Does no mean no?

Apparently not, according to the Brussels bureaucrats in reply to the new Irish Question; no does not mean no, but try and try till you succeed! Incredibly, the euro-optimists are going to ask the Irish once again to hold a referendum about the Lisbon Treaty. The polls indicate that there will be even more No's this time than last time. So, as Nicolas Sarkozy cogitates how he is going to pull the Constitutional Debacle off during his presidency one can well imagine why the EU has declared 2009 the Year of Creativity.

The original Irish Question dominated the entire 19th and early twentieth century. It was, simplistically, the question of what was to be done with a fiercely nationalistic island that had been dragged kicking and screaming; by force of arms in fact, into being an integral part of the Great Britain. I think it was Lord Palmerston who quipped that only three people knew the answer to the Irish Question; The Prince Consort who had died, a Swedish professor who was in a lunatic asylum and himself who had forgotten it! That particular question was partially solved with the creation of independent Eire however Northern Ireland remains like a festering wound as a reminder that all is not as hunky-dory as it seems in the land that is always green as it is sometimes very Orange; disturbingly so!

There is now a new twist to the Irish Question; more like an Irish Riddle as governments all over Europe are scratching their pates to engineer if not coax a Yes vote for the repackaged Constitution that is now the Treaty of Lisbon.

There is something here that simply does not add up. Twenty out of the 27 member states have ratified the treaty through their respective Parliaments. Although there have been anti-treaty protests in these countries by and large the majority of Europeans couldn't give a tinker's about whether the treaty is adopted or not. So, one may well ask, what is the matter with the Irish? Is it as Prime Minister Juncker claims; that the treaty must be made more comprehensible to the Irish? A patronising statement, one might comment, but an observation that forces one to stop to think a little.

How many of you have bothered to read the proposed treaty that will bind EU member states and its citizens closer than ever before? Even if you and I do not nod off after a couple of paragraphs; its legal ramifications require the expertise of a constitutional lawyer to decipher. This is why the initial idea of holding referenda in all countries to approve the Constitution a couple of years back failed dismally. Imagine presenting Signor Rossi, Sur Borg, Monsieur DuPont, Herr Schmidt, Senor Mendoza etc, etc along with their respective Sinjuras Senoras, Mesdames, Fraus and Signore etc etc with a document that, conservatively, to 90 per cent of them is sheer gobbledygook. Imagine competing with a vociferous and forceful no lobby that would appeal to nationalistic if not xenophobic sentiment. It stands to reason that the hapless treaty or constitution or whatever it may be in future has as much chance of survival as an ice cube in hell! Probably less! Yet incredibly, the super-bureaucrats are still trying to go ahead with it which indicates that they either live in Cloud Cuckoo Land or have some ace up their sleeves!

The rest of Europe, the people, the men and women in the street I mean, and not the ones in the Ivory Towers of Brussels and Strasbourg have come to regard the Irish as their true representatives in this issue. Lets face it, they are not the only ones; France and Holland had already rejected the Constitution in 2005. The whole issue is going to be hinged once again on the Irish vote which, unless a miracle attributable to St Patrick and St Bridget happens, is going to be an even louder no vote. Miracles apart, it smacks of political suicide.

If the Irish are that adamant on this issue it would be interesting to know why. Has the Treaty been presented as the greatest invention since sliced bread? Not really. The constitution was presented to us with blowing trumpets before it was dumped by France and Holland, but the treaty was sneaked through in heavy disguise. Before the Irish are given the pleasure of throwing it out yet again which definitely should set those overdue alarm bells ringing and make us protest against our government being high handed, let the experts do a bit of honest explaining.

Unless this is done the whole issue will stink like a lampuka being left in the August sun for a week. And there will be no way that the man in the street will ever let his government decide on his behalf once the brave and courageous leprechauns defy the Brussels Leviathan once again.

kzt@onvol.net