There are many definitions of civil society in domestic and foreign literature. However, representatives of various branches of science and, above all, jurisprudence, economic theory, political science, social and political history, philosophy and sociologists agree on one thing - civil society is a higher level of development of the human community and relations between people. From here, with logical consistency, the conclusion is drawn that its interpretation should be carried out through the generic concept of “society”, consistently revealing the essence of the species concept of a lower order.
Society can be defined as a historically established community of people united by certain production, social, spiritual, cultural and political relations that objectively correspond to the level of its civilizational development.
The most important prerequisite for the emergence of civil society is the elimination of class privileges and the increasing importance of the individual person, who turns from a subject into a citizen with equal rights and legal responsibilities with all other citizens. Society will never become civil if it consists of slave owners and slaves, feudal lords and serfs, party nomenklatura and workers attached to factories, and collective farmers without passports.
Under a totalitarian regime, society becomes completely nationalized. Powerful-coercive regulation and management of the state covers all spheres of society, including the family. The formula of power, domination over society, brought to its logical conclusion, turns free citizens into the broad masses of the people, real serfs of the state, equally powerless in the face of power, and therefore equal. Under these conditions, the very idea of civil society loses all meaning.
However, it would be a dangerous misconception to believe that in a democratic state society should not be subject to government regulation and management. But the production, social and spiritual-cultural relations of society must be regulated mainly by indirect methods, excluding the direct influence of the state on the will of their participants.
The experience of democratic countries shows that their national constitutions and laws formulate norms and principles, provide for the development of target programs, determine tax and budget policies in relation to legal entities and individuals, establish a mechanism for motivating the active activity of citizens and choosing optimal options for their behavior, resolving contradictions and disputes. With the help of such methods, a favorable environment is formed, optimal conditions are created for the development of industrial, social and spiritual-cultural relations, for the self-determination of free individuals and their associations. These relations are protected by the norms of constitutions and laws from direct interference and arbitrary regulation by government authorities.
At the same time, it should be noted that in a democratic state, all political relations associated with the exercise of public power are subject to streamlining by methods of direct influence on the will of their participants in order to stabilize or transfer to a more favorable state. But at the same time, the power itself must be exercised within the framework of the constitution and law, which guarantees a certain measure of individual freedom, its rights and interests.
The foregoing allows us to conclude that civil society is a historically established community of people united by certain production, social, spiritual, cultural and political relations that objectively correspond to the level of its
civilizational development, which are subject to government regulation and management by the state using methods of both indirect and direct influence on the basis and within the framework of the constitution and law.
The subjects of civil society are: 1) the individual; 2) family; 3) private enterprises and business organizations; 4) economic associations and unions; 5) trade unions; 6) local community; 7) social groups and segments of the population, middle class; 8) religious organizations; 9) public associations; 10) political parties; 11) political and social movements; 12) independent media.
A characteristic feature of civil society subjects is that they enter into various relationships as free and formally equal participants realizing and protecting their private interests. Only private interests are the force that unites them into civil society with its numerous relationships, structures and connections. “Interest,” K. Marx quite correctly noted, “is what binds members of civil society together. The real connection between them is not political, but civil life. It is not the state, therefore, that binds together the atoms of civil society... Only political superstition can still portray in our time that the state should hold together civil life, while in reality, on the contrary, civil life holds the state together.”
The system of legal regulation of relations in various sectors and spheres of civil society is dominated by the rules of private law, ensuring the protection of the interests of free and equal owners, the protection of their personal initiative, etc. Nevertheless, private law does not displace public law beyond the boundaries of civil society. If a century ago the norms of public law primarily regulated relations in the exercise of state power, now, among other things, they consolidate the framework of civil society and express the common interests of people as various types of associations and communities. They ensure the stability of civil society and its vital activity, the functioning of institutions in the political, economic and social spheres, which serves as the most important condition for the implementation of the rules of private law, the optimal combination of the interests of the individual with the interests of society and the state.
Civil society and the state are in a state of dialectical contradiction. On the one hand, the state is a separate political organization of society, and on the other hand, it serves as a form of organization of society itself. In this regard, excessive strengthening of the state entails the spread of power to those spheres of society that are of a purely private nature. As a result, market mechanisms for regulating the national economy are being curtailed, state control is being established over society, and individual rights and freedoms are being arbitrarily limited. The dominance of civil society over the state, the predominance of contractual principles in the system of legal regulation in public spheres are associated with the weakening of the state, which leads to a violation of law and order, the emergence of threats to the security of society itself, and its transition to a chaotic state.
The resolution of the dialectical inconsistency in this case lies in the formation of a rule of law state, designed to determine the private and public spheres of society by the norms of constitutional law, to establish a ban on limiting the freedom to realize private interests by administrative methods. Its regulatory role in this regard comes down to ensuring state and public security, strengthening law and order, creating a legislative framework for the unhindered activities of individual and collective owners, their realization of their rights and freedoms, and the manifestation of activity and entrepreneurship. In turn, civil society will be able to achieve democratization of state power through the redistribution of powers between its level structures, by ensuring adequate representation of the interests of different segments of the population in the national parliament, exercising public control, protecting individual rights and freedoms from violations associated with officials exceeding their official duties authority and abuse of power.
