The fact that a second referendum on Lisbon Treaty is taking place on 2nd October is emminently broadcasted, whether in form of poster war, or booklet distribution, or debates on television and radio.

However, there are some rather dodgy information going round from both the “Yes” and the “No” camps, and I’m flabbergasted to hear some of the touted “facts” (“they’re going to make abortion legal”; “they’ll make us go to war!”; “there will be more jobs”).

Here are a few links, sites and PDF documents that are presented in plain simple English (none of the legal jibberish talk) that hopefully will help you better understand the Treaty and make decision on your vote.

• The Lisbon Treaty – main concerns answered on the homepage!
• EUROPA : Lisbon Treaty – Q&A
• Talk to EU : Lisbon Treaty Guide (link at bottom to PDF document)
• Common misconceptions about the Lisbon Treaty
• Summary in 2 pages obtained from Vote.ie (PDF document)

To anyone who have only been listening to others talking convincingly about the Treaty, please don’t make up your mind yet until you’ve get a chance to at least look at the 2-pages summary above – it won’t take long, I promise. See for yourself if what they’ve informed you is correct.

Please do not use your vote to make political points over the currently very unpopular government – this is not the time for “protest vote”.

Please separate the issues that are at stake and vote accordingly.

Please vote based on informed decision.

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Side note:

What prompted me to blog this was a friend who is a postgraduate student – so someone highly educated – who believes in the hearsays and actually told me emphatically that Lisbon Treaty will bring Ireland to war, be dictated by EU on taxation and legalise abortions. And I happened to have read these for myself and know that these were not the provisions within the Treaty. (No, said friend hasn’t read the Treaty information leaflet.)

Same goes, with another friend in the “Yes” camp, arguing that Ireland will be alienated and we’ll be losing more jobs. But these are speculative. However, with the Treaty not ratified, it does meant the EU remains embroiled in the current way it runs (which you can judge for yourself if they’re efficient or not). Also, there isn’t anything in the Treaty that promises more job to Ireland – unless ratification opens up EU for more members, thus bigger job market, and this is what counts as more job openings?