It seems at times that regardless of what Francis Fukuyama believes, history has not only definitely NOT ended, but is barreling along with a ferocity that is becoming in many ways overwhelming. Democratic revolutions and protests have sprung almost literally from stone and taken root in barren lands where just years or months ago no such growth could be found.
It is daunting just trying to keep up with the wide range of turmoil and hope and despair that courses across former empires and petty dictatorships. We congratulate and encourage Ukraine, Georgia and Lebanon while we mourn for Sudan and Zimbabwe. While we have turned our gaze to these brand new stories as if they have been programmed for our entertainment, we also lose sight of revolutions in our own backyards.
Just now, the French are squabbling over whether their flag should be lowered in honor of the Pope's passing, as the latest democratic revolution gets under way in totalitarian backwater of... Europe.
Last month, Jacques Chirac, overwhelmed in Japan with what was probably a little too much democracy for him, blurted out a plea for his subjects countrymen to ratify the EU constitution.
Generally, Chirac likes to go to Japan whenever Paris is too cold or
his seat is to hot. Chirac is a big fan of Sumo. Some speculate that
his love of the sport comes from years of managing bloated
bureaucracies using nothing but his naked, gigantic ego. But now Chirac
is facing leaner times as his cherished constitution, along with his
bid for a European pax Francaise, looks as if it may be
scuttled by his own ineptness and the venerable French tradition of
studying all sides of an argument and staking a position that is
directly opposed to all of them.
What worries Chirac most is that the defeat of the constitution may come from not the Swedes or the Brits, but from the French. For the constitution to pass, all 25 member countries must vote for it. A French veto would kill Chirac's dreams of consolidating EU prowess under France's domain. The No campaigners, ironically, have been able to portray the constitution as giving the "Anglo Saxons" too much influence. So in grand Eurostyle politicking, and in the spirit of modern liberalism which contends that someone who disagrees with you just doesn't have all the facts, Chirac directed Prime Minister Raffarin to institute an "explanatory campaign," presumably to illustrate how truly stupid a Non vote would be.
But things aren't going so well in the Land of Jeanne d'Arc.
PRESIDENT CHIRAC this week will attempt to persuade disgruntled voters to put aside their grievances and approve the European Union constitution, after a poll yesterday showed the “no” camp surging ahead eight weeks before the French referendum.
The French head of state, who has held fire in the debate so far for tactical reasons, is to enter the campaign fray in a television debate with young people on Thursday evening. With his presidential legacy in jeopardy, he knows that he must deploy his formidable powers of persuasion to turn the tide and save a campaign that is taking on the flavour of a potential rout.
Raffarin's initiative has failed to move the sentiment of the country to the government's argument. Government ministers now find themselves in the uncomfortable position of trying to gin up support at home while calming suspicions elsewhere that the French are looking to take over the EU.
Justice Minister Domenique Perben recently showed his hand by stating, “We have finally obtained this ‘Europe à la Française’ that we have awaited for so long. This constitutional treaty is an enlarged France.” Not very nuanced, is it?
One
feature that has lead to the constitution's troubles is a plan to
deregulate the EU's service sector. Presently, the EU has in place
protectionist rules that make it difficult for individuals and
businesses to sell their services outside their home market. This is a
big deal because this sector accounts for half of the aggregate economy
of Europe. French businesses and labor unions are worried that removing
the restrictions would damage their businesses because the
comparatively high wages and benefits currently paid to French workers
would mean that businesses and jobs would be lost to countries with
lower-wage employees.
So now the French government is busy
paying off opponents, handing out subsidized vacations for farmers, for
instance. But it is far from certain that the government will be able
to buy enough support. Chirac has long relied on his ability to
convince voters that he knows best when it come to complicated matters,
imploring skeptical constituents that they need not worry their little
heads. Now, copies of the constitution are flying off the shelves as Frenchmen decide that hey had better read up on what they're being asked to approve.
It
is instructive that while many nations across the globe are coming to
terms with democratic principles that heretofore have been foreign to
them, the prospect of an integrated Europe teeters on the success of
French government concessions to a popular uprising in the heart of
democratic Europe.
(Hat tip: Maggie)
Bien fait, mon ami!
Posted by: Maggie | April 05, 2005 at 11:11 AM
The draft EU Constitution would be an "uninspiring joke" were it not so frightening. I'm at a loss to explain why Europeans -- especially fresh-from-Communism Eastern Europeans -- should want to trade their democracy/republic for government by un-elected bureaucratic elite. Approval would only delay necessary reforms--to the detriment of both Europeans and Americans.
Posted by: No Oil for Pacifists | April 08, 2005 at 04:13 PM