At the same time, many norms have appeared in constitutional law that provide an optimal combination of public and private interests, the interests of the individual and the state. An example is the provision of Art. 2 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which proclaims: “Man, his rights and freedoms are the highest value. Recognition, observance and protection of human and civil rights and freedoms is the duty of the state.” The public interests, normatively enshrined in this article, lie in the recognition of the need for the state to protect the rights and freedoms of every member of society. From the point of view of protecting private interests, the constitutional norm allows a specific person, in the event of a violation of his rights and freedoms, to seek protection from the state. All norms of the second chapter of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, entitled “Rights and freedoms of man and citizen,” protect, on the one hand, public interests, defining the possibilities for everyone to participate in the life of society and the state, and on the other hand, they establish certain boundaries and conditions for the implementation of legitimate interests an individual person. With the help of such norms, it is possible to achieve a balance of interests of the rule of law state and civil society, establish their mutual duties and responsibilities, and elevate the freedom and duty of each person into law.
Constitutional and legal regulation of industrial relations of civil society
In civil society, production relations develop with a variety of forms of ownership and economic freedom of the individual. In it, property exists in such basic forms as public and private. All other forms of ownership are derived from them.
The purpose of public property is to satisfy the interests of the people, the population of a region or a local community, which determines the extension of the principles of inalienability and inapplicability of statutes of limitations to objects of public property. As stated in Art. 132 of the Spanish Constitution, the law regulates the legal regime of public property, based on the principles of its inalienability, the inapplicability of statutes of limitations, the impossibility of foreclosure on it, and its protection from improper use.
The market economy plays an important role in the development of industrial relations in civil society. However, in the constitutions of democratic countries there are no legal norms that regulate in detail the relations in the market economy system and determine its type. Typically, only such basic principles of a market economy are enshrined as freedom of economic activity, freedom to enter into contracts, free movement of goods, services and financial resources throughout the country, and support for competition.
Much less often, the constitutions of foreign countries use collective concepts that define its type to designate a market economy. So, in Art. 20 of the Polish Constitution formulates a legal norm according to which “a social market economy, based on freedom of economic activity, private property, as well as solidarity, dialogue and cooperation of social partners, forms the basis of the economic structure of the Republic of Poland.” The Constitution of Peru speaks of the “social market economy” that has developed in the country and the role of the state, designed to ensure “freedom of the market” (Articles 58, 61). In accordance with the Constitution of Portugal, the state is obliged to “ensure the effective functioning of the market” (clause “e” of Article 81).
Based on the principle of economic freedom, constitutional and legal regulation of industrial relations of civil society in Switzerland is carried out. In accordance with the Constitution, the Union and the cantons ensure the unity of the economic space in the country, suppress the economic activities of enterprises and organizations influential in the market aimed at monopolization and unfair competition, and do not allow abuses in pricing. Restrictions on economic freedom can only be practiced in cases where they are expressly provided for in the Federal Constitution or are justified by the historical prerogatives of certain cantons (Articles 94-96).
1. Relations between labor and capital in democratic countries are regulated by constitutional norms in order to achieve social partnership between employers and employees, ensuring their cooperation in resolving labor conflicts. In this regard, the state gives everyone the right to free work and imposes legal obligations on the employer to create favorable conditions for its implementation, meeting the requirements of safety and hygiene, and to pay remuneration for the work done without any discrimination (Article 35 of the Dutch Constitution). At the same time, the state determines, through constitutional norms, the procedure for establishing the minimum wage, below which the employer does not have the right to pay the employee remuneration for his work (Part 3 of Article 37 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, § 110 of the Constitution of Norway).
The constitutions of countries with developed civil society establish a mechanism for resolving labor conflicts between employers and employees. It includes legal norms that establish the procedure for the activities of trade unions, judicial bodies and workers themselves to resolve labor conflicts, determine the conditions for ensuring safety and maintaining equipment and structures in proper condition during the strike, maintaining the minimum set of services necessary to meet urgent social needs ( Articles 54-57 of the Portuguese Constitution).
The role of the state here comes down to guaranteeing democratic procedures for resolving labor disputes by constitutional norms, preventing them from growing to the point where they turn into political conflicts and pose a threat to the security of the country, anarchy and the collapse of civil society.
2. Relations regarding social security of the country's population are regulated by the norms of constitutional law through legal regulations addressed to their participants. The national constitution establishes the right of everyone to social security and the corresponding legal obligation of the state to take all necessary measures for its implementation, and also determines the categories of the country's population in need of social protection. The state usually guarantees social security for old age, in case of illness, disability, loss of a breadwinner, for raising children and in other cases established by law.
At the same time, it should be noted that the constitutions of some countries with developed civil society expand the range of participants and the composition of objects of social security relations.
Thus, the Constitution of Portugal identifies young people as the subject of such relations, who, in accordance with its norms, enjoy special protection of the state in the exercise of their social rights, including when hiring for the first time and obtaining housing (Part 1 of Article 70). The Constitutions of Iceland (Article 76), Spain (Article 42), Monaco (Article 26), Finland (§ 19), along with other objects of social security relations, also name unemployment, upon the occurrence of which benefits are assigned and paid to each person, who lost his job through no fault of his own.
Constitutional norms create favorable conditions for ensuring private interest in the event of a social risk and preserving the sources of public finance necessary for the development of civil society and free owners. However, the state, as stated in the Basic Law of Switzerland, will be able to provide social protection for certain categories of the country’s population only within the framework of its constitutional competence and the financial resources available to it (Part 3 of Article 41). Even in the most highly developed countries of the world it cannot become a national social security service.
