The modern world is fully regulated by the rule of law. This feature of human life has been developed for a long time. Initially, relations between people were regulated through moral standards. Later, such rules of conduct began to become more legalized, which led to the emergence of legal postulates.
Immediately the moment of invention of law occurred a long time ago. For example, already in Ancient Rome, people actively used legal norms, as evidenced by the codifications of Roman laws. Already at that time, jurisprudence was developed at a fairly serious level. As for modernity, law in the 21st century has penetrated into all spheres of human life, without exception. The bottom line is that buying a car is a commonplace contract of sale. There are also other examples of jurisprudence. Moreover, legal norms exist in special official documents, which are called normative acts.
Each state has its own system of such official papers. If we take into account the legal structure of the Russian Federation, then in it the provisions of all legal entities without exception are subject to a single, basic law - the Constitution. There are quite interesting norms in this document. One of them is presented in Art. 51. To date, the rights provided for by this norm are actively used by modern citizens, which indicates some features of the norm.
Description of the Constitution of the Russian Federation
As mentioned earlier, in Russia there is a basic law that contains the most important norms. This raises the question of what constitutes the Constitution of the Russian Federation. This document is the highest legal act in its legal force. It is characterized by a special procedure of adoption and change. Its norms are binding on everyone who resides in Russia. Moreover, the value of the Constitution is determined not only by its supreme legal force. The basic law establishes the principles of building state power, secures the form of government, territorial structure, the ruling regime and many similar institutions. The Constitution clearly defines the powers of the highest departments, starting with the Parliament and ending with the President. Thus, the basic law is an important component of the modern legal system of Russia. This not only speaks of its exceptional role, but also proves the importance of the norms laid down in it.
Freedom and key rights of a citizen and a person
The legal norm concluded in Art. 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, provides for an exceptional legal opportunity, which is owned by all people residing in Russia. This article exists in one of the sections of the fundamental law. It regulates natural, that is, inalienable human rights. Thus, Art. 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation is in the 2nd chapter of the first section. This part of the basic law shows the legal capabilities of people, as well as their regulatory protection.
This chapter is of great importance for the entire legal system of Russia. After all, its provisions must be respected by all authorities, as well as taken into account when creating new regulatory acts.
What norm does article 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation contain?
The structure of Art. 51 of the basic law is quite simple. The norm consists of two parts that establish different legal foundations. In h. 1 Article. 51 of the Constitution states that no person may be required to testify in any way against himself or his loved ones. The second part of the same rule states that exemptions from testimony may be established by other federal laws. Thus, in Art. 51, an exclusive legal opportunity for citizens is prescribed, which provides them with some protection from authorities and other persons.
The origins of the opportunity not to incriminate oneself
The modern legal system of the Russian Federation is largely developed on the basis of European legal trends and democratic principles. The exceptional capabilities of man and citizen occupy a significant role both in the Constitution and in legislation in general. In this case, Art. 51 of the basic law is also an echo of European influence. The right not to incriminate oneself exists in the provisions of many international acts. An example is the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights, etc. The possibility of not giving any evidence against oneself is established with the aim of preventing the commission of judicial errors that may arise as a result of pressure on suspects. Thus, the application of Art. 51 of the Constitution in domestic law allows for the administration of justice as objectively as possible.
It should be noted that for Russian society such a norm is an exceptional novelty. Indeed, from the history of our state, we know that for many centuries justice in the Empire and the USSR was realized with a gross violation of many human rights. In the XXI century, this trend was decided to radically change.
Scope of Part 1 of Art. 51
Of course, the right granted to people in the aforementioned norm is limited. If the framework for its application did not exist, then special bodies could not have received any information at all. Thus, the scope of Art. 51 is limited to certain points.
- Firstly, each person can not testify against himself and not give any testimony, if asked, forced to carry out such actions. This means that neither a private entity nor a public authority can force a person, especially if the issue concerns the person directly interviewed or her close relatives.
- Secondly, Article 51 of the Constitution creates legal opposition to any illegal methods and methods of obtaining information. That is, during an interrogation, a person must not be tortured or otherwise exposed to him.
It is worth noting that the provisions of the presented norm are the basis for most other normative acts. Particularly closely, article 51 is related to criminal procedure legislation.
Application of Art. 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation in criminal proceedings
Many norms of the basic law are duplicated in other legislative acts of Russia. Similarly, the implementation of the articles of the Constitution is carried out in the daily activities of the state. For example, in the criminal process, the circle of persons who are close relatives is detailed. This is done with the aim that a person does not abuse his constitutional capabilities and does not interfere with the investigation.
Certain echoes of article 51 of the fundamental law can be seen in criminal law. For example, the Russian Criminal Code contains articles such as 308 and 316. They provide for liability for refusing to testify and harboring the fact of a serious crime. If in this case we are talking about close relatives, then there will be no legal consequences for the perpetrators of these socially dangerous acts, since the actions will not contain the corpus delicti.
Features of Part 2 of Art. 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation
The norm of the basic law mentioned in the article has two parts in its structure. If we figured out the key points of Part 1, then many questions arise regarding Part 2. In general, the legal construction provided for in the second element of the article is very simple. It provides that the right to be exempted from giving any testimony may be established in the norms of other legislative acts, and not just the Constitution. Thus, Article 56 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation provides an opportunity not to give explanations to jurors, judges, lawyers, clergy, deputies of the State Duma and members of the Federation Council about facts related to their direct activities.
Who does Article 51 of the Constitution apply to?
Very often, the norms of the basic law are mistakenly perceived as something unattainable or unrealistic. However, the articles of the Constitution have a direct effect and can be used in the regulation of a large number of different legal relations. As for the subject composition, article 51, as we have already pointed out earlier, is in the chapter on human and civil rights. That is, we are talking about people in general, and not just personalities associated with the state. Therefore, take advantage of 51 tbsp. The Constitution may be without exception to anyone who finds himself in a situation in which such is necessary.
Conclusion
So, we examined Art. 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation with comments. Its existence shows the desire of the Russian Federation for democratic changes and modernization of the entire legal system. Therefore, one can only hope that in the future the norm will not end, because it plays a big role in many processes.