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The European Commission on Friday formally launched an infringement procedure against Slovakia over constitutional reforms preserving its national identity in matters such as gender and family law. In reference of the decision, the Commission cited the amendments’ alleged violation of the fundamental principles of European Union (EU) law.
“[These reforms] contravene the principle of the primacy of EU law, which is a fundamental element of the EU legal order, together with the principles of autonomy, effectiveness, and uniform application of Union law. Even when a Member State amends its constitution, such an exercise of national competence cannot circumvent the need to comply with fundamental principles of Union law,” the Commission stated in a press release.
According to the principle of the primacy of EU law, when there is a conflict between an EU law and a national law of an EU member state, EU law will prevail. Although not enumerated in EU treaties, the EU court has judicially recognised the principle in several cases, including in the landmark cases of Van Gend en Loos (C-26/62) and Costa v ENEL (C-6/64).
The Commission also said it has sent a letter of formal notice about the infringement procedure to Slovakia, which now has two months to respond to the concerns. If Slovakia fails to provide a satisfactory response, the Commission may issue a reasoned opinion and refer the matter to the competent EU court.
In September, Slovakia adopted constitutional amendments allowing its domestic laws to take precedence over EU law in matters concerning national sovereignty, including family and gender. Article 7 of the Constitution particularly guarantees the non-application of international law, and thus empowers Slovak authorities to assess the extent of EU law application in Slovakia, including rulings of the EU Court.
Other constitutional amendments include the prohibition of sexual education for children without parental consent, the recognition of only the biological sex, and the limitation of adoption to married heterosexual couples. It also incorporates a guarantee of equal remuneration in work for men and women.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, responding to the notice, said, “I cannot imagine that any international organisation should dictate to us how many genders there should be and who can marry and who cannot.”
The legal proceedings follow the Commission’s previous urgent opinion, where they expressed concern over a conflict between EU law and the definitions of “national identity” and “cultural and ethical issues” under the drafted amendments.
The proposed amendments at the time also drew scrutiny from Amnesty International, which urged the Slovak government to reject the amendments, as they would harm the LGBTQ+ community. UN Special Rapporteurs additionally warned that the amendments were inconsistent with Slovakia’s international human rights obligations, including the rights to non-discrimination and sexuality education under international human rights law.
Notably, Slovakia ranks 36th out of 146 countries in the Rule of Law Index 2025 prepared by the World Justice Project.
The post EU launches infringement procedure against Slovakia constitutional reform appeared first on JURIST - News.
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“[These reforms] contravene the principle of the primacy of EU law, which is a fundamental element of the EU legal order, together with the principles of autonomy, effectiveness, and uniform application of Union law. Even when a Member State amends its constitution, such an exercise of national competence cannot circumvent the need to comply with fundamental principles of Union law,” the Commission stated in a press release.
According to the principle of the primacy of EU law, when there is a conflict between an EU law and a national law of an EU member state, EU law will prevail. Although not enumerated in EU treaties, the EU court has judicially recognised the principle in several cases, including in the landmark cases of Van Gend en Loos (C-26/62) and Costa v ENEL (C-6/64).
The Commission also said it has sent a letter of formal notice about the infringement procedure to Slovakia, which now has two months to respond to the concerns. If Slovakia fails to provide a satisfactory response, the Commission may issue a reasoned opinion and refer the matter to the competent EU court.
In September, Slovakia adopted constitutional amendments allowing its domestic laws to take precedence over EU law in matters concerning national sovereignty, including family and gender. Article 7 of the Constitution particularly guarantees the non-application of international law, and thus empowers Slovak authorities to assess the extent of EU law application in Slovakia, including rulings of the EU Court.
Other constitutional amendments include the prohibition of sexual education for children without parental consent, the recognition of only the biological sex, and the limitation of adoption to married heterosexual couples. It also incorporates a guarantee of equal remuneration in work for men and women.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, responding to the notice, said, “I cannot imagine that any international organisation should dictate to us how many genders there should be and who can marry and who cannot.”
The legal proceedings follow the Commission’s previous urgent opinion, where they expressed concern over a conflict between EU law and the definitions of “national identity” and “cultural and ethical issues” under the drafted amendments.
The proposed amendments at the time also drew scrutiny from Amnesty International, which urged the Slovak government to reject the amendments, as they would harm the LGBTQ+ community. UN Special Rapporteurs additionally warned that the amendments were inconsistent with Slovakia’s international human rights obligations, including the rights to non-discrimination and sexuality education under international human rights law.
Notably, Slovakia ranks 36th out of 146 countries in the Rule of Law Index 2025 prepared by the World Justice Project.
The post EU launches infringement procedure against Slovakia constitutional reform appeared first on JURIST - News.
Continue reading...
Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.