Irish voters overwhelmingly accepted the Lisbon Treaty on October 2nd after they were given guarantees that their pro-life and pro-family laws would be protected. While some pro-life and pro-family voices hail the guarantees as a step forward, many analysts argue that the nature and extent of those guarantees are far from certain and that the “yes” vote will eventually lead to intense pressure on Ireland from the European Union (EU) to liberalize its laws and policies on abortion and homosexual “marriage.”
In the midst of a severe economic downturn, Irish citizens voted 67% to 33% to adopt the Treaty of Lisbon after rejecting it only a year ago amidst fears about the erosion of national sovereignty on social issues as well as taxation and national security. Ireland was the only country to bring the treaty to a public referendum. Two more countries, Poland and Czech Republic, must adopt the treaty before it is enacted though Ireland will have been the only EU country to put the treaty up for a vote of its citizens.
One of the most controversial aspects of the “Lisbon Treaty amending the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty establishing the European Community” is that if it is enacted it will make the Europe’s Charter of Fundamental Rights binding on all EU members. Among the 54 rights in the Charter are the right to life and the right to marry which activists use to promote a radical social agenda.
The Irish guarantee states, “Nothing in the Treaty of Lisbon attributing legal status to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, or in the provisions of the Treaty in the area of Freedom, Security and Justice affects in any way the scope and applicability of the protection of the right to life…the protection of the family…and the protection of the rights in respect to education…provided in the Constitution of Ireland.”
Pro-life and pro-family advocates of the treaty hailed the vote and the guarantees as a step forward for all of Europe. The president of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) said, “Thanks to the guarantees given to Ireland – the right to life, the protection of family and the right of parents to educate their children … these rights will be made more secure in the whole Union.”
Skeptics argue that the guarantee only protects Ireland from the Charter on Fundamental Rights and not from all EU laws. They further point out that while the EU does not have authority or “competence” on family matters, this has not stopped EU bureaucrats from using EU competence in other areas such as “equality” to pressure states to liberalize abortion and marriage laws. One EU legal expert told the Friday Fax that the guarantee is only diplomatic and not legally binding. What is more, the EU has stated that it reserves the right to intervene on family law when it has “cross-border implications.” Pro-family EU analysts warn that this provision could mean that Ireland would have to recognize homosexual “marriage” that takes place in other EU countries.
