This Friday, Ireland will be holding a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. Ireland is the only country to subject its decision on the treaty to a popular vote. All the other countries, including Malta, left the decision to their national Parliaments. Probably, they feared a repeat of the rejection of the EU Constitution by the French and Dutch electorate in 2005.
The EU's ways of dealing with democracy seem to be infinite. Why should the Irish be voting twice for the same thing within 16 months when other EU citizens were not even given the opportunity to vote? The irony is that Ireland has been consistently projected as a big EU success. The Celtic tiger owed much of its rise to the extensive funds it got from the EU. Ireland was the model to follow, we were told in the run-up to EU membership. And when the EU needed Ireland most it was handed a big no. Brussels felt cheated and let down.
The EU's decision to press for a second verdict in such a relatively short time has led to accusations that it does not take no for an answer. Whenever the people vote against its proposed way, the EU is quick to come up with all sorts of justifications: the outcomes were skewed by domestic issues or by the electorate not being properly informed. It is about time the EU came down from its throne and seeks to connect with the people. This gap is evidenced by the fact that although, with the exception of Sinn Fein, all the mainstream Irish parties are backing the yes vote, the result is still expected to be quite close. The Irish electorate on this issue is not trusting its own political leaders.
It is a bit rich on the part of the EU to justify the Lisbon Treaty on grounds that it will help promote democracy. It is promising that the European Parliament will be given increased powers, that national ones will be expected to increase their input in the drafting of European laws. EU citizens will be empowered to push new policies provided they secure the signature of one million people.
These measures may really help to reduce the democratic deficit but the EU should start by dropping its high-handedness and stop using people purely to push through its own agenda.
Does the EU really care about what the people think about the Lisbon Treaty? When the proposed Constitution was rejected, the EU's answer was to come up with a rehashed version and a new label. In substance, a lot of things remained the same. People are bothered by these antics on the part of the EU and the answer of a majority of citizens is to keep away from the polling booths.
This time round, the Irish will probably give a yes verdict. Maybe the country has really changed its mind. Maybe now they feel comfortable that abortion will not be forced on them, that their neutrality status will not be weakened and that they will be able to keep their present taxation system. Maybe the workers are certain that they will not lose any rights. For sure, the Irish are pleased that they will still have a commissioner chosen from among them. So is this what it takes to justify voting for the Lisbon Treaty?
Or perhaps a yes vote will simply reflect the mess the economy is in? Over the last year, the Irish banking system was on the verge of bankruptcy and had to be bailed out at a cost of €90 billion. Unemployment levels have doubled while property prices have practically caved in. The Irish spirit has been shaken and they will be voting primarily out of fear not conviction.
Should the no vote win, it will be a setback but not the end of the EU. Neither will it necessarily lead to a "two-speed" Europe. The EU will probably, for the time being, have to settle for reforms on a piece-meal basis. The argument that is being made here is not whether the EU desperately requires some sort of revised charter that would enable it to assert itself on the global scene and to enhance its efficiency and effectiveness through institutional reorganisation. What we are questioning is the way the EU goes about imposing its agenda on us, its citizens.
The EU needs the Lisbon Treaty but it equally needs to win the trust of people. The bureaucrats will inevitably continue to find it hard to talk the people's language. The political class has to take the lead with the support of civil society.
As for us Maltese, we are happy that if the Lisbon Treaty is ratified we will get an additional seat at the European Parliament. Unlike the Irish we seem to content ourselves with very little. We never had any doubts about abortion or about possible changes in taxation, which could drive away foreign investors. Naturally, we believe that neutrality is an anachronism of days gone by. It took us ages to decide on EU membership, now it is in everybody's interests not to ask questions.