POLITICS: Dutch Say 'Nee' to EU Constitution

Dutch voters rejected the proposed EU Constitution today in a referendum in the Netherlands, echoing the French vote from Sunday. According to exit polls 63% of voters said no with an unusually high turnout. This latest blow to the current proposed constitution may doom it as the UK is considering canceling its referendum, considering the treaty to be already dead.



This link doesn't say it, but I have also heard on TV that the Dutch Prime Minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, has publically conceded that the treaty was defeated. It looks like this constitution is dead and a new one will need to be drafted if a European federal government is to ever be created.

The notion of a Federal European Government is one of the core reasons why this document got voted down in the first place. I dont think any other incarnations of it that include a permenant EU President and Foreign Minister will ever pass a referendum.

Good for the Netherlands Who ever dreamed up this Euro super state must be stupid. Europeans want a closer identity but only in free trade and going on holiday. They don't want a United States of Europe. perhaps now we will see some sense coming from the people who think that this is a possibility.Europe can be a World force but it wont be ruled by non enteties in Brussels.

They don't want a united states of Europe?

Then leave them to their lives of mediocrity, no longer major players on the world stage, with currencies like monopoly money, and endless bickering among themselves.

Instead of developing into the ecomomic powerhouse, world superpower, and world leading financial sector that they would become under the EU

Greenspan and his successors must be jumping with glee at this, gone is the threat of the euro to the domination of the dollar.

[edit on 1-6-2005 by Netchicken]

This has been the best thing to happen in Europe let the people decide if they want a super state , obviously they don't.

I think a strong federalized "United States of Europe" is probably inevitable eventually, but clearly the people aren't ready for it and they won't accept this underhanded way of giving power to unelected, unaccountable commissions whose duty appears to be to slowly strip away their countries' sovereignty.

Listen every one the european union was only created to help europes destroyed economie due to the WWII it shouldnt even exist now it so, and i live in Holland and i disagree to the eu membership because of the euro the dutch trade is destroyed. this to back up my source about eu existance.

www.eupolitix.com...

[edit on 1-6-2005 by Interseptor]

Listen every one the european union was only created to help europes destroyed economie due to the WWII it shouldnt even exist now

Why not? There were no time limits on the Treaties of Rome, Maastircht, Nice, etc.. The treaties signed first integrated the coal and steel production of the original six members, this could not have been undone without severly damaging the members economies, also, the move was not temporary, it was designed to be permanent.

The people said no and that is what they should get. I think that the treaty was at the wrong time, Europe needs to fix its economical and demographic problems before a federal govt is placed. I believe such a treaty will only be signed when the EU economy is doing well, not like the mediocre performance it has right now.

I read the constitution and loved it. It was an excellent piece of work imo. But obviously now isnt the time, or the people and god would of said otherwise

I was gonna start a topic about this topic a while ago since I didn't no crap about the Euro Constitution and what kind of effect it would have on me.

As a dutchmen, the consiquences it would have on me are a bit unacceptable, I like the liberal lifestyle here, smoke a joint freely, die when I am terminally ill, or if i'm lonely and need some "company" I can go to the prostitutes although I never would since i'd feel too guilty since alot of them are litterally slaves.

Atleast it keeps rapist off the streets, most of them anyway.

The Euro-Constitution (i'll call it EuroCon for right now since it's a bit easier to type) is also against the zoo's in my country and such since they are funded by the government.

I understand if the higher ups want this to happen it will happen, that's a fact of life, let's hope the dutch can keep their liberty, but I doubt we will, they will find excuses to rid us of our liberty and we will become a second America, we already are having comericals for McDonalds, Burgerking and even KFC right now, we will probably get Subway comericals soon.

What's next? oh yeah, we have Chevy comercials too now...

I mean, if I wanted American TV i'd go to the US for it, but it's coming to ME now lol, that's no longer acceptable, even though I like American things, I love Chevy and KFC, but I doubt my fellow dutchmen like it.

And a dutch politician being shot because he was a little more Anti-American? who opposed the JSF project since we barely use our jets as is, well we would have gone with another project instead and bought some other fighter, but he was wary of this since the F-104 Starfighter was partially paid by us since we were gonna purchase some, and we never got money back the US promised for participating in this project, the starfighter was a failure anyway, it was a death trap, the rocket with a man in it, and we glady traded it in for the F-16 which we also participated in, better jet, but same story.

As a dutchmen, the consiquences it would have on me are a bit unacceptable, I like the liberal lifestyle here, smoke a joint freely, die when I am terminally ill, or if i'm lonely and need some "company" I can go to the prostitutes although I never would since i'd feel too guilty since alot of them are litterally slaves.

I agree, I live in Amsterdam Zuid-Oost since we joined the Eu we've got more criminality due to the Eu because there isnt any need for id to go to Holland, and all trash of Europe is comming in Holland, because were I live
5 years ago it was peaceful but now its hell walking down the streets, I have'nt been attacted but my next door an old one of the age 70 got robd and smecked, she told every one that they wernt Dutch speaking, and the fu*kers are living one block away from where I live they are Yogoslavians.

And another thing we have to share our Bud, I rather smoke it alone

[edit on 2-6-2005 by Interseptor]

Is that "NI"? Or did the Dutch ever have knights?

Interseptor,

I'm American, but I've been to Holland a lot and some of my dearest friends are Dutch. I've seen and my friends have echoed the same concerns. When I first spent time there around 1995 it was much different than the last time I visited in 2003. I really applaud the Dutch people for their strong stance with the way "Europe" is moving along, I think the latest iterations have really been a bad deal for the Netherlands.

Something I found from the BBC:

Elout Barendrecht: "No"

Owner of tourism business, 59

I'm in favour of the EU but I voted "No" because it moves too quickly.

I fear that Brussels could halt some of our traditions, such as the children's market on the Queen's birthday, when children take things from the attic and sell them on the street, and adults get completely drunk.

news.bbc.co.uk...

Hilarious.

The Dutch government has informed the Parliament their will to remove the motion to approve the EU Constitution:

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- Chastened by the voters, the Dutch government on Thursday withdrew a plan to ratify the European constitution, as the leaders of Germany and Luxembourg prepared for a European Union summit on the deepening crisis.

Source: Los Angeles Times

BRUSSELS, June 2 (Xinhuanet) -- Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende wrote to the Dutch parliament on Thursday to withdraw the motion calling for the approval of the European Union (EU) Constitution, Dutch media reported on Thursday.

The move is a response to the mass rejection by the Dutch public of the constitution in a referendum on Wednesday, in which around 63 percent of the voters said "no" to the EU's first constitutional charter.

The referendum was non-binding and the parliament has the finalsay on whether the constitution is adopted.

Source: Xinhua