3. Interethnic relations are regulated primarily by the method of establishing the equality of all citizens, regardless of their nationality, race, language and religion. As stated in Art. 14 of the Spanish Constitution, “all Spaniards are equal before the law, and no discrimination is permitted on the basis of birth, race, sex, religion, opinion or on any other grounds of a personal or social nature.”
This provision is formulated in a slightly different version in the Swedish Constitution, which normatively establishes that “no law or other regulation may contain an unfavorable attitude towards any citizen who, on the basis of race, color or ethnic origin, belongs to a minority” (§ 15) .
By constitutional norms, in this case, the state integrates free persons of equal status into a single civil society. However, when regulating interethnic relations by the norms of constitutional law, the state in democratic countries also ensures the protection of the public interests of nations, nationalities and ethnic groups. At the constitutional level, they are given the right to exercise their national sovereignty in the form of a subject of the federation, territorial autonomy, an original municipal entity, and national-cultural autonomy. The corresponding norms are available in the Constitutional Act of the Union of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick of 1867, in the constitutions of Spain (Article 2), Italy (Articles 114-115), Norway (§ 110a), Portugal (Article 6) and Finland (§ 120).
A significant place in the system of constitutional regulation of interethnic relations in countries with developed civil society is occupied by norms defining the status of indigenous peoples and national minorities.
In legislation and scientific literature, indigenous peoples are defined as peoples living in the territory of the traditional settlement of their ancestors, preserving an original way of life, having a small number and recognizing themselves as independent ethnic communities.
Indigenous peoples are the descendants of those ethnic groups that inhabited its territory before the arrival of people with a different material and spiritual culture, of a different ethnic and racial origin. They differ from the rest of the country's population in their customs and traditions, language and religion, and forms of extensive farming based on renewable natural resources. In places of traditional residence, they are characterized by high integration into their original habitat, which is expressed in spiritual, economic and physiological dependence on nature. The indigenous peoples themselves consciously consider themselves not only independent ethnic communities, but also an integral part of the natural environment.
In order to protect the public interests of indigenous peoples, democratic states guarantee the preservation of their ancestral habitat, traditional way of life, farming and crafts, native language, original culture and social way of life, tribal justice, and ethnic self-government.
The creation of cultural values is possible only as a result of the holistic, long-term and inspired effort of a talented individual or creative team capable of finding an excellent form for expressing deep content in it. Therefore, the national constitutions of foreign countries normatively define the position of the state in relation to creative workers, recognizing their exceptional role in civil society. In Switzerland, for example, the state supports at the federal level cultural aspirations of national interest and also promotes the arts and music, especially in the field of vocational training (Article 69 of the Constitution). The Turkish Constitution has a special article dedicated to the “protection of arts and artists” (Article 64).
The constitutions of highly developed countries assign responsibilities to the state to create conditions for the self-realization of talents, ensure priority in the development of national cultures, and overcome monopolism in this area. Based on Art. 78 of the Portuguese Constitution, the state, in cooperation with cultural institutions, is obliged to “support initiatives that promote individual and collective creativity in its diverse forms and manifestations and the greater dissemination of high-level cultural works and objects.”
The Finnish Constitution, along with the proclamation of freedom to engage in science and art, instructs the authorities to take measures to develop the culture of the Sami people and the Swedish-speaking population on the basis of principles that apply to Finnish culture (§16-17).
The wealth of culture in any country largely depends on the variety of methods of understanding reality, the presence of different scientific and artistic schools and directions, real freedom of creativity. In totalitarian states there are no conditions for the formation of high culture, the creation of true masterpieces, since there is an ideological dictate, a political approach to the assessment of scientific and artistic phenomena. Through all-encompassing totalitarian power, primitive works are brought to life, in which deep content is replaced by a political and ideological equivalent.
The newest constitutions of foreign countries enshrine the principle of cultural diversity and guarantee respect for public interests in the field of culture. Thus, the Swiss Constitution lists as one of the most important goals of the federal state the promotion of “shared welfare, sustainable development of internal cohesion and cultural diversity of the country” (Part 2 of Article 2). The Belgian Constitution “specially guarantees the rights and freedoms of ideological and philosophical minorities” (Article 11).
The principle of cultural diversity presupposes that the country has created conditions for the creative self-expression of individuals, the formation of various scientific and artistic schools and directions, for their development on the basis of freedom and competition. In the constitutional aspect, the principle of cultural diversity is expressed, first of all, in the fact that it is a normative basis for the realization of everyone’s right to freedom of literary, artistic, scientific, technical and other types of creativity. A person can create works of art and engage in creativity only when he lives in a civil society, where the individual is free from any ideological or political dictate or strict censorship restrictions.
One of the guarantees for the implementation of the principle of cultural diversity is a secular state. It occupies ideological neutrality not only in relation to religion, but also in relation to materialism. The state, according to Art. 19 of the Belgian Constitution guarantees freedom of worship, its public exercise, as well as freedom to express one's opinions in any way. Thus, it creates conditions for the development of both religious and secular creativity, the enrichment of national culture with material and spiritual values.
2. Relations regarding the development of cultural achievements are regulated by the method of positively obliging the state to create the conditions necessary for the optimal development of the spiritual and cultural sphere of the human personality. For this purpose, the most important principles are normatively enshrined in national constitutions, on the basis of which the access to spiritual and cultural benefits is ensured for every person. Among them, the principle of equal access to the achievements of domestic and world culture is put in first place in terms of its importance (Article 34 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms of the Czech Republic 1991, Article 44 of the Constitution of Spain, Article 73 of the Constitution of Poland).
