National Unity and awakening society to the importance of preserving Angolan linguistic identity within the mosaic that makes up the Angolan Nation. The celebration of 13 years of the CRA (Constitution of the Republic of Angola) represents an occasion for us to continue to reflect on the rights and duties that the constitutional text enshrines for citizens. And the priority, as it could not be otherwise, falls on the Protection of the Rights of the Child, for all that children represent for the future of our Nation. Among other guarantees of protection for children, the constituent legislator enshrined in Article 80 of the Constitution of the Republic a series of rights, guarantees and programmes aimed at placing children at the centre of the construction of a free, just, democratic and supportive society, of peace, equality and social progress. The Constitutional Court, for its part, will continue, in the exercise of its functions, to ensure the dissemination and application of these principles, contributing to raising citizens’ constitutional literacy and to increasing the confidence that is increasingly required of the courts and, specifically, in the administration of justice in legal-constitutional matters. Accordingly, this Court congratulates all the Angolan people on the 13 years since the entry into force of the Constitution of the Republic of Angola. Luanda, 5 February 2023