23 Jul 2008
Turkey would face referendum in France over EU membership
The blog Coulisses de Bruxelles, EU now expects in the wake of a recent adjustment in the French Constitution that Turkey will not be able to avoid a referendum in that country over its adhesion to the European Union.
The newly adopted article 88-5 states that unless a 3/5 majority is reached in favor of a new country joining the EU, then the issue is required to be decided by referendum of the people.
It could have been worse. France’s ruling party, Union pour le Mouvement Populaire has been stolidly against the adhesion of Turkey to the European Union and tried to push through a provision with 88-5 that would require a referendum for any country that would represent more than 5 percent of the EU’s population (therefore, Turkey and Ukraine).
This is significant because in addition to French lawmakers being generally against Turkey as a member of the EU, the people are not sold on the idea either. According to polls, the French are one of the countries the most strongly against the Turkish addition. Furthermore, the sentiment that the E.U. Constitution might make it easier for Turkey to join was one of the principal reasons the French voted down the Constitution by referendum in May 2005.