The main form of mastering cultural achievements is family education. Its practical significance is emphasized in Art. 42 of the Irish Constitution, according to which “the first and natural educator of the child is the Family.” In this regard, the state “guarantees respect for the inalienable right and duty of parents in accordance with their ability to provide their children with religious and moral, intellectual, physical and social education” (Part 1).
In the family, the inclinations of a personality, its talents and abilities, and practical skills are formed. Parents can have a decisive influence on the formation of a child’s sense of perception of beauty in nature and the best creations of man, introduce him to the world of beauty in a certain branch of culture, consciously orient him to some ideal images, to the standards of social behavior of an individual historically recorded in the public consciousness. Truly, “a person will become what he became before the age of five,” correctly noted the outstanding Soviet teacher V. A. Sukhomlinsky.
The second form of systematic development of cultural achievements is education. In democratic countries, it includes the moral, cultural, professional and physical education of a person, the formation of patriotic feelings, national and religious consciousness, and perception of oneself as a free and responsible person (Article 16 of the Greek Constitution, Article 15 of the Liechtenstein Constitution).
A special role in the development of cultural achievements is played by higher and secondary specialized educational institutions of industry profile. They provide professional education in all areas of culture and prepare specialists for practical activities. Many of them enjoy academic freedom, which allows teachers to determine the forms and methods of teaching, and students to choose their teachers. In Italy, “institutions of high culture, universities and academies have the right to adopt their own statutes within the limits established by the laws of the state” (Article 33 of the Constitution). All universities in Greece are also completely self-governing (Part 5, Article 16).
The third form of mastering cultural achievements is education. It consists in introducing the country's population to national and world culture, disseminating knowledge about its achievements, and educating young people on the best examples of culture. The Constitution of Andorra enshrines the right of everyone to education, “the purpose of which is the fullest disclosure of the human personality while respecting freedom and fundamental rights” (Part 1 of Article 20).
The main burden in the cultural education of the population of every democratic country falls on public libraries, book publishing houses, theaters, museums, philharmonic societies, creative unions, radio and television. Their educational activities are regulated in different ways by the rules of constitutional law. For example, in Austria, artistic creativity, the popularization of art and the development of its theory in accordance with Art. 17a of the Basic Law of the State of December 21, 1867 “On the general rights of citizens of kingdoms and lands represented in the Imperial Council” are completely free. In contrast, in Greece radio and television are under the direct control of the state. Their activities should be aimed at impartial and equal transmission of information and news, as well as the dissemination of works of literature and art while ensuring the quality level of transmission dictated by their special mission and the interests of the cultural development of the country (Article 15 of the Constitution).
It is almost impossible to determine the effectiveness of constitutional norms on education in the field of culture. However, in countries with a developed civil society, there is a tendency to abolish entrance fees to all museums and other museum complexes. For example, in France, entry to state museums became free from April 4, 2009 for young people aged 18 to 25 years. This opened up access to museum values to the general public, who are precisely in need of aesthetic education.
3. Relations for the protection of material and spiritual cultural values are regulated by constitutional norms by imposing on each member of society the obligation to respect the historical, cultural and spiritual heritage, take care of it, protect historical and cultural monuments (Article 54 of the Constitution of Belarus, Article 37 Constitution of Kazakhstan). In this case, the state has the right to demand from each individual the fulfillment of a legal obligation to protect the material and spiritual values of culture, proper behavior in society, due to the need to show everyday concern for the preservation of the country’s cultural heritage.
However, this method of constitutional regulation of relations for the protection of already created material and spiritual cultural values is not effective enough. As recent history shows, the cultural heritage of peoples is usually destroyed, sold for next to nothing to buyers of stolen museum masterpieces and antiques by the authorities of totalitarian states themselves. Mass crimes against culture became a daily practice in the Soviet Union, fascist Germany, in China during the so-called great proletarian cultural revolution, in Cambodia under the bloody dictatorship of the Khmer Rouge, in theocratic Afghanistan.
The conclusion inevitably arises that the optimal option for constitutional regulation of relations for the protection of material and spiritual cultural values can only be a positive obligation of the state to preserve them for current and future generations of people. Corresponding norms are available in the constitutions of Andorra (Article 34), Italy (Article 90), Lithuania (Article 42), Portugal (Article 78), Turkey (Article 63) and a number of other states.
The constitutions of individual foreign countries include natural landscapes among the cultural objects protected by the state. So, for example, in Art. 9 of the Constitution of Malta states: “The State shall protect the landscape, historical and artistic heritage of the nation.”
This approach to the regulation by constitutional norms of relations for the protection of material and spiritual values of culture is completely justified. Cultural landscapes, estate museums, nature reserves and national parks, natural monuments are not only the face of the earth, but also the face of society. They largely reflect the achievements of the people in the field of culture.
Constitutional and legal regulation of political relations
Political relations as an object of constitutional and legal regulation are distinguished by their diversity. But they are united by functional connections, since they develop within the political system of society between social communities, classes, groups, citizens of the country regarding state power.
Political relations with the participation of nations, nationalities and ethnic groups are regulated by constitutional and legal norms when they develop in the exercise of their right to self-determination in the forms of a subject of the federation, a unitary state, national-territorial or national-cultural autonomy, when they realize their status (Art. 1-4 of the Belgian Constitution, Article 225 of the Portuguese Constitution, § 75 of the Finnish Constitution).
