Posted on 05/29/2005 1:41:55 PM PDT by Libloather
French Reject EU Constitution, Gov't Says
By JOHN LEICESTER, Associated Press Writer
5 minutes ago
PARIS - French voters rejected the European Union's first constitution Sunday, early government results showed — a stinging repudiation of the ambitious, decades-long effort to further unite the continent.
With about 83 percent of the votes counted, the referendum was rejected by 57.26 percent of voters, the Interior Ministry said. The treaty was supported by 42.74 percent, the ministry said.
All 25 EU members must ratify the text for it to take effect — and nine already have done so. The Dutch vote Wednesday, with polls showing opposition to the constitution running at about 60 percent.
"There is no more constitution," leading opponent Philippe de Villiers said. "It is necessary to reconstruct Europe on other foundations that don't currently exist."
De Villiers called on Chirac to submit his resignation — something the French leader had said he would refuse to do — and called for parliament to be dissolved.
"Tonight we face a major political crisis," he said.
EU officials had said that even if France rejected the treaty, efforts to ratify it in other countries would proceed, and they have been vague on whether the treaty might be somehow renegotiated or submitted to a repeat vote.
Backers said the constitution, which European leaders signed in October, would streamline EU operations and decision-making, and make the bloc more accessible to its 450 million citizens. The text would give the EU a president and foreign minister so it could speak with one voice in world affairs.
Opponents feared it would strip nations of sovereignty and trigger an influx of cheap labor just as European powers such as France and Germany struggle to contain double-digit unemployment.
Left-wing opponents argued that the treaty would not protect France's cherished social protections and public services, and would open the door to unfettered capitalism and trample on workers' rights.
Some said the treaty did not go far enough toward making the European Union more democratic, including by not giving enough powers to the European Parliament.
While I say that the Spanish and Poles have too much power compared to their actual weight according to the treaty of Nice, Europe is off the track for many people. The politicians make decisions without the consent of the nations, and it´s good that the people stop that ridiculous game. We don´t want to lose sovereignty, but we want a united Europe in diversity. Take some more time, Europe. Let the people get ready for more trust, and reduce bureaucracy - that´s my advise to Brussels.
A German, who was not given the right to vote for or against this "constitution"
On this flight, more than 90 of my fellow countrymen died. I don´t find this appropriate.
Sorry - didn't know.
It's all Bush's faaaaaaault!, cry Le Liberals American.
Mon dieu! What happened to the Big Happy One World Order?
It's all Bush's faaaaaaault!, cry Le Liberals American.
Mon dieu! What happened to the Big Happy One World Order?
_________________________________________________________
Karle leRove must have been on levacatione!
He is not losing his power, but Schröder will. Merkel grew up and lived in the communist GDR. I´m hopeful that she will understand the needs of the smaller East European countries better than Schröder did, who just thought of his axis Paris-Berlin-Moscow. Germany under Kohl had a role as a mediator between the big and small states in Europe and as a mediator between the US/UK on the one hand, and France on the other. We need to get back to this, it served our interests as biggest central European state at best.
American sense of humor. They don't get that, either. :)
The idea for the EU constituion came from the French and German governments, and the 108-person committee was headed by the former French president, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing !
So nine pansy EU contries already affirmed it, but the French labor unions appear to have defeated it in France. When all else fails, Europe can depend on the eternal self-interest instinct of the French. :)
What did you expect? That the Concorde managed an emergency landing with 250 knots speed and 200 yards of runaway left?
No problem, though inappropriate.
Michael
PARIS (AFP) - French voters massively rejected the EU's first ever constitution, dealing a rude slap in the face to their governing elite and a potentially fatal setback to the continent's ambitious plans for deeper political union.
In a national referendum, they voted by about 55 percent to 45 to turn down the constitution, according to three exit counts released as polls closed at 10 p.m. (0800 GMT).
The "no" win had been predicted, but the huge margin of the victory deepened a sense of crisis across the EU.
Turn-out was also very high, at between 70 and 8O percent, reflecting the intensity of the national debate.
