SPIEGEL ONLINE - April 25, 2005, 04:10 PM URL: http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,353276,00.html German Papers Germany Catches French Anti-EU Flu French voters may throw EU progress into a tailspin if they vote no in a May referendum on the EU constitution. But now Germany is getting in on the act, too, as conservative parliamentarians say they fear the 465-article treaty will steal too much power from individual nations. German commentators also sneer at the chances of controversial member candidates Romania and Bulgaria joining the EU club by 2007. Europe continues to navel gaze and to wonder just how many more flags it needs. On Monday, European officials feted the possible approval of Romania and Bulgaria into the coveted EU club (at least in 2007). Yet what sort of club is it actually going to be by then? Certainly not as exclusive as it once was. Last year, the cozy 15-member group almost doubled in size overnight by adding 10 new members. With so many new faces, the EU will never again be as chummy as it was in its salad days when French President Francois Mitterand and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl did everything but tongue kiss to show their love for each other. Now, however, a few kinks are emerging in the coveted EU motor and neither the French nor the Germans have mechanics savvy enough to do the repairs. For weeks now, French voters have been threatening to vote "no" on a May 29th EU constitution referendum. A no vote from France, as Former European Commission President Romano Prodi warned, would mean the "fall of Europe," at least in its current state. In order for the constitution to take effect, all 25 member states have to ratify it by the end of October 2006, and thus a French vote would be a major setback. (Although technically the French could hold a second referendum and hope French voters are kinder la deuxieme fois. Otherwise, it would be back to the constitutional drawing board.) The bullishness of his people has proven something of an embarrassment for France's current president, Jacques Chirac, who would like nothing more to deliver France to the EU table. Now, it seems, Germans have caught some of the French skepticism flu. But in this case, it is not the population expressing EU uncertainty, but 20 members of the conservative Christian Democratic Party and its sister party the Christian Social Party. The parliamentarians are threatening to vote no on the constitution when it comes before parliament on May 12th. The men claim the constitution takes too much power away from national governments. Unlike France, Germany is not putting a referendum before its people. Instead, it is having parliament vote. The no votes likely won't keep Germany from passing the constitution, but they are a sign of a new German unease. "For decades now, it has been standard practice for German politicians to wave through anything that has had Europe in its title without much debate," writes the conservative Die Welt. Part of the reason, it says, is German pride and the gusto with which Germans imagined a German-led Europe. And for years, the paper writes, "political correctness hindered critical questions." But, now, suddenly, "it is dawning on some parliamentarians that this constitution threatens to take away power from the Bundestag (German parliament)." The paper does not consider the debate inspired by the skeptical parliamentarians as embarrassing -- in fact, quite the contrary. The questions are forcing many parliamentarians to "finally pick up the constitution" and read what it says. The truth, says the paper, "is that this constitution does not create a true democracy on a European level." The center-left Sueddeutsche Zeitung comes across just as scathing, insisting that "there is disquiet everywhere" and that the 20 parliamentarians represent "just the tip of the iceberg of discontent." Some in the EU worry that the EU will give Germany too much power. Now the Germans are worrying it will take too much power away, it says. And for many, it insists, the concept of Europe remains too abstract. "The Europe of internal markets, competition and financial growth" has failed to win over the hearts of the people. When the EU idea began, Europe had heart and soul, but no operational basis. Now it is the opposite." The good thing, says the paper, is that the discussion is finally bringing these discussion points to the table. The financial daily Handelsblatt sees the situation a tad less emotionally and insists part of the problem is with Brussels' hard- line "all or nothing stance." Such a take-it-or-leave-it attitude, says the paper, is "counter-productive" and not only serves to strengthen EU critics, but also belies the fact that alternatives to this constitution not only exist, but are being given serious consideration. The problem, however, says the paper, is that "Europe cannot perpetually survive hobbling on crutches and by constantly hitting the brakes." And while the constitution is "the right step toward a new Europe, it is not the Bible. If France votes it down, EU politicians will have to hold together and look for alternatives, without losing sight of their perspective. In this case, fear is the worst enemy." Amid such charged EU debates and emotions, agreement over the accession of Romania and Bulgaria by 2007 comes off as odd, indeed. The Suddeutsche snarkily points out the difference between German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's upbeat rhetoric last year -- when 10 new members joined the EU and he announced "Germany will be the biggest winner" -- and what he is saying today. Now, with more than 5 million Germans unemployed and many agitated that German jobs are going to cheap workers from Poland and the east, "Schroeder has been lashing out at Polish butchers and tile-layers because they are stealing jobs from Germans." Part of the problem, says the paper, is the smugness of EU leaders, who simply assumed their people would support the EU and therefore never did a good enough job of selling it to its citizens. Now, writes the paper, "the over-hasty accession of Romania, before it even has its corruption problems under control, is sending out the wrong signal. What is pivotal, however, is that politicians instill more trust in their populations by establishing smarter economic policies." One such policy, the paper suggests, is to "create transitional rules" until wages "have moved closer together." That would allow eastern and western Europe to grow together more harmoniously. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung is even more brash in its mockery of the accession agreement, stating frankly, "When the foreign ministers sign the treaties for Romania and Bulgaria today, the phrase 'historic hour' will get stuck in their throats. There can be no talk of these two countries being ready for accession and it will be a small miracle if this changes by the promised accession date." ------------------------ Yahoo! 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