Political parties occupy a special place in civil society. Being the most active subjects of the political system of society, they participate in the formation and expression of the political will of the people, contribute to the democratic determination of the main directions of the domestic and foreign policy of the state, compete within the framework of the current constitution and democratic procedures in the struggle for power (Article 27 of the Basic Law of the Federal Republic of Germany, Article 6 of the Spanish Constitution, Article 49 of the Italian Constitution, Article 10 of the Portuguese Constitution). In a parliamentary republic or monarchy, a political party or party coalition that has a majority in parliament forms a government from its representatives and thus receives the opportunity to control all executive power structures and implement its policies in their activities. In this regard, political parties enter into relations with the electoral corps, election commissions at various levels, with state and municipal authorities, which are regulated by the norms of constitutional law (German Law of July 24, 1967 “On Political Parties” (as amended by the Law of 22 December 1988).
The constitutional and legal regulation of political relations of the state with public and religious associations, business structures and their associations is carried out on different principles. Such principles include cooperation, mutual assistance, coordination, determination of the main directions of joint activities, state control and supervision.
At the same time, in democratic states their internal independence and relative independence in resolving issues on the basis of the principles of self-government and initiative are preserved.
All non-state civil society associations operate within the framework of the legal regime established by the state through constitutional and legal norms, designed to create favorable conditions for the implementation of their statutory tasks and the satisfaction of private and public interests. First of all, this is expressed in the provision of the rights to association, freedom of thought and speech, and the holding of mass public events (Articles 12, 14 of the Greek Constitution, Articles 77-78 of the Danish Constitution).
Religious associations have an indirect impact on the state and dynamics of political relations. Although in democratic countries religious associations are separated from the state, it is absolutely impossible and not necessary to separate them from civil society. By disseminating religious teachings among the general population of the country, they thereby shape public opinion. In turn, religious ideas and beliefs shared by the masses of citizens are, to one degree or another, taken into account in the activities of government bodies.
The state protects not only the rights and legitimate interests of public and religious associations, business structures and their associations, but also the rights and legitimate interests of citizens who voluntarily joined them. If necessary, it applies measures of constitutional and legal coercion. So, in Art. 7 of the Basic Law of Austria of December 21, 1867 “On the general rights of citizens of kingdoms and lands represented in the Imperial Council” it is established that “all associations aimed at subjugating the individual and consolidating his dependence are liquidated forever. Any obligation or duty in relation to the ownership of real estate arising from its previous ownership can be extinguished; an unextinguished duty in relation to real estate cannot be established in the future.”
Similar norms, but formulated in a more modern version, are available in the current legislation of almost all foreign countries with developed civil society.
However, the main participant in the political life of civil society and the bearer of its political relations is the citizen of the state. National constitutions endow every citizen with political rights and freedoms and at the same time assign corresponding responsibilities to the state. In turn, the state is granted certain rights in relation to the citizen, and the citizen is burdened with legal obligations in relation to the state. Thus, political relations develop between the state and the citizen on the principles of equality and justice, which are regulated primarily by the norms of constitutional law.
Independent objects of constitutional and legal regulation of civil society are political processes that connect all elements of the political system of society into a single whole. Recognizing them as objects of constitutional and legal regulation in the political sphere is quite acceptable, since they are mediated by social relations and connections between people. In particular, political processes such as the development of democracy, popular discussion of a draft constitution, the electoral process, the referendum process, the implementation of popular legislative initiative, and the recall by voters of deputies of legislative (representative) bodies of state power are subject to legal regulation. These processes serve as a dynamic characteristic of the political sphere of civil society, a lever for its progressive development, and a means of expanding the social base of support for state power.
Man and citizen (Article 2, 19);
Thus, a strong constitutional basis for civil society has been formed in Russia. Legal norms, taken in their entirety, give a fairly complete picture of the foundations of civil society, its structure and functioning mechanism. Therefore, there is no reason to revise the current Constitution of the Russian Federation under the far-fetched pretext that its structure does not contain legal norms regulating relations of civil society. The problem is that the foundations of a civil society have not developed in Russia, as a result of which the constitutional norms have remained good wishes and are of a programmatic, explanatory nature.
In Russia, unlike Western countries, there is no market economy. Existing oligarchic groups are subjects of a centralized, and by no means market, economy. At the end of the last century, the state allocated huge material and financial resources to them on a centralized basis. Essentially, all the raw materials sectors of the Russian economy and leading enterprises in the processing industry were transferred to them for next to nothing. As a result, a national economy has emerged, where each leading industry is dominated by several large companies that control the market, practically divide it among themselves, and arbitrarily set prices for goods and services. The state's antimonopoly mechanisms cannot ensure equilibrium competitive prices, which in a poor country are much higher than world prices.
The creation of the largest state corporations in Russia, into which hundreds of billions of budget funds are pumped, indicates that the state intends to continue to maintain “commanding heights” in the economy.
Under the current conditions in Russia, there are no objective prerequisites for the formation of a middle class, a class of free owners. In Western European countries with a developed civil society, it constitutes at least 60-70% of the total population. In Russia, its number does not exceed 20-25% of the urban population, since rural residents have become less prosperous social strata.
