By Maria Theristi
If state authority were deprived of the ability to amend or adjust the content of existing private contracts, even when changes in social, scientific, or environmental conditions demand it, then fundamental rights such as the protection of a safe and sustainable environment would effectively remain unprotected, said lawyer and academic Dr. Kriton Dionysiou, Lecturer in Law at the University of Limassol, speaking on Politis 107.6 FM and the programme “Kosmotheorio” about the constitutionality of the ATA.
In such a case, he explained, the freedom to contract would turn into a “shield of unlawfulness” against the constitutional order, allowing private will to prevail over the public interest.
While acknowledging that, at first glance, legislative intervention in existing private contracts appears to contradict the freedom of contract, Dr. Dionysiou emphasized that the Constitution must be interpreted systematically, not fragmentarily.
Unconditionally accepting the notion that the legislature cannot introduce new, mandatory provisions affecting private contracts would, he noted, lead to institutional paralysis of the Rule of Law in the face of immediate threats.
According to Dr. Dionysiou, the right to a decent standard of living, as a fundamental constitutional value, can serve as a regulatory axis for the universal enforcement of CoLA, even in existing private contracts, particularly when inflation and the cost of living threaten citizens’ ability to enjoy this right in practice. However, he stressed that the conditions for such state intervention remain strict and can only be justified when there is a direct and serious risk to citizens’ dignified livelihood.
Speaking on the same programme, lawyer Argentoula Ioannou, Chairwoman of the Association of Single Parent Families also addressed the issue, referring to Article 26 of the Constitution, which explicitly allows for restrictions even on the right to contract.
She recalled that the Republic of Cyprus, even before the application of EU law, had regulated matters such as shop opening hours to prevent worker exploitation. Similarly, even before EU accession, Cypriot law had already protected the rights of pregnant employees, including the prohibition of dismissal, among others.
Ioannou further noted that Article 26 itself provides for the regulation of collective agreements by law, adding that the provisions of the 1960 Constitution must be viewed through the lens of contemporary social conditions.