VOTERS SPEAK: The Irish Republic vetoed the European Union's proposed treaty in a national referendum June 12. More than 50% of Irish voters opposed the treaty that 19 governments have already approved. Ireland is the only member nation that requires citizens go to the polls on EU matters. The Treaty of Lisbon needs unanimous support from EU member nations before it goes into effect.

Despite Ireland's vote—which jeopardizes the EU's ability to ratify the treaty—the British House of Lords went ahead and held their vote yesterday. Opponents failed to postpone the House vote, and the United Kingdom ratified the treaty Wednesday evening in time for the EU conference on Thursday in Brussels to discuss next steps. Ireland also vetoed a draft of the EU's last treaty, the 2001 Nice Treaty, but changed its vote in a second referendum.

Ireland Votes Against Lisbon Treaty to Preserve Irish Identity

The Treaty of Lisbon provoked a fair amount of controversy in Ireland between the Irish government and its citizens.

The government favors the treaty and signed the draft in Lisbon, Portugal, last December. Citizens voted against the treaty 53.4% to 46.6% last week.

"We are going to reflect on this," said Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Michael Martin. "We are going to analyse the underlying reasons why people not just voted No but the underlying attitudes to the European Union itself because I would accept that there appears to be a certain disconnect between European institutions and its people." (The Irish Times, 6/13/08)

Some Irish worry the treaty would nullify many of their civil rights. Of special concern to them is that the treaty—in addition to being incomprehensible to most voters—threatens...

• Irish identity
• Irish neutrality
• Irish laws on abortion, euthanasia and gay marriage
• Irish tax system

Businessman Declan Ganley, chairman of the treaty opposition group Libertas, said, "This is a very clear and loud voice that has been sent yet again by citizens of Europe rejecting the anti-democratic nature of Brussels governance that has to change." (The Irish Times, 6/13/08)

Can EU Ratify Lisbon Treaty without Ireland?

The EU will have to go back to the negotiating table to discuss its options, including...

• kick Ireland out of the EU, although EU foreign ministers assured Ireland this will not happen
• carry on the with the current Nice Treaty, although the Lisbon Treaty was supposed to deal with problems in the Nice Treaty
• scrap the Lisbon Treaty and start over, writing a shorter, easier to understand treaty that incorporates the goals of the original Treaty of Lisbon
• write more "opt-outs" for Ireland to deal with those issues that make the Irish uncomfortable
• break the EU into two speeds: countries more committed to moving ahead as a union would fall into the "faster" category while those requiring lots of "opt-outs" from treaties would fall into the "slower" category

Copyright © 2009 Informify

Question for Readers:

Do you think Ireland's rejection of the Lisbon Treaty blocks EU progress, or is it an expression of democracy in action?