The middle class is the main driving force of economic, cultural and political development of civil society. Pursuing their own interests, representatives of the middle class strive to earn as much money as possible to acquire private property in order to accumulate it, pass it on by inheritance, and ensure for themselves and their children the freedom of individual choice of life path, lifestyle, and attractive ideology. Representatives of different layers of the middle class intertwine with each other, connected by family, property, professional and political interests. This serves as a decisive factor in the development of civil society, expanding the social base of support for state power, and maintaining political stability.
The absence in Russian society of differentiation of the economic interests of various segments of the population slows down the process of formation of a multi-party system. None of the parties existing in Russia has a clear social orientation, has no idea which segments of the population it needs to rely on in its political activities, whose specific interests it should protect. All parties seem to be busy protecting the interests of the people, but in the elections to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, it is mainly billionaires who are on their lists.
There are no independent media in Russia. It is absolutely normal that there are state, party and private media in society. But they provide society with official, party-specific and commercial information. At the same time, the same system of checks and balances must be established between media outlets that differ in their affiliation as in the mechanism for exercising state power. Only independent media that can, in a certain sense, resist state power and serve as its constant critic and official opponent can claim this role. Society needs information about the activities of government bodies and officials. Awareness gives him a real opportunity to adequately change behavior in various political situations, to make correct and informed political decisions during the organization and conduct of elections and mass public actions. Ultimately, this will help society establish control over both the media and the political forces in whose hands they are.
In most foreign countries of Western Europe and North America, local self-government is legally recognized as a special case of public administration. Meanwhile, in Russia local self-government is independent within the limits of its powers. Local government bodies are not included in the system of government bodies (Article 12 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation). This makes it possible to rightfully consider local self-government in Russia as the most important institution of civil society.
Local self-government can only be formed under certain conditions, necessarily on the initiative of citizens, from below. It requires such prerequisites as a high level of economic and cultural development, successful solution of the most important social problems, the formation in people of true civic consciousness and a sense of responsibility for the state of affairs in the city or in the countryside. Under these conditions, the majority of citizens have a need for self-affirmation, a desire to free themselves from the paternalism of the state, to unite their efforts to independently resolve issues of local importance and develop their small homeland. Needs act as motivating reasons, certain reasons for engaging in local self-government. As a result, local self-government is the result of satisfying the needs of the individual, the formation of a new content of being.
In Russia, conditions for the formation of local self-government have not yet developed. To please the Council of Europe, it was introduced from above and established by law. But legal norms do not create new social relations; they regulate existing ones. We do not have an autonomous material and financial base for self-government; few “mere mortals” understand its meaning and purpose. In the public and individual consciousness, local self-government is perceived as a system of lower-level government bodies called upon to take care of the well-being of the population, their physical and spiritual health. Meanwhile, local self-government is a special style of life, a fundamentally new form of self-organization of citizens, a special economic structure. By definition, it cannot arise and develop in states with authoritarian political regimes, a type of which is the authoritarian-conservative regime that has established itself in Russia.
Russian public associations do not have independence from the state either. Only those associations that are financed from the state budget and act as transmission belts from power structures to the country's voters carry out their activities effectively.
The only exceptions to the general rule are self-regulatory organizations in Russia that unite business entities in a certain industry, perform special work or provide services to legal entities and individuals. They are created in accordance with the Federal Law of December 1, 2007 “On Self-Regulatory Organizations”, as well as federal laws regulating the relevant type of activity. The main goal of the activities of self-regulatory organizations is to shift control and supervisory functions in a certain area from the state to the market participants themselves. At the same time, the state is freed from redundant functions, which entails a reduction in budget expenditures and shifts the focus of state supervision from economic activity to its final result.
In the countries of Western Europe and North America, civil society developed outside and apart from the state, gradually filling niches free from the influence of state power. While protecting private interests, it largely opposed the state, won positions for self-organization and self-government from it, and also set limits on interference in its life. In Russia, civil society will never be formed without the state removing administrative barriers to its self-organization, without separating political and economic power, public and private interests.
Civil society - a community of people where an optimal balance has been achieved in all spheres of public life: economic, political, social and spiritual. Civil society presupposes the active manifestation of creative possibilities in all spheres of social relations, and the main features of such a society are economic, political and spiritual freedom of the individual. At the same time, the state acts as an exponent of the compromise between various forces in society and creates the necessary conditions for the unimpeded realization by individuals of their freedoms.
Availability contributes to the creation of financial and economic conditions for the formation of civil society structures, autonomous in relation to state power.
The main political feature of a civil society is the functioning of a rule of law state in such a society.
The economic basis of civil society is the right to private property. Otherwise, a situation is created where everyone is forced to serve the state on the terms dictated to him by state power.
In fact, the interests of minorities in civil society are expressed by various social, political, cultural and other unions, groups, blocs, and parties. They can be either state-owned or independent. It allows individuals to exercise their rights and responsibilities as citizens of a democratic society. Through participation in these organizations, one can influence political decisions in a variety of ways.
Principles for the formation of civil society:
- The supremacy of fundamental law. A law adopted by the supreme authority in strict compliance with all constitutional procedures cannot be changed, repealed or suspended by departmental acts, government orders, or decisions of party bodies, no matter how high and authoritative they may be. All public activities are carried out in strict accordance with the laws enshrined in the constitution of the rule of law state.
- The reality of the rights and freedoms of citizens, and it is assumed that they are not some kind of “gift” of the authorities, but belong to him from birth, that is, inalienable.
- Mutual responsibility of the state and the individual. By issuing laws, the state assumes specific obligations to citizens, public organizations, other states and the entire international community. But accordingly, the individual bears responsibility to society and the state.
