Constitution

Andorra 1993 Constitution

Table of Contents

TITLE II. RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Chapter I. General principles

Article 4

The Constitution recognises human dignity to be inalienable and therefore guarantees the inviolable and imprescriptible rights of the individual, which constitute the foundation of political order, social peace and justice.

Article 5

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is binding in Andorra.

Article 6

  1. All persons are equal before the law. No one may be discriminated against on grounds of birth, race, sex, origin, religion, opinions or any other personal or social condition.
  2. Public authorities shall create the conditions such that the equality and the liberty of the individuals may be real and effective.

Chapter II. Andorran nationality

Article 7

  1. The status of Andorran national, as well as its legal effects, is acquired, kept and lost in accordance with the regulations of a Qualified Law.
  2. The acquisition or retention of a nationality other than Andorran shall entail the loss of the latter, subject to the terms and periods established by law.

Chapter III. The fundamental rights of the person and public freedoms

Article 8

  1. The Constitution recognises the right to life and fully protects it in its different phases.
  2. All persons have the right to physical and moral integrity. No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
  3. The death penalty is prohibited.

Article 9

  1. All persons have the right to liberty and security and shall only be deprived of them on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as are established in the Constitution and the laws.
  2. Executive detention shall take no longer than the time needed to carry out the enquiries in relation to the clarification of the case, and in all cases the detained shall be brought before the judge within 48 hours.
  3. The law shall establish a procedure so that the detained may request the court to decide about the lawfulness of the detention. Likewise the law shall establish the procedure to restore the impaired fundamental rights of any person under detention.
  4. No one shall be held criminally or administratively liable on account of any acts or omissions which were lawful at the time when they were committed.

Article 10

  1. All persons shall have the right to jurisdiction and to have a ruling founded in the law, and to a due trial before an impartial tribunal established by law.
  2. All persons shall have the right to counsel and the technical assistance of a competent lawyer, to trial within a reasonable time, to the presumption of innocence, to be informed of the charges against them, not to declare themselves guilty, not to testify against themselves and to appeal in criminal causes.
  3. In order to guarantee the principle of equality, the law shall regulate the cases when justice shall be free of cost.

Article 11

  1. The Constitution guarantees the freedom of ideas, religion and cult, and no one is bound to state or disclose his or her ideology, religion or beliefs.
  2. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs shall be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in the interests of public safety, order, health or morals, or for the protection of the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.
  3. The Constitution guarantees the Roman Catholic Church free and public exercise of its activities and the preservation of the relations of special co-operation with the State in accordance with the Andorran tradition.The Constitution recognises the full legal capacity of the bodies of the Roman Catholic Church which have legal status in accordance with their own rules.

Article 12

Freedoms of expression, of communication and of information are guaranteed. The law shall regulate the right of reply, the right of correction and professional secrecy. Preliminary censorship or any other means of ideological control on the part of the public authorities shall be prohibited.

Article 13

  1. The civil status of persons and forms of marriage shall be regulated by law. The civil effects of Canon Law marriage shall be recognised.
  2. The public authorities shall promote a policy of protection of the family, which is the basic foundation of society.
  3. Both spouses have the same rights and duties. All children are equal before the law, regardless of their parentage.

Article 14

The right to privacy, honour and reputation shall be guaranteed. All shall be protected by law against unlawful interference in their family and private life.

Article 15

Inviolability of the dwelling shall be guaranteed. No one shall enter a dwelling or any other premises against the will of the owner or without a warrant, except in case of flagrant delicto. The privacy of communication shall also be guaranteed, except upon a reasoned court order.

Article 16

The right to meet and assemble for any lawful purpose shall be respected. The exercise of the right of assembly requires that the authorities be notified in advance, and shall not prevent the free movement of goods and people.

Article 17

The right to associate for a lawful purpose shall be recognised. A law shall establish a Registry of the associations which may be constituted.

Article 18

The right to form and maintain managerial, professional and trade-union associations shall be recognised. Without prejudice to their links with international institutions, these organizations shall operate within the limits of Andorra, shall have their own autonomy without any organic dependence on foreign bodies and shall function democratically.

Article 19

Workers and employers have the right to defend their own economic and social interests. A Law shall regulate the conditions to exercise this right in order to guarantee the functioning of the services essential to the community.

Article 20

  1. All persons have the right to education, which shall be oriented towards the dignity and full development of the human personality, thus strengthening the respect for freedom and the fundamental rights.
  2. Freedom of teaching and of establishing teaching centres shall be recognised.
  3. Parents have the right to decide the type of education for their children. They also have the right to moral or religious instruction for their children in accordance with their own convictions.

