The Role of the Constitutional Judge in Safeguarding Public Rights and Freedoms

Objectives: This study aims to shed light on the role played by the constitutional judge in protecting the rights and freedoms of individuals, highlighting the aspects of oversight over the constitutionality of laws. It begins by examining comparative constitutional systems, followed by an exploration of the Algerian experience to understand the various aspects of this oversight, particularly after the adoption of the constitutional amendment in 2020, which established the Constitutional Court instead of the Constitutional Council that Algeria had known since 1989. Methodology: The study adopts a range of scientific research methods, starting with the analytical approach, which involves analyzing constitutional and legal texts governing the work of the Constitutional Court. Additionally, a comparative approach is employed, comparing the mechanisms of constitutional oversight in different countries, as well as comparing the new powers of the constitutional judge in the newly established Constitutional Court according to the 2020 constitutional amendment with the provisions related to the work of the court, as it was previously for the Constitutional Council. Results: We concluded that oversight over the constitutionality of laws, as a guarantee for public freedoms, varies between political and judicial oversight, and it has been adopted in most comparative constitutional systems, including the Algerian system, which introduced the Constitutional Court as a constitutional institution that protects individual freedoms by ensuring the respect of laws and regulations for the constitution and avoiding any violation of it through issuing decisions regarding their conformity with the constitution. Despite the recent establishment of this constitutional institution, it has proven to be effective and efficient in addressing any legal provision that may violate the constitution and infringe upon the rights and freedoms of individuals. Conclusion: Constitutional oversight is considered one of the most important guarantees for safeguarding the rights and public freedoms of individuals. Given the supreme position of the constitution, legal provisions should not contradict its broad meaning. Algeria, starting from the issuance of the 2016 constitution, recognized the concept of unconstitutionality, allowing any litigant before ordinary or administrative judicial bodies to claim that a legislative or regulatory judgment applied to the dispute violates their rights and freedoms guaranteed by the constitution. After the constitutional amendment of 2020, the Constitutional Court became an independent institution entrusted with ensuring respect for the constitution with expanded powers. Within the framework of the powers of the constitutional judge, in addition to what has been mentioned, it is worth noting that the Constitutional Court, as a guarantee for rights and freedoms, issues an opinion when the President of the Republic submits a constitutional amendment, provided that it does not affect the rights and freedoms of individuals.