PRC-UTE
30th December 2008, 02:13
IRSP OPPOSE SECOND REFERENDUM: BUT URGE A NO VOTE
http://dublinirsp.blogspot.com/
The Irish Republican Socialist Party are opposed to any second referendum
on the Lisbon Treaty. The people have already voted on this issue last
June, 2008, and rejected the advice of the establishment and their parties
and kicked Lisbon out. Now because things did not go the establishments
way they, and their political masters in Paris and Brussels, have decided
that the people must vote again and this time, from their view point, get
it right. There is one thing for certain if, last June, the outcome of the
first referendum had been favourable towards the establishment parties and
Lisbon was accepted there would have been more chance of finding rocking
horses running at Epsom than a second referendum. The establishment are
going ahead with this insult simply because they can! It can be reasonably
argued that this issue, following a precedent being set after the Nice
Treaty was re-run, signals the beginning of the end for the Irish
Constitution. Referenda are all well and good provided they go the
establishments way and when they dont, try again. If the voice of the
people is as sovereign as we are led to believe Lisbon would be dead and
buried. It would appear that treaties in Ireland are similar to Brams
Stockers character Dracula, the people think the beast is dead only to
find it risen from the dead.
Recently our political leaders came back from Brussels with some half
baked tale about promises of legally binding guarantees which are
meaningless. They are not even guarantees but merely promises of
guarantees which are certainly not the same thing. Even the promises they
have are not priority issues. The issue of a commissioner was sited by
around 2-3 percent of respondents when surveyed as to why they voted no!
Things which really mater to people such as the possibility of public
services going out to private tender and workers rights didnt even
warrant a promise of a guarantee. Any workers rights will be subject to
the needs of capitalism and the bosses being served adequately first
meaning, the bosses will still have the right to trample all over workers
except with the Lisbon Treaty behind them. The European elite gave some
vague recognition of respecting Irelands neutrality while at the same time
continuing to speak of Battle Groups. For what it is worth at a meeting,
which the IRSP attended, at the offices of the European Commission in
Dublin on Monday 15th December a speaker representing the Fine Gael party,
Lucinda Creighton, when questioned by a representative of the Irish Anti
War Movement on Irish neutrality said Ireland was not neutral. Fine Gael
are supposed to be the party of opposition in the Dail. However when it
comes to defending the class interests of the bourgeoisie there is no
opposition. When the IRSP representative questioned Joe Costello, Labour
Party, at the same meeting about his partys apparent change of heart
regarding a second referendum he was unable to give a straight answer. The
question was put to Joe that the Labour Party were against a second
referendum after the defeat of the first one he answered we are opposed
to a second referendum in the same format, asking the same questions.
When the Chairperson of the forum, Kevin Raffter, pushed the labour
speaker asking if you had to vote tomorrow which way would you vote to
which the beleaguered Labour TD again could not give a straight answer.
As far as the IRSP are concerned there should be no second referendum as
it has already been decided by the people. However given the fact that
there is going to be one we, along with our colleagues in the Campaign
Against European Union Constitution, will be campaigning for another
rejection of the Lisbon Treaty. Lisbon mark one was essentially the
ill-fated European Constitution, rejected by the French and Dutch
electorate which was why these people were not allowed to vote on
acceptance or rejection of the Lisbon Treaty. Just as Lisbon mark one was
of no noticeable difference to the European Constitution, so too will
Lisbon mark two be of any consequential difference to its ill-fated
predecessor.
The Irish Republican Socialist Party would strongly recommend another
rejection, not that there should be a re-run in the first place, of the
Lisbon Treaty. We would warn people who may be undecided that any
promises of guarantees are a far cry from written guarantees and must
not be taken in the same light. Even if the government do manage to get
something more concrete on the area of a commissioner how much importance
would you, the people, place on this issue? Also do not be misled with
such clap trap as we have received a declaration from the European
Commission because, like promises of guarantees, declarations are
meaningless. They are not protocols, they hold no legal weight no more
than do promises.
Finally we might remind people of the words of former French President
Valery Giscard d Estang on the Lisbon Treaty, in order to deny the French
people a referendum, the treaty should be designed to head off any threat
of referenda by avoiding any form of constitutional vocabulary. This was
echoed by the Belgium Foreign Minister, Karel de Gucht, who said the aim
of this treaty is to be unreadable, in other words dont let the people
have a clue what they are voting on. There will be no fundamental
difference in Lisbon mark two to that of mark one, simply because it cant
be changed without rewriting the whole document and it has taken too long
for the European bourgeoisie to concoct for that to happen. The bottom
line is there will be no change in the meaning or content of the Lisbon
Treaty, make sure there is no change in the outcome of the vote. When the
time comes vote NO .
