The April Novelization ( pl, Nowela kwietniowa) was a set of changes (

constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, ...

s) to the 1952 Constitution of the People's Republic of Poland, agreed in April 1989, in the aftermath of the

Polish Round Table Agreement The Polish Round Table Talks took place in Warsaw, Poland from 6 February to 5 April 1989. The government initiated talks with the banned trade union Solidarność and other opposition groups in an attempt to defuse growing social unrest. Hist ...

. Among key changes were: *restoration of the

Senate of Poland The Senate ( pl, Senat) is the upper house of the Polish parliament, the lower house being the Sejm. The history of the Polish Senate stretches back over 500 years; it was one of the first constituent bodies of a bicameral parliament in Europ ...

and the post of the

president of Poland The president of Poland ( pl, Prezydent RP), officially the president of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Prezydent Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej), is the head of state of Poland. Their rights and obligations are determined in the Constitution of Pola ...

(the latter annulling the power of the

Polish United Workers' Party The Polish United Workers' Party ( pl, Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza; ), commonly abbreviated to PZPR, was the communist party which ruled the Polish People's Republic as a one-party state from 1948 to 1989. The PZPR had led two other lega ...

general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

) *introduction of the

National Council of the Judiciary In the European continental judicial tradition, the national councils of the judiciary are institutions that ensure the self-management of the judiciary and the effective delivery of justice, which are autonomous or independent of the executive a ...

(''Krajowa Rada Sądownictwa'') *changes to the electoral legislation, in order to make elections more free and fair *powers of the

Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of ...

were adjusted The 1952 constitution would be even further reformed by the December Novelization and Small Constitution of 1992, and finally replaced in 1997 by a completely new current

Constitution of Poland The current Constitution of Poland was founded on 2 April 1997. Formally known as the Constitution of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Konstytucja Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej), it replaced the Small Constitution of 1992, the last amended version of ...

External links

Law from 7 April 1989 "On amendments to the Constitution of the People's Republic of Poland
(April Novelization)
Law from 29 December 1989 "On amendments to the Constitution of the People's Republic of Poland
(the December Novelization)

References

1989 documents 1989 in law April 1989 events in Europe Constitutions of Poland Defunct constitutions Legal history of Poland 1989 in Poland {{constitution-stub