Lisbon - anyone speak Portuguese? 23.05.08

by Linda McGrory LISBON - it used to be a Portuguese city you wouldn't mind visiting. These days it's a by-word for confusion, political pressure, junk mail and the desire to do the right thing. Inishowen will go to the polls on Thursday, June 12 along with the rest of the country to vote on The Lisbon Treaty, otherwise known as the EU Reform Treaty. But trying to get to grips with the treaty is like swotting up for the Leaving Cert'.
	The Lisbon literature, flyers and leaflets beckon from the kitchen table, the back seat of the car and that growing paper mountain in the corner marked: 'Things you don't want to read now but later...much later'. The thing is...we don't have that much time left to read up on Lisbon. It would be great if it was just stuff like Lisbon is
the capital city of Portugal; the largest city of Portugal; population nearly 4m people. But it's NOT. It's about the future of the European Union and Ireland's place within it. This is an altogether more daunting prospect. I won't decide how I'll vote until I can say with some degree of honesty that I understand what it's all about. So from now until June 12, my bedtime reading will strictly be in Portuguese...boa noite and boa sorte! (good night and good luck!) While I do a bit of deciphering, here is a flavour of what the 'Yes' and 'No' political camps in Donegal have been saying in recent days. SINN FÉIN: "This Treaty can and should be rejected. Ireland’s place in Europe is secure and uncontested. A better deal for Ireland and Europe must be negotiated. The loss of an Irish Commissioner for five out of every 15 years and the reduction in Ireland's voting strength by 50% at the European Council will reduce Ireland’s influence in Europe. A further review of the Common Agricultural Policy is likely after 2013. This means that future discussions at the Commission could take place without an Irish voice at the table. It also means that our voting strength at Council will be reduced while states such as Britain and Germany will increase. How could any of this be good for Irish agriculture? FIANNA FÁIL: "...Ireland must stay true to a Euro-positive agenda which has been true to the many successes which our country has achieved. “While the text of the treaty is complex, its impact is not. It is all about helping the EU to become more efficient and effective in a changing world and where it has trebled in size since we joined. The world is changing and the EU can’t stand still. It is common sense that the EU should need reform to address modern issues such as globalisation, climate change and cross-border crime. The Lisbon Reform Treaty is a good and balanced response which serves Ireland’s interests as well as those of Europe as a whole.” FINE GAEL: Fine Gael is calling for a 'Yes' vote. But they believe that "Government’s dithering" has resulted in thousands of postal voters being disenfranchised. On Monday of last week Environment Minister John Gormley placed ads in newspapers informing voters that they had only 48 hours to apply for postal votes. He cited the example of an Irish student, representing Ireland at an international cultural and dialogue forum in Lisbon, but can’t vote on the treaty. The young man missed the two day window for applying for a postal vote. We need a system, whereby people can vote when they are out of the country, irrespective of the reason they are out of the country, whether it is for business or for pleasure. Unfortunately, the Fianna Fáil Government does not seem to care about the effective disenfranchisement of thousands of voters.” SINN FÉIN: “To keep Ireland at the heart of Europe we need to keep a permanent EU Commissioner and maintain our voting strength. It is reckless for proponents of this treaty to support the proposition of Ireland becoming voiceless at the Commission table when critical agricultural matters are being discussed. The Lisbon Treaty is bad for the farming community and bad for rural Ireland. It must be renegotiated.” Fianna Fáil: “A No vote would simply mean that Ireland will lose influence and allies in Europe at a very sensitive political time, when we will undoubtedly have to address matters in the context of this CAP Health Check review 2008 - 2013. The Irish Government has made it clear that we do not accept the negotiating strategy of the EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson in the context of the WTO talks.

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