News on the E.U. Constitution

[Theobald]

France stung by No camp's gains

The French government has warned of "humiliation" for the nation if, as polls suggest, voters reject the EU constitution in a referendum on 29 May.


"If we want a submissive, dominated France, a No vote will pave the way for that," Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin told French radio.

Two recent French opinion polls suggest that the No camp will triumph. EU Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso has said the French government should explain the constitution to voters.



Duty to explain

He said people were confused about the constitution and the EU directive on services, a proposal to liberalise services across the EU which has aroused concern particularly in France and Germany. "I hope French politicians can contribute to clearing up this misunderstanding," Mr Barroso said on Monday.

"What the French are going to vote on in this referendum is not the directive on services... It is up to French politicians to explain this."


Mr de Villepin warned that if the No camp won the referendum, France would be "in a corner, reduced to a minor role... It will be a humiliated France".

A No vote would result in globalisation "without any constraints," he said, and Europe would then become "the big market that the Anglo-Saxons dream about, a Europe under US influence, a Europe under Chinese influence". The constitution project - a wide-ranging blueprint to streamline the enlarged EU's institutions - was spearheaded by former French President Valery Giscard d'Estaing.

Call for action


A French government spokesman warned on Tuesday that "we have to get moving, because we will not get very far by just watching opinion polls that show the No vote effectively rising".

"To get over the hurdle of the No supporters we have to go out onto their territory, debate with them, tackle their arguments and refute them," said spokesman Jean-Francois Cope, quoted by Reuters news agency. The No campaigners also say the new constitution will pave the way for Turkish accession to full EU membership - something most French people strongly oppose.

Source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4372343.stm

[Theobald]

Le Pen’s Last Laugh?

Notorious politician Jean-Marie Le Pen is confident that France will vote against the EU Constitution—which he sees as a threat to French sovereignty



NEWSWEEK: Recently, poll after poll has put the anti-constitution vote ahead in France. And you've said that a "no" vote will probably win.

Jean-Marie Le Pen: The government will use every means possible and imaginable [for a "yes" win]. Now, in confidence, the prime minister tells us that … it’s a French Europe that we’re trying to build—a sort of French colony. It's like an old joke during the war: “Come quick! Come quick! I took 50 prisoners, but they won’t let me go!” [Laughs.] Well it’s exactly that, isn’t it? France took 24 prisoners, but they won’t let it go!
In Europe now, we represent no more than a chip; there are 24 other [countries] and there will be 27, 30, umpteen, we don’t know. Since our leaders have told us the only condition for entry into Europe is to respect human rights, well, in that case, we could maybe let in Australia, Japan, some countries like that. There’s a French fable called “The Frog Who Wanted to Make Herself as Big as the Cow.” She puffs and puffs herself up and, at a certain point, she explodes—even before getting very big.

And who’s the cow?
Well, the cow is the great powers, like the United States.

Where does the United States come into play here?
Oh, the United States pushes hard for the constitution of a Europe that would be subordinate to it. Europe already is, for that matter!

The French "no" camp is pretty eclectic. Will you join forces with other opponents of the constitution in your "no" campaign?
Of course not. Why? Everyone exerts their influence in their own sphere. I’m trying to convince people through arguments that can touch all sorts of people, and not just people in my strict political obedience.

French President Jacques Chirac appears to be keeping his distance from the constitutional debate, ostensibly to avoid turning the referendum into a plebiscite about him. You aren't very popular with some parts of the French population. Do you feel any need to keep your distance, too, to avoid personifying the "no" vote?
I’m not ashamed to be what I am. Democracy has it that people have to take me as I am; that’s how it is. I feel I represent a very strong current, a national current, attached to notions of nation, of homeland, that I think represents the majority of the French people. Since I don’t believe that Jacques Chirac is respected, I think that if he declares himself openly and firmly in favor of the constitution, it will be what is called in bullfighting "the strike of descabello"—when the bull is in agony and the matador strikes its nape, killing it instantly. So, I’m waiting for Jacques Chirac to finish off a faltering “yes” vote by openly supporting it.

What happens if the “no” wins, then, for Chirac?
Ah, I don’t know! That’s the great uncertainty of the sport. Maybe he’ll put a bullet in his head. [Laughs.]

You’ve said that voting “yes” would be a shot in the head for France. What are the big immediate worries, if the "yes" side wins?
To me, voting for the constitution is high treason. Deciding that a group of people, whatever its motivation ... should take up the task of making the French nation disappear from the history of the world—I find that monstrous.