- Separation of powers into legislative, executive and judicial. Power should not be monopolized by one person, body or social stratum, and the entire system of public power must comply with the requirements of the law and consistently comply with it.
- Availability of effective control and supervision bodies over the implementation of laws. In a rule-of-law state, the court, prosecutorial supervision, and arbitration must ensure the execution of laws.
Conditions for the formation of civil society:
- availability of property at the disposal of people (individual or collective ownership);
- the presence of a developed structure of various associations, reflecting the diversity of interests of various groups and strata, developed and ramified democracy;
- a high level of intellectual and psychological development of members of society, their ability to perform independently when included in one or another institution of civil society;
- functioning of the rule of law state.
Constitutional foundations of civil society
The norms of the Russian Constitution create the basis for the formation of political relations in society. This is facilitated by the proclamation in Art. 1 of the Constitution of Russia as a democratic, federal state with a republican form of government.
Reinforcing the democratic nature of the state, Article 3 of the Constitution recognizes the multinational people as the only source of power and its bearer, who exercise their power both directly (through referendums and free elections) and through state authorities and local self-government, public organizations.
For the first time in Russia, the principle of division of state power into three branches (legislative, executive and judicial), whose bodies are independent, is enshrined at the constitutional level.
The provisions enshrined in Art. are important for the development of political relations. 13 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation are the democratic principles of the functioning of the political system. The proclamation of ideological diversity in it, the rejection of one ideology enriches the political life of the country, gives the citizen the opportunity to independently choose and follow his chosen system of views and ideas. The existence of any state or other compulsory ideology in society is prohibited.
In the same article. 13 also contains another principle important for the political life of the country - the principle of political diversity. On its basis, all socio-political and other associations have the opportunity to participate in the political life of the country. This contributes to a more complete implementation of democracy in the country, the involvement of new groups of the population in political activities, the formation of a legal political opposition, and a multi-party system.
In order to ensure that the implementation of the principle of political pluralism does not cause damage to society, in Part 5 of Art. 13 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation introduces restrictions on those public associations whose goals and actions are aimed at violently changing the foundations of the constitutional system, violating the integrity of the Russian Federation, undermining the security of the state, creating armed groups, inciting social, racial, national and religious hatred.
Political pluralism, representing freedom of political action within the framework of the law, allows non-partisan citizens of Russia to participate in the political process, personally or with the help of independent associations and movements.
Seeing the constitutional foundations of civil society in the Russian Federation, first of all, one should pay attention to the norms governing the foundations of the economic system.
The Constitution of the Russian Federation (Article 8) establishes various forms of property, equally protecting them.
The foundations of the constitutional system establish the most important characteristics of the Russian state as a democratic, federal and rule-of-law state with a republican form of government (Article 1); establish the source of state power, the principle of indivisibility of sovereignty and the highest forms of exercising democracy (Article 3); formulate the beginnings of a federal structure (Articles 4-5); determine the relationship between citizens, the state and society, consolidating the priority of the individual, his rights and freedoms (Article 2). Other constitutional provisions are also enshrined: recognition of the Russian Federation as a social state (Article 7); guaranteeing the system of local self-government (Article 12); secular character of the state (Article 14); care for natural resources as the basis for the life of the peoples of Russia (clause 1, article 9). The chapter on the fundamentals of the constitutional system, therefore, constitutes the primary fundamental normative basis of all provisions of the Constitution, all current and constitutional legislation.
A democratic legal state is a society of free, full-fledged citizens who have inalienable, natural rights and actually participate in the affairs of the state. Such a state is characterized, first of all, by the fact that in it a person, dignity, rights and freedoms are affirmed as the highest (fundamental) values, with the constitutional obligation of their recognition, implementation and protection being assigned to the state, and the individuals from whom the structures are formed states realize this and want it.
The constitutional consolidation of democracy as the basis of Russian society with the deployment of a system of political, organizational and legal guarantees is one of the significant distinctive features of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. State power cannot be independent and independent of the people, since it is called upon to implement their collective will and interests. However, it cannot be argued that with the adoption of the Constitution of the Russian Federation in 1993, democracy was firmly rooted in the country. A lot of time still has to pass when a person brought up in new conditions will understand that he is the government, and not officials in various positions, even elected ones. Cultivating this feeling is a very difficult and lengthy task.
Consolidating the organization of state power, the Constitution of the Russian Federation, within the framework of a parliamentary-presidential republic, establishes presidential power as the most acceptable in the conditions of the geopolitical situation of Russia. The President of the Russian Federation is not only a symbol of the unity of the nation, but also a guarantor of socio-political stability, unity and territorial integrity of the country. Characteristic of this is the development of parliamentary democracy as one of the ways to establish legal statehood.
At the constitutional level, the basic democratic principles of the organization and functioning of state power are enshrined - the participation of citizens in the management of state affairs (Article 3, 32, etc.), separation of powers (Article 10), ideological and political pluralism (Article 13), ensuring the necessary and the most complete realization of democracy, and along with this - the efficiency of managing society. The principles noted above are protected not only by their proclamation as an integral part of the constitutional system, but also by corresponding guarantees. For example, about the independence and interaction of branches of government, about the equal right of citizens to access state (municipal) services, about the independence of judges, etc. They are also provided with constitutional and judicial control on issues of legality of decisions taken at all levels of government.
