Pension Fund asks what a “social, law-based State” means

The Pension Fund of Ukraine has asked the Constitutional Court to provide an interpretation of a number of articles of the Constitution and current legislation.

The Court reports that the Pension Fund asks for official interpretation of the following:

Article 1 Ukraine is a sovereign and independent, democratic, social, law-based state;

Article 95 § 1 The budgetary system of Ukraine is built on the principles of just and impartial distribution of social wealth among citizens and territorial communities” in the context of Article 3: The human being, his or her life and health, honour and dignity, inviolability and security are recognised in Ukraine as the highest social value;

Article 22 §  3 Human and citizens' rights and freedoms affirmed by this Constitution are not exhaustive.

Constitutional rights and freedoms are guaranteed and shall not be abolished.

The list is long, with all effectively pertaining to Ukrainians’ rights to social protection (Articles 17; 46) as well as articles from the Law on the Budget. 

At present there are demonstrations throughout Ukraine by former Chornobyl clean-up workers, Afghanistan War veterans, pensioners and others demanding full payment of pensions and social payments.  These are standardly awarded by the courts in full accordance with the  relevant laws, but not implemented.  The Pension Fund says that it does not have the money.