Dutch go to the polls in constitution vote

The Dutch began voting in their first national referendum today, choosing whether to accept – or more likely, reject – a proposed European Union constitution.

Recent polls have shown a majority approaching 60% will say no to the document.

Following France’s rejection of the charter on Sunday, a Dutch “No” would leave Europe’s leaders with no clear back-up plan for what to do when two of the 25-nation union’s members say they won’t approve the new ground rules.

Voting booths opened at 7:30am local time (6.30am Irish Time) and were to close at 9pm (8pm Irish Time), with the first results projected within a half hour and final results two hours later.

“Let’s not let ourselves be led by polls,” Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said during a television appearance yesterday in which he made a last-minute plea for a “Yes” vote.

“Let’s hope that when they’re in the voting booth, people think about all the people that say this constitution would be a positive development.”

Dutch supporters – including both Balkenende’s conservative government and the main opposition Labour Party – say the constitution would streamline decision making in the union, and create a single foreign minister to give Europe more sway in international affairs.

“I think it’s a good thing if there’s a strong Europe,” said Jaena Padberg, an early “Yes” voter outside a busy voting station at a community school in Amsterdam.

“It’s good that our rights will be be secured.”

Opponents fear the Netherlands, a nation of just 16 million, will be engulfed by a superstate headquartered in Brussels and dominated by Germany, France and Britain.

That could mean the end of liberal Dutch policies such as tolerating marijuana use, prostitution and euthanasia.

Still other voters will say no to voice their discontent with the unpopular Dutch government: many here are angry about price increases that followed the introduction of the euro in 2002, and some fear that Turkey will soon be admitted to the union, worsening tensions between Dutch Muslims and the non-Muslim majority.

“In other countries that are going to join human rights are not as well protected as they are here,” said no voter Mika Gruschke.

“Things are going too fast,” said Maarten Pijnenburg, who is against the constitution. “There’s not enough control over the power of European politicians” under the new constitution, he said.

Jorg Kelder, editor of the Dutch magazine Quote, said politicians were reaping what they have sown.

“People see that they were bamboozled” by the price rises after the introduction of the euro, he said.

A “No” vote “will be a success for democracy, but a drama for the constitution,” he said on the television programme “Nova” yesterday.

Balkenende repeated that a Dutch “No” would not mean that politicians would resign. In France, Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin resigned and was replaced by interior minister Dominique de Villepin in the aftermath of the rejection.

Some analysts expect Dutch “No” voters to be emboldened by the outcome in France, since the Dutch will avoid the stigma of casting a lone veto.

But Peter Kanne, of the TNS Nipo polling agency, said the French “won’t be a decisive factor” on the turnout.

“Mainly, people will do what they intended to do anyway,” he said. TNS predicted 59% of Dutch will vote against, versus 55% in France.

Turnout was expected to be far below the 70% seen in France, and several Dutch walking past the voting station in Amsterdam said they wouldn’t vote.

“I don’t understand the contents of the constitution and I promise you I’m not the only one,” said Mohammed Sali.

“We have enough laws in this country already,” said another voter Maarten Kriz. “We already have a Dutch constitution. Why should we vote for another one?”

Aurore Wanlin, an analyst with the London-based Centre for European Reform, said the EU leaders meeting in Brussels in mid-June are unlikely to pronounce the treaty dead.

But “when two member founding states vote against, it looks like a big crisis,” she said.

So far, nine countries have ratified the constitution: Austria, Hungary, Italy, Germany, Greece, Lithuania, Slovakia, and Slovenia by votes of their parliaments; and Spain by a referendum.

Efforts to ratify the treaty will continue, in the hope that the French and Dutch remain the only members to shun the treaty by the time the process ends in October 2006.