Kevin Morley
Secretary Irish Republican Socialist Party
Dublin Cumann
http://dublinirsp.blogspot.com/
The Irish Republican Socialist Party are opposed to any second referendum
on the Lisbon Treaty. The people have already voted on this issue last
June, 2008, and rejected the advice of the establishment and their parties
and kicked Lisbon out. Now because things did not go the establishments
way they, and their political masters in Paris and Brussels, have decided
that the people must vote again and this time, from their view point, get
it right. There is one thing for certain if, last June, the outcome of the
first referendum had been favourable towards the establishment parties and
Lisbon was accepted there would have been more chance of finding rocking
horses running at Epsom than a second referendum. The establishment are
going ahead with this insult simply because they can! It can be reasonably
argued that this issue, following a precedent being set after the Nice
Treaty was re-run, signals the beginning of the end for the Irish
Constitution. Referenda are all well and good provided they go the
establishments way and when they dont, try again. If the voice of the
people is as sovereign as we are led to believe Lisbon would be dead and
buried. It would appear that treaties in Ireland are similar to Brams
Stockers character Dracula, the people think the beast is dead only to
find it risen from the dead.
Recently our political leaders came back from Brussels with some half
baked tale about promises of legally binding guarantees which are
meaningless. They are not even guarantees but merely promises of
guarantees which are certainly not the same thing. Even the promises they
have are not priority issues. The issue of a commissioner was sited by
around 2-3 percent of respondents when surveyed as to why they voted no!
Things which really mater to people such as the possibility of public
services going out to private tender and workers rights didnt even
warrant a promise of a guarantee. Any workers rights will be subject to
the needs of capitalism and the bosses being served adequately first
meaning, the bosses will still have the right to trample all over workers
except with the Lisbon Treaty behind them. The European elite gave some
vague recognition of respecting Irelands neutrality while at the same time
continuing to speak of Battle Groups. For what it is worth at a meeting,
which the IRSP attended, at the offices of the European Commission in
Dublin on Monday 15th December a speaker representing the Fine Gael party,
Lucinda Creighton, when questioned by a representative of the Irish Anti
War Movement on Irish neutrality said Ireland was not neutral. Fine Gael
are supposed to be the party of opposition in the Dail. However when it
comes to defending the class interests of the bourgeoisie there is no
opposition. When the IRSP representative questioned Joe Costello, Labour
Party, at the same meeting about his partys apparent change of heart
regarding a second referendum he was unable to give a straight answer. The
question was put to Joe that the Labour Party were against a second
referendum after the defeat of the first one he answered we are opposed
to a second referendum in the same format, asking the same questions.
When the Chairperson of the forum, Kevin Raffter, pushed the labour
speaker asking if you had to vote tomorrow which way would you vote to
which the beleaguered Labour TD again could not give a straight answer.
As far as the IRSP are concerned there should be no second referendum as
it has already been decided by the people. However given the fact that
there is going to be one we, along with our colleagues in the Campaign
Against European Union Constitution, will be campaigning for another
rejection of the Lisbon Treaty. Lisbon mark one was essentially the
ill-fated European Constitution, rejected by the French and Dutch
electorate which was why these people were not allowed to vote on
acceptance or rejection of the Lisbon Treaty. Just as Lisbon mark one was
of no noticeable difference to the European Constitution, so too will
Lisbon mark two be of any consequential difference to its ill-fated
predecessor.
The Irish Republican Socialist Party would strongly recommend another
rejection, not that there should be a re-run in the first place, of the
Lisbon Treaty. We would warn people who may be undecided that any
promises of guarantees are a far cry from written guarantees and must
not be taken in the same light. Even if the government do manage to get
something more concrete on the area of a commissioner how much importance
would you, the people, place on this issue? Also do not be misled with
such clap trap as we have received a declaration from the European
Commission because, like promises of guarantees, declarations are
meaningless. They are not protocols, they hold no legal weight no more
than do promises.
Finally we might remind people of the words of former French President
Valery Giscard d Estang on the Lisbon Treaty, in order to deny the French
people a referendum, the treaty should be designed to head off any threat
of referenda by avoiding any form of constitutional vocabulary. This was
echoed by the Belgium Foreign Minister, Karel de Gucht, who said the aim
of this treaty is to be unreadable, in other words dont let the people
have a clue what they are voting on. There will be no fundamental
difference in Lisbon mark two to that of mark one, simply because it cant
be changed without rewriting the whole document and it has taken too long
for the European bourgeoisie to concoct for that to happen. The bottom
line is there will be no change in the meaning or content of the Lisbon
Treaty, make sure there is no change in the outcome of the vote. When the
time comes vote NO .
Kevin Morley
Secretary Irish Republican Socialist Party
Dublin Cumann