[Nerthus]

German MPs back EU constitution

James Sturcke and agencies
Thursday May 12, 2005

Germany's politicians overwhelmingly approved the European constitution today, after a debate in which the country's leaders pushed the message that only closer ties can prevent a repeat of the tragedies of the 20th century.

Full story

[Nerthus]

Austria ratifies EU constitution

Austria's Chancellor Wolfgang Schuesser backed the constitution

Austria has become the latest member of the European Union to ratify the text of the European constitution.

Full article

[Nerthus]

EU Constitution Takes Final German Hurdle

Germany's upper house, the Bundesrat, has approved the treaty

A proposed constitution for the European Union has received the final approval in Germany after representatives from the 16 states voted in favor of the document on Friday.

Full article

[Nerthus]

Government may adopt EU constitution without vote

JAMES KIRKUP
POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT

Key points
• Straw reluctant to agree rejected document should be killed off
• Anger over hints that elements of treaty might still be implemented
• Luxembourg will debate union's future budget at Brussels summit next week

Key quote
"It is not for any one country to make a decision about the future of Europe" - Jack Straw

Story in full PARTS of the European Union constitution could still be implemented, even though there will be no British referendum on the treaty, the government conceded yesterday.

Full article

[Menydh]

Rajoy: "We can live without the European constitution"

The Spain Herald
June 7, 2005

PP president Mariano Rajoy on Monday called for "lowering the temperature" of the debate over the European constitutional treaty now that France and Holland have declined to ratify it and Great Britain has decided to delay its referendum. Rajoy believes it is time to "explain to the citizens that we can live without the treaty," though the PP had supported a Yes vote in the Spanish referendum in February. According to Rajoy's statements at a meeting of the PP's executive committee, it is time to admit to the Spanish people what reality is and explain that there are some, like Jacques Chirac and Gerhard Schröder, in favor of continuing ahead with the process of ratifying the treaty, while others favor stopping the process. In this situation, he said, the PP should transmit "reality" to public opinion, that the constitution "is almost mortally wounded, but this does not mean there will be a legal or governmental vacuum." Rajoy emphasized that Spain must not allow the constitution to be passed piece by piece, so that only those articles related to the apportionment of power and the voting system go into effect. He pointed out that Zapatero's "following" of Schröder and Chirac has done no good because, when there are important summit meetings like yesterday's, "they don't call him." "Now Spain has to regain its position in Europe, contribute ideas, and begin a process of repairing our diplomatic relations with the United Kingdom and the United States," he said. In reference to the debate over EU subsidies, Rajoy warned prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero that he must "accept his responsibility, because there are six trillion old pesetas in play, capital for improving infrastructure. We all hope you will live up to your responsibility." Rajoy pointed out that a failure in negotiations might leave the regions of Galicia and Castilla La Mancha without EU subsidies.


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[Menydh]

What an idiot. He supported the 'yes' vote, despite being the opposite thinking of his voters, who either voted 'no' or abstained (abstention was around 60%).

This is the alternative to Socialism in Spain, so-called Atlantism or Angloamericanism. Traitors.

[Breogan]

Obviously, just Spaniards like us know Rajoy.
PP=PSOE, of course. They are just two different jacobine gangs whose only mission is sucking blood from the Spanish people, like parasites. They and their bussiness fellows.

The only thing they want is standing in any Goverment (autonomic, central,...) and preserving their economical interests, just look at Fraga and the Galician elections. Just pathetic.

[Menydh]

EU leaders agree to abandon deadline on constitution

The Irish Times
June 17, 2005

The Government is set to postpone indefinitely Ireland's referendum on the EU Constitution after the European Summit decided in Brussels last night that the ratification process should be put on hold.

European Union leaders agreed to abandon the deadline of November 2006 for ratifying the constitution but said it was up to each member-state to decide when to proceed with ratification.

Luxembourg's prime minister, Jean-Claude Juncker, whose country holds the EU Presidency, said that countries planning to hold referendums would need more time to persuade voters of the constitution's virtues. He said the EU needed a period of "reflection, explanation and debate".

Mr Juncker said that EU leaders agreed that those countries that had not yet ratified the constitution.would be unlikely to do so by mid-2007, and it was now up to each individual member state to decide how to proceed while a "period of reflection" was launched.

The summit's failure to impose a mandatory freeze on ratification means that the Government must decide when Ireland should hold a referendum.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern said that the constitution remained the best choice for Europe and for Ireland but that the pause should be of "a sufficient period in order to try and convince some sceptical people".

Most leaders wanted the suspension of the ratification process to apply to all member-states, although Malta, which has started ratification, argued that each country should decide for itself how to proceed.

