28. lipnja 1996. godine usvojen je Ustav Ukrajine. Osnovni zakon neovisne zemlje utvrđuje prava čovjeka i građanina, teritorijalno uređenje, definira nacionalnu i vanjsku politiku i slično.

Još jedan Ustav jedne od europskih država. Štoviše, prilično mlade. Međutim, s ukrajinskim ustavom nije sve tako prozaično. Prva varijanta dokumenta, koja se može nazvati prototipom suvremenih ustava, potpisao je ukrajinski hetman 1710. godine. 77 godina kasnije, 1787. godine, bit će stvoren Ustav SAD-a.

Malo povijesti

Dakle, početkom 18. stoljeća ukrajinska država pod nazivom Zaporoška Vojska pod vodstvom hetmana Ivana Mazepe i kozačke starješine izgubila je sukob s moskovskim carem Petrom Prvim. Zaporoška Vojska, u savezu sa švedskim kraljem Karlom XII., pokušala se osloboditi osvajanja od strane Moskovskog Carstva. Jer 1654. godine tadašnji hetman Bogdan Hmjelnicki potpisao je s Moskovijom vojni savez sa širokim pravima za Zaporošku Vojsku. Ali Moskovija se nije pridržavala uvjeta sporazuma.

Ustav Pilipa Orlika

Nakon poraza, novi hetman Zaporoške Vojske sastavio je dokument koji se danas u Ukrajini naziva Ustavom Pilipa Orlika. “Ugovori i odredbe o pravima i slobodama Zaporoške Vojske” bili su svojevrsni sporazum između hetmana i kozaka o uređenju njihove države. Sporazum je ovjerio i jamčio švedski kralj Karl XII.

 

Važnost Ustava Pilipa Orlika

Iako ovaj sporazum ne možemo nazvati Ustavom, za ukrajinsku državu važne su teze koje su u njemu sadržane.

• Potreba za ujedinjenjem zemalja koje je formirao još Bogdan Hmjelnicki.
• Važnost borbe za neovisnost kako od Moskovskog Carstva, tako i od Poljsko-Litavske Unije.
• Podjela grana vlasti na zakonodavnu, sudsku i izvršnu, što je ograničavalo ovlasti hetmana. To je bio progresivan potez za to vrijeme.
• Dokument je Pilip Orlik sastavio na ukrajinskom jeziku i latinskom, posebno za kralja. Taj kraljevski primjerak i danas se čuva u Nacionalnom arhivu Švedske.

Na veliku žalost, nije to bio ni prvi ni posljednji put da okolnosti nisu išle u prilog ukrajinskoj državi. Do potpune ukrajinske neovisnosti bilo je još 200 godina borbe. Međutim, bez drevne tradicije državotvornosti i energije istaknutih Ukrajinki i Ukrajinaca kroz stoljeća, Ukrajina ne bi imala svoju povijest i praznik – Dan Ustava Ukrajine.

The First Constitution

On June 28, 1996, the Constitution of Ukraine was adopted. The fundamental law of the independent country enshrines human and citizen rights, territorial organization, defines national and foreign policy, and so on.

Yet another Constitution of a European state, and a rather young one at that. However, with the Ukrainian constitution, things are not so prosaic. The first version of a document that can be called a prototype of modern constitutions was signed by a Ukrainian Hetman in 1710. Seventy-seven years later, in 1787, the U.S. Constitution would be created.

A Bit of History

So, at the beginning of the 18th century, the Ukrainian state known as the Zaporozhian Host, led by Hetman Ivan Mazepa and the Cossack elders, lost its confrontation against the Muscovite Tsar Peter I. The Zaporozhian Host, in alliance with the Swedish King Charles XII, sought to liberate itself from the encroachment of the Muscovite Tsardom. This was because in 1654, the then Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky signed a military alliance with Muscovy that granted extensive rights to the Zaporozhian Host. However, Muscovy did not adhere to the terms of the agreement.

The Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk

After the defeat, the new Hetman of the Zaporozhian Host drafted a document that is today called the Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk in Ukraine. “Pacts and Constitutions of Rights and Freedoms of the Zaporozhian Host” was a kind of agreement between the Hetman and the Cossacks regarding the organization of their state. The Swedish King Charles XII certified the agreement and acted as its guarantor.

The Importance of Pylyp Orlyk’s Constitution

Although we cannot strictly call this document a Constitution, the principles embedded within it are significant for the Ukrainian state.

• The necessity of unifying the lands of the country, which had been formed by Bohdan Khmelnytsky.
• The importance of fighting for independence from both the Muscovite Tsardom and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
• The separation of powers into legislative, judicial, and executive branches, which limited the Hetman’s authority. This was a progressive move for its time.
• Pylyp Orlyk drafted the document in Ukrainian and Latin, specifically for the King. This royal copy is still preserved in the National Archives of Sweden.

Unfortunately, not for the first time nor the last, circumstances at that time did not favor the Ukrainian state. Full Ukrainian independence was still 200 years of struggle away. However, without the ancient tradition of state-building and the energy of outstanding Ukrainian women and men throughout the centuries, Ukraine would not have its history and holiday – Constitution Day of Ukraine.