Article 21

  1. Everyone has the right to move freely throughout the national territory and to enter and leave the country in accordance with the laws.
  2. Andorran nationals and lawful resident aliens have the right freely to choose their residence in Andorra.

Article 22

The non-renewal of the residence permit or the expulsion of a lawful resident shall only be decided pursuant to the causes and terms determined by law, after a non-appealable court decision, if the interested person exercises his or her right to jurisdiction.

Article 23

Everyone with a direct interest has the right to petition the public authorities in the form and with the effects provided by law.

Chapter IV. Political rights of Andorran nationals

Article 24

All Andorrans of age, in full use of their rights, enjoy the right of suffrage.

Article 25

All Andorran nationals have the right of accession to public service and office under the same conditions and in accordance with the requirements determined by law. The exercise of institutional posts is reserved to Andorrans, with the exceptions that may be provided for in this Constitution or in international treaties.

Article 26

Andorrans have the right freely to create political parties. Their functioning and organization must be democratic and their activities lawful. The suspension of their activities and their dissolution is the responsibility of the judicial organs.

Chapter V. Rights, and economic, social and cultural principles.

Article 27

  1. Private property and the rights of inheritance are recognised without other limits than those derived from the social function of property.
  2. No one shall be deprived of his or her goods or rights, unless upon justified consideration of the public interest, with just compensation by or pursuant to a law.

Article 28

The right of enterprise shall be recognised within the framework of the market economy and in accordance with the law.

Article 29

All persons have the right to work, to their promotion through work, and to just income which shall guarantee a living befitting human dignity for themselves and their families, as well as to the reasonable limitation of the working day, weekly rest and paid vacation.

Article 30

The right to health protection and to receive services to look after personal needs shall be respected. With that intent the State shall guarantee a system of Social Security.

Article 31

The State has the task of ensuring the rational use of the soil and of all the natural resources, so as to guarantee a befitting quality of life for all and, for the sake of the coming generations, to restore and maintain a reasonable ecological balance in the atmosphere, water and land, as well as to protect the autochthonous flora and fauna.

Article 32

The State may intervene in the ordering of the economic, commercial, labour and financial system to make possible, within the frame of a market economy system, the balanced development of the society and general welfare.

Article 33

The public authorities shall promote the necessary conditions to implement the right for everyone to enjoy decent housing.

Article 34

The State shall guarantee the conservation, promotion and diffusion of the historical, cultural and artistic heritage of Andorra.

Article 35

The rights of consumers and users shall be guaranteed by law and protected by the public authorities.

Article 36

The State may create media of social communication. In accordance with the principles of participation and pluralism, a law will regulate their organization and control by the General Council.

Chapter VI. Duties of Andorran nationals and of aliens

Article 37

All individuals and juridical persons shall contribute to the public expenditure depending on their economic capacity, by means of a just taxing system, pursuant to a law and founded upon the principles of generality and equitative distribution of tax burdens.

Article 38

The State may create by law types of community service to pursue tasks of general interest.

Chapter VII. Guarantees of rights and freedoms

Article 39

  1. The rights and freedoms recognised in chapters III and IV of this TITLE bind immediately all public authorities as directly enforceable law. Their contents cannot be limited by law and are protected by the Courts.
  2. Aliens legally resident in Andorra can freely exercise the rights and freedoms of chapter II of this TITLE.
  3. The rights of chapter V form the basis of the legislation and the actions of the public authorities, but they may only be invoked within the conditions determined by the laws.

Article 40

The exercise of the rights recognised in this TITLE may only be regulated by law. The rights of chapters III and IV shall be regulated by means of qualified laws.

Article 41

  1. The rights and freedoms recognised in chapters 111 and IV are protected by regular courts through urgent and preferent proceedings regulated by law, which in any case shall be transacted in two instances.
  2. A law shall create an exceptional Procedure of Appeal before the Tribunal Constitucional against the acts of the public authorities which may violate the essential contents of the rights mentioned in the paragraph above, with the exception of the case provided for in article 22.

Article 42

  1. A Qualified Law shall regulate the states of alarm and emergency. The former may be declared by the Govern in case of natural catastrophes, for a term of fifteen days, notifying the General Council. The latter shall also be declared by the Govern for a term of thirty days in the case of interruption of the normal functioning of democratic life and this shall require the previous authorisation of the General Council. Any extension of these states requires the necessary approval of the General Council.
  2. Under the state of alarm the exercise of the rights recognised in articles 21 and 27 may be limited. Under the state of emergency the rights covered by articles 9.2, 12, 15, 16, 19 and 21 may be suspended. The application of this suspension to the rights covered in articles 9.2 and 15 must apply under the control of the judiciary notwithstanding the procedure of protection established in article 9.3.