"This is an ordeal, a real disappointment," said Foreign Minister Michel Barnier, while Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie called it "a defeat for France and a defeat for Europe."
Ignoring pleas from President Jacques Chirac that rejection would make France the "black sheep" of the 25-member bloc, the public was instead swayed by fears that the treaty would destroy the country's welfare system, leach new powers to Brussels and shift jobs to low-cost economies of eastern Europe.
The result opened a period of deep uncertainty inside the EU because the constitution needs to be ratified by all members.
By creating the posts of EU president and foreign minister and streamlining the complex process of decision-making, the treaty's 448 articles are intended to build European muscle at a time of intensifying global competition.
So far nine countries have approved the constitution and the rest aim to continue the procedure up to a deadline of October 2006, but it is unclear how the text can survive now that it has been nixed in one of the EU's six founder members and half of the key Franco-German axis.
European leaders fear the French "no" could have a domino effect in other countries planning to hold referendums -- first of all the Netherlands which has a non-binding national vote on Wednesday. Britain has hinted it might scrap a planned referendum if France voted down the constitution.
Sunday's result was a crushing blow to Chirac, who put his authority on the line with three televised appeals for a "yes" vote -- warning that rejection would marginalise France's voice in Europe and do nothing to safeguard its generous social model.
The 72-year-old president -- who marked ten years in office earlier this month -- was expected to ignore calls for his resignation, instead ordering a prompt reshuffle of his government with the dismissal of Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin.
Hotly-tipped to replace him is Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin, 51, who made his name as the suave spokesman for French opposition to the US war in Iraq.
Other names mentioned are Alliot-Marie and Chirac's arch-rival Nicolas Sarkozy, head of the ruling UMP party.
The rejection marked further evidence of the chronic rift separating the French public from the Paris-based political establishment, nearly all of which -- on left and right -- lined up in support of the constitution.
Chirac's Union for a Popular Movement was joined by the centrist Union for French Democracy (UDF) and the opposition Socialists and Greens in calling for a "yes" vote -- meaning that parties holding 96 percent of seats in the National Assembly were disavowed by the public Sunday.
The "no" vote was urged by a disparate array of forces, including the far-right of Jean-Marie Le Pen, nationalist Eurosceptics, Communists and Trotskyists, dissident Socialists under former prime minister Laurent Fabius, and anti-globalisation groups.
Two months of campaigning triggered one of the most passionate political debates of recent years, with both sides sensing that the referendum was a moment to define France's future course. Families and friends were polarised as the country split down the middle between pros and antis.
While supporters argued that the constitution was a necessary next step towards France's destiny as the leader of a united Europe, rejectionists said it was a charter for unbridled capitalism and would entrench US-style "liberal" economics at the heart of the EU.
Many ordinary voters caught the message that the constitution would open up France to cheap competition from eastern Europe and lead to "dumping" as norms of social protection are dragged downwards.
Some saw a "no" vote as a way of blocking Turkish entry to the EU, even though the issue is not in the text.
Despite Chirac's urging in a televised appeal on Thursday "not to answer the wrong question," it is also clear that many voters used the referendum to punish his government -- which they blame for 10.2 percent unemployment, falling real wages and the crisis of confidence in the country's future.
What a great humor. I wonder if you laughed if I were posting "funny" WTC photos dated of 9-11-01 or Pearl Harbour of 1941?? It´s only "funny" when you don´t think of the people behind.
Made ya look!
Apparently they did it for irrational reasons having little to do with the EU or the proposed constitution.
I guess it doesn't matter whether you do the right thing for the wrong reasons or the wrong thing for the right reasons.
It matters what you do, at least with the important things.
Good for the French. Vive la France!
Don't forget---Chirac said last week that if the percentage of loss was small, they would have a do-over vote....
So far, the Spaniards and Italians have accepted the EU Constitution, and the French have rejected it. Have the Germans or their Parliament voted on it, yet?
And it will be interesting to compare the French vote ratio with that of the British, unless the British chicken out on having the vote and exposing that ratio to American scutiny.
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