The1963 Yugoslav Constitution was the secondcommunist state constitution of theSocialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It came into effect on April 7, 1963. The constitution was the result of beliefs of the governing structures that Yugoslav self-management relations have been sufficiently overcome in the society that it deserved a new and final constitutional definition and enthroning.
The parliamentaryFederal Assembly (Skupština) was divided into one general chamber, the Federal Chamber, and four chambers given specific bureaucratic responsibilities. The constitution directed that individual republics be represented only in the Chamber of Nationalities, a part of the Federal Chamber[1]that in 1967 became a separate chamber of the Assembly in its own right.[2] With this, the Federal Assembly became the onlypentacameral, laterhexacameral, legislature on the planet.
PresidentJosip Broz Tito retained his position aspresident of the party but renounced his state position aspresident of theFederal Executive Council, a change that further separated party and state functions. The 1963 constitution also introduced the concept of rotation, which prohibited remaining at higher or lower level executive positions for more than two four-year mandates. Moreover, it extendedhuman andcivil rights and established constitutionally guaranteed court procedures.[1]
The constitution was superseded by the adoption of afourth and final constitution in 1974.
The definition of thestate is characterized not only by provision that it is afederal state, but also a socialist democratic community, which was supposed to indicate the tendency towards theMarxist ideal of thewithering away of the state.
Public property,self-management and self-organization of working people at the micro and macro level was declared the basis of Economic planning.
The right to social self-management was declared untouchable, and districts in the state (municipality,county,autonomous provinces of Serbia,Socialist Republics and the Federation itself), became socio-political communities. In the regulation yet unseen in constitutional law, the hierarchy between these units was destroyed and a system of mutual rights and obligations was introduced.
TheFederal Assembly was proclaimed as the highest authority of government and social self-government, and in the federal and republican assembly, in addition to the general-political council, greater workers' communities were introduced - economic, educational, cultural, social and health, organizational and political. Assemblies of the autonomous provinces could have more.
President of the Republic became independent from Federal Executive Council and became an autonomous authority of the federation. TheConstitutional Court of Yugoslavia and the constitutional courts of the member republics were introduced.
42amendments were added to this Constitution until the adoption of the new1974 Yugoslav Constitution. This shows that the stability of institutions was not achieved for longer terms. New amendments strengthened the position of autonomous provinces, introduced new areas of self-government and the former federal agencies gradually becamecommon within the federation, instead of remaining superior over the republics.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. Glenn E. Curtis (December 1990). Glenn E. Curtis (ed.).Yugoslavia: A Country Study.Federal Research Division. The 1963 Constitution.Ten years later, the Constitution of 1963 completely changed the whole structure of the Federal Assembly and of all the other organs of State authority. It introduced a heavy and complicated system of five or, in some cases, even six "Councils", for which the term "Chamber" seems more appropriate in order to avoid confusion between these bodies and various other councils.