Mr Ahern said that the Taoiseach had argued that EU leaders should describe the suspension of ratification efforts as a "pause for engagement" rather than a "pause for reflection" as it has been described in advance of the summit.

"The Taoiseach led the charge arguing that it should be a period of engagement, a period of selling what we all believe in as a project, and that was picked up by a lot of people," he said.

The Taoiseach referred back to Ireland's "No" vote in the first referendum on the Nice Treaty. According to Dermot Ahern he told them "how we tried to engage with civil society, particularly through the Forum for Europe" and how this had led to a Yes vote in the second referendum.

Ireland, he said, had had a period of engagement with the people, rather than one of reflection, and this was how the rest of Europe should respond to the anti-Treaty sentiment in many EU member states.

He said it had been broadly accepted among the 25 EU heads of state and government that because of the No votes "there is uncertainty in other countries, including our own. To rush into a referendum [ in] the atmosphere of indecision would be injudicious", he said.

Mr Juncker said that ratification of the constitution would proceed and that there was no Plan B but a "Plan D for dialogue and democracy".

EU leaders played down hopes of an agreement today on the EU's next seven-year budget plan, amid disagreements over the future of Britain's rebate, which returns to London two-thirds of its contribution to the EU budget.

Luxembourg's EU Presidency has proposed a freeze to Britain's rebate at its current level of about €4.6 billion for the next seven years, with any further change contingent on a reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Under the presidency proposal, CAP spending would be fixed until 2013 but €6 billion of the cost of subsidising farmers in Romania and Bulgaria would have to come out of the budget earmarked for the current 25 member-states.

The Government wants the €6 billion for Romania and Bulgaria to come out of other budget funds but officials accept that Ireland will face a drastic cut in regional funds in the next budget period. Government sources predict that Ireland will become a net contributor to the EU budget towards the end of the decade.

The French president, Jacques Chirac, called for a special summit to discuss issues facing Europe, including the admission of new member-states. The EU is due to start accession talks with Turkey later this year and Romania and Bulgaria are due to join in 2007.



[source]

[Menydh]

EU referendum delayed for a year

The Copenhagen Post
June 17, 2005

Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen has postponed the national referendum on the EU constitutional treaty for at least a year

Denmark's planned national referendum on the European Union's constitutional treaty was called off for at least one year on Thursday, after the 25 EU member states agreed on a pause to ponder the treaty's massive rejections in France and Holland.

'Based on that background, we agree to postpone the Danish referendum,' announced Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen Thursday evening at the EU summit, currently being held in Brussels. 'There's no ground to ask Danes to participate in a referendum. We accept the consequences of that and have postponed.'

The decision did not come as a surprise to the nation, but removed the last hint of doubt whether the government would call off the planned referendum on 27 September.

The chief reason for the postponement was the leaders' inability to come to a decision over the future of the draft constitutional treaty, hard hit by French and Dutch 'no' votes.

EU leaders will meet again in one year after their period of reflection.

Daily newspaper Politiken reported that Rasmussen informed other Danish political parties supporting the treaty of his decision, before making a public announcement. Support for the move was unanimous.

'We asked for clarity, but we haven't gotten it. It would have been unfair to send an unclear treaty to a vote,' said opposition Social Democratic chairman Helle Thorning-Schmidt, whose prognosis for the constitution was grim. 'I think it looks pretty bad. The patient isn't doing so well.'

The nation's third-largest party, the EU-sceptic Danish People's Party, which typically supplies the minority government its majority, was satisfied with the postponement.

'I'm so happy that the idea of a constitution for Europe has been dropped,' said People's Party EU spokesman Morten Messerschmidt. 'That's not what Europeans want, and we should be happy that politicians for once listen to their constituencies.'

Rasmussen would not say whether or when he thought the treaty would be put to the vote in Denmark, but said he thought that one-year pause to think the European project over would be a good idea.

'An active pause to reflect, which should be used for a broad debate in every member country,' he said.

After the summit, EU leaders did not seem to know whether the postponement would prevent new countries, such as Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey, to joint the union in coming years.


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[Menydh]

Finland to postpone ratification of EU draft constitutional treaty

NewsRoom Finland
June 17, 2005

Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (centre) told the Finnish News Agency (STT) in Brussels that the Finnish government was about to postpone its proposal to Parliament to ratify the EU's beleaguered draft constitutional treaty.

"Probably only a government report will be issued on the matter to lay the foundations for a thorough debate on the constitution," Mr Vanhanen said late on Thursday night.

