A call on the Government to nominate an opponent of the Nice Treaty to the forthcoming Convention on the Future of Europe was made last night by the Sinn Féin TD, Mr Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin.
By Friday next, two persons representing Dáil Éireann, along with a Government representative, must be nominated to the Convention, which represents all member states and begins its deliberations on March 1st.
"It would be a mockery of the democratic process if the Irish delegation at the convention consisted only of representatives of the parties who supported the Nice Treaty and lost the referendum," he told a meeting of the Forum on Europe in Monaghan. It would assist the Convention if the Irish delegation was "representative of the views of the people".
Pointing out that concern about EU militarisation was one of the main concerns of those who voted against the Treaty in last June's referendum, Mr Ó Caoláin said neutrality should be written into the Constitution. "Last year I published a Bill in the Dáil to do just that. I urge the Government to adopt that Bill and provide the Constitutional guarantee of positive neutrality."
When the electorate rejected Nice, the Government had a clear obligation to implement that decision.
"The point I wish to make most strongly is that the Government has not implemented the decision of the people and has not respected their democratically expressed will."
"The conduct of the Irish government, the EU Commission and the governments of the other EU member-states proves the point made by those of us who opposed the Nice Treaty - that it is undemocratic", Mr Ó Caoláin said.
The chairman of the European Movement, Mr Alan Gillis said that Irish neutrality would still be protected under the Nice Treaty, because the text specified that Irish security and defence policy would not be prejudiced.
A full report on the Forum meeting in Monaghan will appear in Monday's paper.