Dutch deliver verdict on EU constitution
Dutch voters today delivered their verdict on the proposed EU constitution, and polls indicated they would deepen the crisis over the future of the European Union by following France’s lead and rejecting the document.
Pollsters predicted that nearly 60% would say ”no” – a result that, following France’s resounding ”no” Sunday, would leave Europe’s leaders without a clear back-up plan for the charter, which needs approval from all 25 EU nations to take effect in late 2006.
Nine countries have ratified the constitution, either by referendum or parliamentary vote. France was the first to reject it, and some analysts said the Gallic “no” could embolden Dutch voters who had wanted to avoid the stigma of casting a lone veto.
Voting booths were to close at 9pm (8pm Irish time), with the first results within a half hour and a final tally two hours later. The referendum is non-binding, but Dutch leaders have pledged to accept it as long as the result is clear and turn-out is above 30%.
Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende voted at his local station in Capelle aan den Ijssel, near Rotterdam, quipping to reporters and photographers: “You did note correctly that that was a ’yes’ vote, right?”
He said the adoption of an EU constitution would have economic spin-offs such as job creation – and also bolster security in the 25-nation bloc.
“If we want to continue the fight against terrorism, then we need each other … I’m still optimistic,” Balkenende told reporters.
“The question is: do we want to have progress today or do we choose a standstill, and for me the choice is obvious.”
Supporters of the constitution – including both Balkenende’s conservative government and the main opposition Labour Party – say it would streamline decision-making in the European Union and give Europe more sway in international affairs by creating a single foreign minister to represent the bloc.
“I think it’s a good thing if there’s a strong Europe,” Jaena Padberg, an early “yes” voter, said today outside a busy voting station at a community school in Amsterdam. “It’s good that our rights will be secured.”
But opponents fear the Netherlands, a nation of just 16 million people, will be engulfed by a superstate headquartered in Brussels and dominated by Germany, France and Britain. It could mean the end of liberal Dutch policies such as tolerating marijuana use, prostitution and euthanasia, they say.
Still other voters said they cast “no” ballots to voice their discontent with the Dutch government and register their anger over the rise in prices following the introduction of the euro in 2002. Others fear Turkey will soon be admitted to the union, worsening tensions between Dutch Muslims and the non-Muslim majority.
“In other countries that are going to join, human rights are not as well protected as they are here,” said “no” voter Mika Gruschke.
“Things are going too fast,” said Maarten Pijnenburg, in the “no” camp. “There’s not enough control over the power of European politicians” under the new constitution, he said.
Jort Kelder, editor of the Dutch glossy business and style magazine Quote, said politicians were reaping what they have sown.
“People see that they were bamboozled” by the price rises after the introduction of the euro, he said. A “no” vote “will be a success for democracy but a drama for the constitution,” he said on the TV program “Nova” late last night.
The Dutch outcome was not expected to have the same dramatic result for domestic politicians as France’s vote – a loss that was a public humiliation for French President Jacques Chirac and resulted in Jean-Pierre Raffarin’s resignation as prime minister. A Dutch “no” will not mean any political resignations, Balkenende has said.
Even if the Dutch say “no”, EU leaders meeting in Brussels in mid-June are unlikely to pronounce the treaty dead, said Aurore Wanlin, an analyst with the London-based Centre for European Reform.
But “when two member founding states vote no, it looks like a big crisis".
