Boy those anarchists and Irish - scared the hell out of othem....... These simple EU leaders - these Judas Sheep - well often I hear a different drummer, and one can almost hear the nazi goose steping brigades marching across Europe but it appers, they might be marching alone - just the leaders, for who will follow this buncto to another genocidal population control war? How will you have it - AIDS or War....most prefer war. Especially since we got them outnumbered. So soon we will see them beating their ploughshares into fertilizer bombs? Saba
http://www.wnd.com/frame/direct.asp?SITE=www.guardian.co.uk/Distribution/Redir ect_Artifact/0,4678,0-507880,00.html EU leaders fear wrath of the people European integration Ian Black and Michael White in Gothenburg Saturday June 16, 2001 The Guardian Europe's leaders were last night forced to consider slowing down their "great debate" about the future of the continent in the face of growing evidence of "a widespread sense of disconnection" between the EU and its citizens. As hundreds of anti globalisation rioters offered tangible proof of alienation in violent clashes on the streets of Gothenburg, the 15 heads of government attending the Swedish summit were warned that ordinary people remain frustrated by their remoteness and lack of democratic accountability. Anarchist riots forced them to cancel a planned dinner at a restaurant in the city centre and stay instead in the heavily guarded conference centre. Britain's low election turnout has deeply unsettled ministers. But the catalyst for yesterday's agonising was an unusually outspoken public intervention by Bertie Ahern, the Irish prime minister. Mr Ahern told colleagues that Ireland's shock rejection of the Nice treaty, which paves the way for EU expansion up to 27 members, underlined a "widespread sense of disconnection" between the union and its people. "There is frustration at what is seen as an absence of clarity, openness and responsiveness in how the union goes about his business," he added. "There is a real and urgent need to focus on how we make the union more meaningful to our citizens and on how its democratic accountability can be strengthened." The Irish No is unlikely to kill the treaty or prevent enlargement of the EU to the south and east by 2004. Mr Ahern will seek a Yes vote in another referendum, but not until next year. But anxiety with the 54% to 46% voter rejection of Nice in Ireland was barely concealed by some summiteers. And it prompted Tony Blair and fellow leaders to admit to second thoughts as to whether the time is right to launch a potentially divisive debate about the future constitutional direction of Europe. Outside the summit venue hundreds of anti-capitalist activists clashed with police, throwing sticks and cobble stones and erecting burning barricades. Protesters, many wearing black hoods, smashed several shop front windows, including two McDonald's hamburger restaurants. Mr Blair denounced the violence in which up to 37 people, including 10 police officers, were injured. "The protests are a complete outrage. To result in this violence is not just entirely wrong, but also completely misguided." The Belgians, who take over the EU presidency from Sweden next month, are due to launch the debate over the future shape of Europe. "The EU should not proceed too fast," said the Austrian chancellor, Wolfgang Sch�ssel, who has experienced voter alienation in the shape of Joerg Heider's far-right Freedom party. "Nice has not yet been ratified and we are already talking about new goals." But the gloom looked set to kill off Swedish hopes of speeding up the process. Goran Persson, the Swedish prime minister and summit host, had hoped to issue a more precise target date for the entry of countries such as Poland and Hungary, which lead the 12 applicants queueing up to join the club. EU leaders repeated that the bitterly contested Nice treaty, which includes a long-overdue overhaul of creaking institutional machinery, cannot be renegotiated and that enlargement - the biggest ever undertaken - must go ahead. The first newcomers are expected in 2004. Ireland is the only EU state which requires a popular vote, but all 15 members have to ratify it for it to become law. Spain's conservative prime minister, Jose-Maria Aznar, made the same argument in favour of a new slowly-slowly approach. Mr Blair is also likely to welcome this since he fears the divisive abstractions of constitutional debate as he contemplates Britain's crucial decision on a euro referendum. Gerhard Schr�der, the German chancellor and his foreign minister, Joschka Fischer, last year sparked a wide debate about the future of Europe as it enlarges in advance of new treaty talks in 2004. But Mr Schr�der appeared to be backing down in the aftermath of the Irish vote, which some now fear could come to prove as difficult as the Danish rejection of the Maastricht treaty in 1992. "The debate about the final shape of Europe must not be conducted under time pressure," he said, acknowledging Dublin's point that was important to involve the wider public in planning the EU's future. "Its an extremely important debate," Mr Persson said. "We have to move closer to our electorates." Mr Ahern is likely to negotiate an opt-out on parts of the treaty that Irish voters dislike - notably provisions for setting up an EU rapid reaction force which opponents of Nice claimed would breach Ireland's treasured neutrality. Ireland's rejection of the treaty came just as negotiations with the candidate countries - Estonia, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Latvia and Lithuania - were making good progress after an ugly row with Spain over future regional funding. Leaders of the 12 candidates are joining EU leaders for the last day of the summit today.
