EU Fortress Enlargement

international | eu | opinion/analysis

Tuesday February 10, 2004 19:48

by Fergus

EU Enlargement will not mean that the walls of Fortress Europe are broken down.

It just means that the walls will get wider.

Inside the rules are changing, first the unemployed will pay the price and then...

In 1989 the Berlin Wall came to fall.
The phrase 'Iron Curtain' got covered in dust and over the next 15 years the term 'Fortress Europe' was reinforced.
In 2004 its expanding and redefining itself with a new constitution.
On cue, big business have sponsored the mineral water on the negotiation table, pulled up a seat and are pushing their own brand of perestroika.

Now apart from being a lovely bunch of "people", why is Ireland the only country in Europe to offer an open invitation to the equally lovely bunch of "people" in the ten accession states ?

Non-altruistic Demands
First and foremost the Irish invitation has been pushed "open" with the suggestions and big ideas of organised business.
And to understand/empathise with their viewpoint - you've got to lose the "people".
"People" is to emotive.

Instead learn this big idea off by heart.
'Labour is thus to be apprehended as a commodity, exchanged on a market' (Deakin, 1996).

Through this lens - people become (not "people", not "workers", not "immigrants" but) a commodity.
This perspective is colourblind, it doesn't care if you're black or white.
It discriminates by what is on on your C.V. - and how low you're willing to go.
Multi-national corporations (mnc's) want free ACCESS to pick n' choose from the "MARKET" of multi-national workers.
They don't care where you're from.
Asian or Irish, its irrelevant.
What they do care about is getting the required SKILLS to the right PLACE without BARRIERS to get the JOB DONE. (competitively).

IE. no restrictions to the migration of workers that they want to use.

Ireland is aspiring to become the 'Knowledge Economy' but the Dept. of Enterprise & Employment thinks the rest of us are thick...eh...that we need more SKILLED workers.
The open invitation aims to "Brain-Drain" from East to West.
Mnc's in Ireland get their cheap fix, the latest must-have "commodity" - bright young people.

The Germans said "Nein !"
But a benefit of open invitation is that now Ireland can be among the first in Europe to send workers over to the new member states to get cracking on expanding business empires.

If thats not enough reason, I'm sure mnc's resorted to that time honored threat - of packing up and shipping out.
"If our labour market demands are not met, we're afraid, our stock market price will force us to set up our European HQ elsewhere...blah,blah,blah".

This way everycommodity is happy.
Except...

With EU enlargement, government (not business) have a problem with unwelcome guests.
In Dec 2002, 5 EU countries agreed not to impose restrictions on immigration, but as May 1st approached there were signs of nerves. Racism started getting 'creative'.
On Dec 1st last year the city of Rotterdam decided to ban the poor.
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=62555

Later that month the Danish govt. were the first to officially celebrate, not EU enlargement but that "we can all celebrate that Danish social security schemes are fenced."

Within two months other governments also broke their promises.

And it seems to be very easy to break promises when you refer to people as "scroungers" and "welfare tourists".
To authorities, if there's one thing worse than immigrants - its someone on the dole.
Combine the two together and they're indefensible.
Let them drown.

When Britain brought in restrictions last week, it left Ireland on its own "on a contingency basis" bearing the (suspect) spirit of EU enlargement,
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=63300

2-tier Enlargement
We're on the top tier. Leading the way of enlargement.
As 'necessary' cutbacks to Social Welfare for everybody will ensure that we stay there.
We're all in this together.

EU Enlargement will not mean that the walls of Fortress Europe are broken down.

It just means that the walls will get wider.

Inside the rules are changing, first the unemployed will pay the price and then...

http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=63258

http://www.wall-berlin.org/gb/chute_tex1.htm