The constitutional consolidation of ideological and political pluralism, while providing citizens with freedom of political action, provides for certain restrictions in the implementation of this principle.
To protect the interests of society, restrictions are introduced in relation to those public associations whose goals and actions are aimed at violently changing the foundations of the constitutional system, violating the integrity of the Russian Federation, undermining the security of the state, creating armed groups, inciting social, racial, national and religious hatred (clause 5 Art. 13), which is especially important for Russia.
Summarizing the above, we can say with confidence that in the conditions of a developing civil society in Russia, any people can find a form of self-expression and development within the framework of the federation without the need to build a sovereign state. In unity there is strength, the possibility of free economic integration and social development of the state. The Basic Law (Constitution of 1993) proclaims the Russian Federation as a social state, the policy of which is aimed at creating conditions that ensure a decent life and free development of people (Article 7).
Civil society is one of the phenomena of modern society, a set of social entities (groups, collectives) united by specific interests (economic, ethnic, cultural, etc.), implemented outside the sphere of state activity and allowing to control the actions of the state machine. Civil society is a society with developed economic, cultural, legal and political relations between its members, which contribute to the formation of feedback links between society and the state. For the first time, the term “civil society” was examined in detail
One of the generally accepted definitions of civil society: civil society is a union of people to meet their needs outside and possibly against the state in terms of preserving the freedom, property and security of its citizens.
All non-governmental organizations can be considered institutions of civil society: political parties, trade unions, public non-governmental organizations, the press, etc. Of course, this does not apply to a totalitarian society, where all the mentioned institutions are of a state nature and civil society is replaced by the state.
Implemented in the form of self-organizing intermediary groups.
The socio-political processes of the development of civil society in modern democratic Russia are inextricably linked with the development of its constitutional foundations.
The constitutional development of Russia is complex and contradictory. However, at the present stage of development of our society, conditions have matured for the formation of an integral system of civil society and its constructive interaction with the system of state and local authorities. The essence of this process can be defined as a gradual transition from state (authority) to state-public management on a national scale, federal subjects and at the local level. The problem of the development of civil society is, first of all, the problem of interaction between the state and society, authorities and public associations in solving the entire range of socio-economic and socio-political problems.
The new Constitution proclaimed Russia a legal state, the focus of which, like the whole society, is the person, his rights and legitimate interests, which are recognized as the highest value. Never in the entire centuries-old history of Russia, even during the period when the autocracy seemed to have made constitutional concessions, has a person been brought to the center of state policy, and his interests have always been openly ignored by the authorities.
In Russia, for the first time in its centuries-old history, civil rights and freedoms are actually being realized in relation to the entire population. The only question is the quality and completeness of ensuring these rights and freedoms.
The formation of a democratic legal state in Russia depends not only on the state itself, but also on each of its citizens. If every person strives for the prosperity of the country, defends their own and collective interests, and fulfills their assigned duties, only then is it possible for Russia to develop as a rule-of-law state with a developed civil society.
Today, one of the most important needs of Russia is the development and strengthening of the influence of civil society, and the Constitution of the Russian Federation is the basic document for its development. This is the main potential of the country's Basic Law. The state needs a public center of political support. In a democracy, strategic initiatives in all areas of nation-building come from civil society, and the state only fulfills the public order. However, a full dialogue between society and government is possible only if there is a developed system of civil institutions.
One of the most important rights is the right to participate in a referendum, elect and be elected to government bodies and local self-government.
One of the main goals of limiting state power by law is to create optimal conditions for the functioning of civil society. The modern approach considers civil society as a system of independent and independent of the state public institutions and relations that provide conditions for the realization of private interests and needs of individuals and groups, for the functioning of the social, cultural and spiritual spheres.
The core of the legal system and the basis for current legislation in the field of regulation of elements of civil society is the Constitution of the Russian Federation. Chapter 1 “Fundamentals of the Constitutional System” and 2 “Rights and Freedoms of Man and Citizen” establish the basic, fundamental legal connections on which civil society is built and functions in modern Russia. The basis for the relationship between the state and the individual in the Russian Federation is the principle: “Man, his rights and freedoms are the highest value.” This means the unconditional priority of human rights in Russia over the rights and interests of the state. Article 2, in conjunction with Article 18 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, is intended to show, through the proclamation of human rights and freedoms as the highest value, the nature of state power derived from the interests of the individual, and therefore of the entire civil society. As is customary in any democratic state: the state is in the service of the person, ensures his private interests, and not vice versa, the person serves as an instrument for implementing state policy. Thus, the value of the individual, on whose interests and needs the activities of all state and public institutions are oriented, is one of the most important foundations of civil society.
At the constitutional level, the basic democratic principles of the organization and functioning of state power are enshrined - the participation of citizens in the management of state affairs (Article 3, 32, etc.), separation of powers (Article 10), ideological and political pluralism (Article 13), ensuring the necessary and the most complete implementation of democracy, and at the same time the efficiency of managing society. The principles noted above are protected not only by their proclamation as an integral part of the constitutional system, but also by corresponding guarantees. The constitutional consolidation of ideological and political pluralism, while providing citizens with freedom of political action, provides for certain restrictions in the implementation of this principle. To protect the interests of society, restrictions are introduced in relation to those public associations whose goals and actions are aimed at violently changing the foundations of the constitutional system, violating the integrity of the Russian Federation, undermining the security of the state, creating armed groups, inciting social, racial, national and religious hatred (clause 5 Art. 13), which is especially important for Russia.
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