EU referendum and sovereign power
By Peter Ewart
Who should have sovereign, decision-making power in a country? The people of that country or supra-national bodies under the thumb of global monopolies and unelected bureaucrats? Many arguments are being tossed back and forth, but this is the core issue in the June 23rd referendum on whether Britain votes to stay or leave the European Union (EU).
The EU is a supra-national body whose structures and bureaucracy overlay the nation state of Britain and the other European nations which are its members. People want to renew and expand democratic processes that desperately need renewal, but instead, increasingly, the opposite is happening under neo-liberal globalization and supra-national bodies like the EU. The decision-making power of the British people, which is already greatly limited, is being further compromised, overrode, and strangled by membership in the EU.
However, this problem is not confined to Britain or the EU. All over the world supra-national structures have been or are in the process of being imposed on the people of various countries in the form of trade agreements, such as NAFTA, CETA and the TPP, and structures such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, to name a few.
All of these supra-national structures stifle and override what should be the decision-making power of sovereign peoples and the rights of nation states, and de facto hand these powers over to globalized financial institutions, monopolies and unelected supra-state bureaucrats.
This phenomenon cannot be pigeon-holed as a “left” versus “right” issue. For example, supporters of all the parties in the British Parliament can be found on both the “leave” and “stay” sides.
Indeed, it is becoming increasingly evident that the division of politics into “left” and “right” can be an artificial and dogmatic construct that masks the real issues and real contradictions emerging in this globalized world.
Having sovereign decision-making power in their hands concerns all the people of a country, as does how to achieve, defend and advance this power in the turbulent conditions of today.
Peter Ewart is a columnist and writer based in Prince George, British Columbia. He can be reached at: peter.ewart@shaw.ca
Comments
Interesting that Peter left out the UN and the related IPP. I find that very curious.
Why would anyone want to stay and be a part of that mess and surrender sovereignty to Brussels bureaucrats?
How about 454 laws governing towels, 652 regulations for coffee and 91 regulations for showers – and that’s just in the service sector. You wouldn’t believe some of the regulations that suffocate life in Europe.
And those who govern us won’t be satisfied until they’ve duplicated every one of them here. And then added to them.
How many laws about towels did Harper or Trudeau bring in so far?
I think this topic is a bit much for most of the local posters here. They’d rather complain about potholes and dump fees.
I have to agree . Way too deep a subject . I’m pretty sure the Russian federation has the same argument against the IOC Supernational organization ban on their athletes for doping . Like it or not , you need international laws to live in a lawful world .
What does international law have to do with Britain’s participation in the EU?
I think you’re confused.
I think you must be confused . You need to read up a little about the EU . The eu is a union of European nations . Maybe also use the define option .
I know what the EU is. What I don’t know is the connection between Britain’s participation in it and international law that you refer to. Kindly explain.
Under the EU, Britain has become far too integrated; economically, militarily and culturally with other european countries, in my opinion, Brexit would be too destabilizing… watch the stock markets as an indicator.
“All of these supra-national structures stifle and override what should be the decision-making power of sovereign peoples and the rights of nation states,”
An interesting thing, this. Great Britain, itself a super-national structure incorporating the once sovereign nations of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, being concerned with loss of sovereignty to a super-national EU. Some of those nations still strive to be rid of the super-national structure; Ireland, and Scotland with its recent referendum, come to mind. (Wales not so much, recently.)
Most countries in the world have a similar super-national structure. Canada has many First Nations under the super-national structure we call Canada. What’s left of the Soviet Union has many once sovereign nations within it, as does China, Papua New Guinea, and in fact, most modern countries. Given the increased populations in most of these countries, and the dependence on international trade to support population size and life style, some sort of super-national structure likely makes good sense for many areas. And yes, that will override the “decision making power of sovereign people and the rights of nations”.
Sad that the “rights of nation states” became so important to one person that murdering someone of the opposing view seemed a reasonable thing to do.
The EU is the new version of the Soviet Union. A globalist construct by and for multinational corporations and high finance banksters that makes a mockery of democracy and sovereign state rights.
Who in their right mind would vote for a drunk like Jean-Claude Junker as their president. Recent footage had him drunk greeting world leaders groping the female leaders and slapping the Spanish leader in the face. What a joke. No accountability what so ever.
I would vote Brexit IMO. I hope they do and that it scuttles the CETA deal with Canada.
htt ps://www.reddit.com/r/cringe/comments/4mp39y/eu_president_jeanclaude_juncker_drunk_and_slaps
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