"No" supporters in Amsterdam celebrate as results are announced. Wednesday, June 1, 2005 Posted: 4:55 PM EDT (2055 GMT)
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (CNN) -- Voters in the Netherlands soundly rejected the proposed European Union constitution Wednesday, three days after France gave it a thumbs-down. Both countries are founding members of the bloc. Their rejection of the charter is seen as a blow to the 25-nation union. Its leaders now have to deal with what steps to take next -- or whether the concept of the EU even has a future at all. An exit poll by Dutch NOS Television, the umbrella organization for the public broadcasting networks, showed 63 percent of the country's voters rejected the constitution, while 37 percent supported it. The issue drew a turnout of 65 percent, exceeding all expectations. "The Dutch people have spoken tonight," Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende was quoted by the Associated Press as saying. "It is a clear result. Naturally I am very disappointed." Balkenende and 80 percent of members of the Dutch parliament supported ratification. The referendum is nonbinding, but Dutch leaders have pledged to accept the result if it was clear and turnout was more than 30 percent. The constitution was intended to be part of a new treaty and must be approved by all 25 EU members -- either by referendum or parliament -- to become effective in October 2006. Ten nations joined the bloc last year. Eight EU nations -- Austria, Hungary, Italy, Germany, Greece, Lithuania, Slovakia and Slovenia -- have ratified the constitution by votes in their parliaments. A ninth country, Spain, approved it by referendum. Several countries have indicated their efforts to ratify the treaty will continue -- in the hope that the French and Dutch remain the only members to shun the treaty. But France's rejection Sunday raised questions about how Britain would handle its vote. British Prime Minister Tony Blair said it was too soon to say if the UK would press ahead with a referendum of its own. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said Wednesday the Dutch "no" raises "profound questions" about the EU's future. Concerns over the charter helped drive the euro to seven-month lows against the dollar and unsettled stocks and bonds. Pro and con arguments Dutch supporters of the EU constitution have argued that it would streamline decision-making in the union and create a single foreign minister to give Europe more sway in international affairs. Critics feared the Netherlands, with just 16.4 million people, would be engulfed by a superstate headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, and dominated by Germany, France and Britain. Political analyst Maurice de Hond said some Dutch were still angry that the euro became Europe's currency. "So, they will now vote for what they wanted to vote five years ago," de Hond said. Some voters said "no" to voice their discontent with an unpopular Dutch government, the AP reported. Others feared that Turkey will soon be admitted to the union, worsening tensions between Dutch Muslims and the non-Muslim majority, according to the AP. In addition, some analysts said the recent murders of filmmaker Theo Van Gogh by a suspected Islamic militant and of populist politician Pim Fortuyn have challenged the once liberal Dutch. Analysts say the public, now threatened and more conservative, is poised to rebel. CNN's Walter Rodgers contributed to this report [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Dying to be thin? Anorexia. Narrated by Julianne Moore . http://us.click.yahoo.com/FLQ_sC/gsnJAA/E2hLAA/BRUplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> *************************************************************************** Berdikusi dg Santun & Elegan, dg Semangat Persahabatan. Menuju Indonesia yg Lebih Baik, in Commonality & Shared Destiny. www.ppi-india.org *************************************************************************** __________________________________________________________________________ Mohon Perhatian: 1. Harap tdk. memposting/reply yg menyinggung SARA (kecuali sbg otokritik) 2. Pesan yg akan direply harap dihapus, kecuali yg akan dikomentari. 3. Lihat arsip sebelumnya, www.ppi-india.da.ru; 4. Satu email perhari: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 5. No-email/web only: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 6. kembali menerima email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ppiindia/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
