Eurosceptics from different countries appealed at a press conference in Dublin yesterday for a No vote in the June 7th referendum on the Treaty of Nice. A former prime minister of Malta claimed that "the original concept of the EU" was being changed under the treaty.
Dr K.M. Bonnici, who headed the Maltese government from 1984 to 1987, issued "a plea on behalf of the Maltese people" for a No vote. He claimed the Nice Treaty was "prejudicial" to applicant countries such as his own and he hoped the Irish people would "do a favour" for these countries by voting No.
The treaty would change the EU from a partnership of equals to an organisation with different membership levels. It was also obvious that Brussels was gaining more and more strength. He said the original idea was to have unanimity in every important respect, but this rule had been taken away in many policy areas.
Pointing to the historical similarities between Ireland and Malta, he said that, after securing independence from British rule, both had adopted a neutral and non-aligned stance in international affairs. "I hope you still love and cherish your neutrality as we do ours and will not take part in the militarisation of the EU."
Prof Jean-Paul Bled of the Sorbonne University in Paris said if you wanted to understand the treaty, you had to be a genius or a technocrat as it was impenetrable to the ordinary citizen.
Criticising the proposed seven-year ban on the movement of people from the accession states, Prof Bled said a new wall, such as the Berlin Wall, was being built between existing members and the rest.
Danish Eurosceptic MEP Mr Jens-Peter Bonde said the question was often asked, "What would happen after an Irish rejection of the treaty?" The answer was: "Nothing, life goes on." There would then be plenty of time for people to read the treaty and discuss alternatives.
"There is no urgency in this case." The treaty did not need to be approved until the end of 2002.
Hosting the press conference under the auspices of TEAM, "the European Alliance of EU-critical Movements", Mr Anthony Coughlan of the National Platform said under the proposed rules for enhanced co-operation, an "inner group" of eight states could divide the existing partnership and "hijack" the European institutions for their own political purposes.
Already, leading European statesmen were speaking about what they wanted to turn the EU into: "The necessary legal path to that is the Treaty of Nice." The treaty divided the EU into two clubs and opened the prospect of the Germans and the French taking over.
"Our basic theme is that the reason people should say No is to keep Europe together." They preferred the EU as it was, not what it was planned to become.
In a separate press conference on neutrality, organised by the Green Party, a retired Army officer, Comdt Edward Horgan, said Ireland should only get involved in UN operations with a UN mandate. "We are getting into bed with strange bedfellows." The treaty was "a step too far" and a No vote would be a "wake-up call" in this respect. "We want an inclusive Europe, not an exclusive superstate."