France Rejects E.U. Charter

By popular referendum the people of France strongly rejected the European Union constitution yesterday and thus pushed the dream of a European superstate into a dangerously precarious predicament. Though leaders within the E.U. are claiming that the charter’s defeat does not spell it’s end, it cannot become effective unless every member nation ratifies it, making a scenario where it does become effective nearly impossible to envision at this point. The French opposition to the charter can be encapsulated into three major reasons, with two of the reasons serving as a microcosm for opposition to the charter throughout the whole of Europe.

First of all, many French citizens voted the way they did as a means of punishing French President Chirac and his government, which is very unpopular at the moment. As is always the case, culpability for the stagnant economy (growth is low and unemployment is at 10 percent) and immigration concerns are being pinned on those in power, and the overwhelming vote against the charter is viewed by many analysts as a repudiation of the Chirac government. As a result, President Chirac is expected to announce a sizeable shakeup within the government tomorrow night, which is likely to include the resignation of Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin. It is widely rumored that his replacement will be one of President Chirac’s major political rivals, whose elevation could further diminish Chirac’s chances of another reelection in ‘07 should he decide to seek it. To be fair however, most believe the defeat of the charter, in which Chirac expended a considerable amount of political capital on behalf of, destroyed any chance he had of successfully seeking another term as French president anyway.

Secondly, the charter’s defeat in France not only represents a repudiation of President Chirac and his government, but of the free market economy, i.e. capitalism, that the E.U. would in many ways bring about. Exit polls indicate that a large segment of those who voted believed that the constitution was "too market oriented", and didn’t contain enough protections for citizens. This is rather humorous, for the French are disenchanted with their stagnant economy and high unemployment, yet they reject the vehicle that could open up their economy and help put an end to the stifling socialist system that has put them exactly where they are today.

Finally, the charter was rejected because there is a widespread fear within France and much of Europe that by signing up for the E.U they will surrendering their nation’s sovereignty. As George Will explained in his editorial of May the 29th, the charter dictates that member states may "exercise their competence" only where the E.U. either fails to or decides not to exercise it’s. Furthermore, the E.U. would get jurisdiction over all matters ranging from defense to agriculture. I would be resentful of this as well, for as Mr. Will explains, "sovereignty is a predicate of self-government", and by accepting the European Union constitution every member state would be surrendering at least some, probably most of, their right of self-government and determination. Because of this, France and Europe are well within their right to reject the charter.

UPDATE (11:08 6/1/05): The Dutch rejected the E.U. constitution today in an even greater margin than their French counterparts did. It is now an undeniable certainty that the charter in it's current form is dead, and there are going to have to be some major modifications made for it to ever gain ratification.