Svetoslav Apostolov’s blog

The Irish Referendum End Result - What Do You Think?

Posted by spapostolov on 07/10/09
Tags: end, Ireland, Irish, mistake, referendum, result

In a comment to Jim Murray’s entry I wrote that I would respect the vote of the Irish people whatever it was. As I am a great believer in freedom of opinion, I accept their vote.

However, Jim’s entry Coming to the End of the Line brought up a question that has been at the back of my mind ever since the results of the second referendum were announced: can we be sure that the Irish folk did not make a mistake again – just as they apparently did on the first referendum?

So far the Yes vs No result is 1 : 1. Not really convincing even in a football game, this result has no statistical value whatsoever.

So, shouldn’t Ireland hold another referendum in order to deliver the decisive end result?

What do you think?

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Jim

Comment by Jim | 2009/10/08 at 22:40:05

I would say that neither result was a mistake. The people are sovereign in a referendum. In that context, I find it odd to imply that they might be mistaken in any given case, even though I have been on the losing side on referendums on abortion, 1st divorce, 1st Nice and 1st Lisbon!

This idea of sovereignty of the people is now also the definitive answer to critics who argue that there should not have been a second referendum. The people did not object to being asked again. They could have voted No if they did not think they should have been asked again, but they came out in greater numbers than before, and voted Yes overwhelmingly.

Arguments about people being bullied, or “forced” or scared into voting Yes are not very complimentary to the Irish people. They are not that easily scared.

Although I favoured a Yes vote first time around also, I understand some of the reasons for the outcome then. There was a huge failure of political leadership on the Yes side, among the political parties, business, trade unions, farmers and other interest groups. This time, and quite properly, the Yes side argued and explained their case. Importantly, they did not take the treaty hostage to domestic discontents, of which there are very many currently.

Svetoslav Apostolov is a multidisciplinary scientist, now a freelance consultant. He earned an MSc in Molecular Biology from the Sofia University ‘St. Kliment Ohridski’, Bulgaria, in 1999 and an MSc in Environmental Sciences and Policy from the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary, and the University of Manchester, UK (Joint Master of Science Programme), in 2004. Along with employment by various private companies in Bulgaria and Germany, his career includes a 7-year employment as a biodiversity conservation expert at the Bulgarian Ministry of Environment and Water, during which time he took active part in the development of international environment protection legislation and policies. Through active involvement in voluntary activities, he contributes to sustainable development and enhancing democracy worldwide. This blog was set up in the framework of his voluntary activities, for which no funding, remuneration or emolument in any form was or will be received. more.

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The Irish Referendum End Result - What Do You Think?

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