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Irish Government Considering Forcing Second Lisbon Vote in Spring

By Hilary White

DUBLIN, June 23, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - French and German officials of the European Union are pressuring Ireland to have another vote on the Lisbon Treaty after the country's citizenry resoundingly rejected the Treaty several weeks ago in the only referendum held on the document in Europe. The Irish government is reportedly considering a second vote on Lisbon for next spring, according to the Daily Telegraph.

One senior Irish official is quoted by the Telegraph saying, "A Yes vote can be achieved if the Irish people are offered guarantees on issues like defence and taxation. The no campaign will be picked off one by one. Everyone has a price." Irish leaders were said to have been "stunned" by the rejection of the Treaty that was supported by all the major political parties.

"It is not written down in the summit conclusions but everyone agreed that we need to get out of this before next year's European elections," French President Nicolas Sarkozy said last week. Sarkozy was referring to the June 2009 European election campaign for the Brussels parliament.

Sarkozy was more forthcoming about his feelings in the Times, who quoted him on June 20, referring to Ireland's generous EU subsidies, saying, "They [the Irish] are bloody fools. They have been stuffing their faces at Europe's expense for years and now they dump us in the s***."

Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, was more circumspect, but the message was essentially the same, when he told the BBC, "We shall effectively look for ways to ensure it comes into force. Irrespective of the results of the referendum in Ireland, I think that we can deliver an optimistic message."

"Europe will find a way of implementing this treaty."

The people of Ireland voted on June 12 to reject the ratification of the European Union's Lisbon Treaty, a document created to replace the EU Constitution that was rejected in 2005 by Dutch and French voters. Since the vote, national leaders, officials and diplomats of the EU have reportedly been working on ways legally to ignore the Irish thumbs-down and carry on with the process. It was reported that plans were now underway for a possible "Accession Treaty" by 2010 that would be presented in such a way that it would not be subject to Ireland's legal requirement for a plebiscite.

Pro-democracy advocates warned that the Treaty would hand over even more powers to Brussels and create a rival EU citizenship that would threaten the autonomy of the nation and its constitution. This is especially pertinent for the pro-life cause, since Ireland has a clause in its constitution under which the rights of the unborn are protected up to birth.  Should Ireland sign on to the Lisbon Treat, it is likely that the EU would pressure Ireland into rescinding its protections for the unborn.

Poll results in Ireland showed that the reasons for rejecting were largely fears over Ireland's constitutional autonomy - to "keep Ireland's power and identity" and "to safeguard Ireland's neutrality".

Separate polling suggests that 75 per cent of citizens across the EU and a majority in all 27 member states, want a referendum on any treaty that transfers further powers to the EU. According to the polls, majorities would vote "no" to such a treaty in 16 EU countries, including Germany.

Many long time observers of the ways and wiles of the European Union, however, predicted that a rejection by the Irish would be far from the end of the Lisbon Treaty. As wit and commentator Gerald Warner wrote for his Daily Telegraph weblog, "We have been here before."

In 2001 the Irish electorate rejected a similar proposal, the Treaty of Nice, by 54 percent to 46 percent. A second referendum was quickly held and provided the desired outcome, a yes to Nice by 63 percent to 37 percent.

"Silly people!" Warner writes, "It was the wrong answer. So the following year, like a recalcitrant schoolboy being dragged by the ear back to his desk to do his unsatisfactory homework over again, the Irish electorate was made to repeat the exercise." 

"In fact the Eurofascists will press on regardless, despite rejection now by France, the Netherlands and Ireland. The Protocols of the Elders of Brussels will be enforced."
 
Despite machinations in Brussels to ignore their vote, the Irish rejection of Lisbon has given new impetus to the calls in the UK for a referendum, promised by all parties, including Labour, at the last general election. Following the no vote, a petition on the Downing Street website, urging Gordon Brown to respect the Irish decision and stop ratification of the Lisbon Treaty in the UK, received over 26,000 signatures in under six days, making it the fastest growing online petition.

Gordon Brown, who started losing ground with British voters when he adamantly refused to allow a referendum, is said to be fighting for his political life, with his own party losing confidence in his leadership.

Eurocrats Refuse to Take "No" for an Answer on Lisbon Treaty
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/jun/08061709.html

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