"What We Want is More Democracy" Voters in the Netherlands resoundingly vote "no" by Ronda Hauben [EMAIL PROTECTED]
On Wednesday, Dutch citizens rejected the EU constitution by a vote of 61.6% "no" votes to 38.4% "yes" votes. Those campaigning for the "no" vote were jubilant at the size of the "no" majority, as well as at the large turnout of voters. The percentage of the population that went to the polls, 62.8%, was significantly higher than usual for national or local elections. Comments from voters about why they voted .no. stressed their sentiment that the treaty wasn.t democratic enough, and that it didn.t give the citizens of the EU enough influence in the decision making process. A number of voters were concerned that the reasons for their .no. votes not be misinterpreted. They explained that they were not voting against their national or local politicians or toward a particular policy of the EU toward bringing in new nations. Their chief complaint was that the EU should be "much more democratic," as an election researcher Maurice de Hond reported. (1) Among the specific reasons given for their .no. vote was that the constitution only serves the interests of the multinationals or of liberalization; that the constitution as drafted is not democratic since the European Parliament cannot introduce legislation but has to rely on the unelected commission for proposals; that European politicians are too detached from the citizens of Europe. The "no" votes reflect dissatisfaction with the constitution and the way it was drafted. They also reflect a hope that it is possible to send a message to EU officials that both a change in the constitution, and in the process by which it is drafted, is required. "There is simply insufficient democracy in the EU for it to survive," warns Cliff from the UK, whose email comment is posted on the BBC web site. "The combined effect of the French and Dutch vote may allow this to be corrected," he continues, "Let.s hope so." (2) Other EU citizens, however, are less optimistic. They believe that the "no" voters will be ignored and that politicians will just find a way to "change the rules" and approve the rejected constitution. "If every single country voted 'no'," writes Cam Berwick in an email also on the BBC website, "they would still find a way to get it through." First the French, and then the Dutch citizens who voted "no" on the referendum, believe that both a more democratic constitution, and a more democratic process, are needed to continue the project of European construction. The struggle between the citizens of Europe and the politicians who are promoting the interests of multinational corporations and liberalization has come into the public arena. It is being expressed in many different ways, including in the theme song of the Dutch "no" campaign, the "No Constitution Rap", the gist of which is, "If you want a social Europe, and a Europe for the people, not for business and money, then say "No" to the constitution." (3) The future of European construction will be forged by the progress of this struggle. Notes: (1)http://www.euobserver.com/?sid=9&aid=19220 (2)http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/4597413.stm (3) Varied Reasons behind Dutch No http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4601731.stm ----- Netizens News http://www.ais.org/~jrh/netizens.news # distributed via <nettime>: no commercial use without permission # <nettime> is a moderated mailing list for net criticism, # collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets # more info: [EMAIL PROTECTED] and "info nettime-l" in the msg body # archive: http://www.nettime.org contact: nettime@bbs.thing.net