The conclusion to be drawn from the first day of the European Council meeting is clear in the prime minister's mind: the timeframe - with a deadline on 1 November 2006 - earlier fixed for ratification is not sufficient.

"None of the EU leaders has questioned the need for a constitution. But it also became clear that further 'no' decisions are not needed," Mr Vanhanen said, referring to the French and Dutch referenda.

Said President Tarja Halonen, also attending the summit, "The overall view was that what we now need is time and discussion in the member states on how we can move the constitution forward in the future."

She added that EU heads of state and government on Thursday dedicated much time to pondering how matters had panned out as they had.

The president said most EU leaders talked about people reacting to everyday reality, employment and economic stability.

/STT/

© Copyright STT 2005


[source]

[Menydh]

EU Constitution Gets Time for Reflection

Deutsche Welle
June 17, 2005

Late Thursday, EU leaders extended a deadline for ratifying the European Constitution. While it does little to solve the current crisis, many hope the reprieve will help the bloc re-channel its energies for the future.


Although the decision to push back the deadline for ratification of the European Constitution does little to mend the crisis that arose in the bloc after France and the Netherlands voted against it in national referenda, many in Brussels hope the one-year delay will give the 25 member states more time to explain the document and the EU's goals to their citizens.

The process of ratifying the document in all current member states was slated to be completed by Nov. 1, 2006. So far only a handful of countries have actually ratified it, either through referenda or parliament votes. In May and June, voters in France and the Netherlands voted against the constitution, whereas Britain opted to postpone a referendum, knowing it would most certainly fail. In Germany, the constitution was approved by both houses of parliament, but President Horst Köhler announced Wednesday that he would halt ratification pending a court appeal.

In the days and weeks running up to the mid-year summit in Brussels, European leaders and officials in Brussels spent a good deal of diplomatic effort worrying about the future of Europe's first constitution, which needs to be ratified by all 25 members before it can go into force. Many had recommended postponing the process, while others such as German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and French President Jacques Chirac lobbied hard to stick to the course and allow all countries to have their say.

Sigh of relief

Then at around midnight Thursday after a day of debate, a sigh of relief went out when Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean Claude Juncker (photo, with Tony Blair) told reporters that the process of ratifying the document was now on hold.

"We believe that the constitutional treaty has the answers to many questions that Europeans are asking, so we believe the ratification process must continue. There will not be a better treaty. The date of Nov. 1, 2006 to conclude the ratification process is no longer valid. That means giving ourselves more time," said Junker, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency.

According to diplomats in Brussels, all 25 member states endorsed the decision to suspend the ratification process until at least next year to allow for a "period of reflection" in which they will discuss the future direction of Europe, including enlarging the bloc.

"We are going to need a period of reflection, not only in the Netherlands but in other countries," Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said. "We have to find answers to questions about national sovereignty and about financial matters" of the EU, which were two issues that caused the Dutch to vote against the constitution in a referendum earlier this month, he added.

More dialogue with people

According to EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media Viviane Reding (photo), postponing the ratification process offers a good opportunity for member states to return to their people and explain the content of the constitution. In an interview with DW-WORLD.DE, Reding said the constitution is still alive, but in the referenda it became clear that "people were not informed about the content of the constitution and very often voted on the problems they have with Europe or the problems they have with their governments."

"It will be very worthwhile to have a second look at this constitution and to present it to the public in a better way," she said, adding that conveying information is key to the charter's success and the future of Europe.

"I was always shocked to see how little the citizens of the Europe of 15 knew about the 10 newcomers. It is not enough to have a big welcoming party, you have to explain the advantages and the dangers to the people, to explain what is being done in order to secure a smooth transition," she said.

"Many of our people have not understood the value and the advantages of enlargement and they are afraid of the pitfalls. And all this is happening because nobody has ever taken the responsibility of explaining the enlargement to the citizens of the 15 countries," Reding explained.

EU's future course

The EU has sought to reassure aspiring candidates that its door remains open after France warned that the 25-member bloc's constitutional crisis raises questions about its plans to expand.

French President Chirac said he had doubts about the future expansion plans to allow Bulgaria, Romania and possibly Croatia and Turkey to enter the bloc. He called for a special summit to discuss the future direction of the union.

"Can the union in this new situation really expand without having the proper institutions for it?" he asked the fellow leaders in a prepared text. "I think we need to discuss these important questions together."

Despite such concerns, EU leaders pledged to honor their commitments to countries in line to join the bloc, in draft conclusions from their summit obtained by AFP on Friday.

In the text, the leaders welcomed the signature of an accession treaty on April 25, which they said marks an important new step toward Bulgaria and Romania's membership of the EU in 2007.


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