IDENTITATE, MEMORIE ȘI CATHARSIS CONSTITUȚIONAL ÎN ROMÂNIA POSTCOMUNISTĂ – TOATE-S VECHI ȘI NOUĂ TOATE –

Abstract

The Romanian Constitution of 1991, born from the collective trauma of communism, can be seen as a moment of constitutional catharsis, namely an attempt at moral and symbolic purification through the founding act of a new democratic order. It is an expression of a transitional constitutionalism, in which the fear of recovering a repugnant past and the hope of a (more) free future are intertwined. However, between these two temporal poles, a national-identity tension is manifested, sometimes creative, sometimes conflicting, i.e., between ethnocentrism and liberalism. In such a context, the paper seeks to highlight the fact that the fundamental law, approached as a result of an emotional synthesis, i.e., a catharsis with deep historical roots, did not offer – and perhaps did not even intend to offer – a definitive answer to Romania's identity dilemma. On the contrary, its elaboration, as well as its very existence, opened an uninterrupted process of reflection and redefinition, a dialogue between the past and the future. Thus, the Constitution is a living text (which is good), but restless, a space of confrontation between the historical and ethnic roots of the nation and the ideals of liberal reason. In this tension, between memory and aspiration, between tradition and modernity, the course of post-communist Romania is still being shaped.