post-accession hangover

Thursday, 25 January 2007

Normunds Grosti?š, one of our members in Latvia, tested the Latvian mood about Europe two and a half years after its accession and the result is not so optimistic. Prior to accession, EU Membership was supported by 66% of voters, but this result had collapsed to 30% at the end of last year. Ever since its accession, Latvia suffers from an economic backslide. Unlike the EU promises, the food is now twice as expensive as before and basic needs such as heating, water, electricity and fuel are getting more expensive. Inflation is close to 10 % in a year. Moreover, accession to the EU has been synonymous with unemployment. An example can be found in the Sugar industry. In December 2006 the government announced that the country’s sugar industry will have to close its two factories because of the EU quotas policy. Latvia doesn’t seem to take advantage of its economic relation with the EU neither. Import from the EU is two times larger than Latvia’s export to the EU and the gap is growing at an accelerated rate. So far the money theoretically available from EU funds (maximum 440 million lats a year) is not comparable to Latvia’s import from the EU (4 billions lats a year).

In addition to this unfavourable economic relation, Latvians complain about undesirable political and social changes leading to a severe comparison with the former Soviet Union. Just like its predecessor, the EU brought more centralisation and bureaucratisation. However, the Soviet Union had the benefice to provide social security and healthcare to everybody in the Baltic States. Thus, many jokes comparing the EU and the Soviet Union started to spread and, as everyone knows, a joke always reflects a certain truth. But more worryingly, the transparency of the EU referendum is being put into question reflecting a lack of trust coming from the Latvians. Indeed, there are widespread rumours that the referendum results were falsified in small voting stations. Furthermore, campaign funds allocated to the YES campaign are said to have enjoyed funds 120 times bigger than the NO side.

In this situation, Normunds Grosti?š recalls that Latvia has known major political changes over the century: outburst of revolutions and collapse of unions. If the situation with the EU doesn’t improve, one might foresee a repetition of History…

(For more information, you can consult the following websites: www.delfi.lv, www.csb.gov.lv, www.nato.lv)