Waiting for orders from Berlin

Waiting for orders from Berlin

Statement by the Communist Party of Ireland
10 May 2012

The suspension of the German government’s ratification of the permanent austerity treaty and the ESM treaty must send a strong warning signal to the Irish people that these two treaties pose a serious threat to their livelihood and to what little remains of their democracy and sovereignty.

There is growing opposition throughout the European Union by working people, who sick of endless cuts with little if any prospect of relief any time soon from this crisis of the system. It is clear also that what has been presented as a solution to the debt crisis is not a solution that the people want, despite being the solution that finance capital wants.

The Government’s continued strategy of pushing ahead with ratifying both treaties is tantamount to asking the Irish people to buy a pig in a poke. They are obviously waiting for word from Berlin on what to do next.

We need to end this charade of a referendum and call a halt to the ratification process. The people of the EU countries are demanding change. Three governments have already gone—Slovakia, Greece, and France—and the Czech government is almost certain to fall on Friday (11 May). This is the same fate that awaits Ireland’s ramshackle coalition government.