VATICAN CITY STATE HAS A NEW CONSTITUTION

VATICAN CITY, FEB 1, 2001 (VIS) - Made public today was the text of the New Basic Law of Vatican City, promulgated by Pope John Paul on November 26, 2000, after an ad hoc commission he had appointed had completed its work to revise the text of the 1929 Basic Law. This earlier law was the first of six laws promulgated by Pope Pius XI following the signing of the Lateran Treaty on February 11, 1929 between the Holy See and Italy, which ended the "Roman Question" and also led to the creation of Vatican City State.

Considered Vatican City's "constitution," the current Basic Law will enter into force on February 22, 2001, feast of the Chair of Peter. Given the many changes that have occurred in the last 70 years, says a communique on the new law, it became evident that the 1929 Basic Law had to be updated and revised. The ad hoc juridical commission held 14 meetings between February and November 2000, during which they completed the revision.

Article I of the new law states, as did the old one, that "the Supreme Pontiff, Sovereign of Vatican City State, possesses the fullness of legislative, executive and judicial powers." Representation with other States is reserved to the Supreme Pontiff and is exercised through the Secretariat of State.

Legislative power is entrusted "by delegation and in a collegial way, to a Commission of Cardinals, named by the Pope to five-year terms and presided over by a president." Legislative power thus belongs, properly speaking, to the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State. Executive power is delegated by the Pope to the president of this commission. Judicial power is entrusted in a vicarial way to the civil courts of Vatican City State.

The communique on the New Basic Law notes "several significant changes: a more suitable distinction between legislative and executive powers; the power given to the Commission of Cardinals to emanate laws; the abolition of the office of governor (there had only been one governor over the years and this office has been vacant since 1952); a definition and listing of the powers and jurisdiction of the Secretariat of State.

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