The British people have voted. It was close however the message was clear – ‘we want our country back, we want to control our borders, we will be better off outside the EU’.
I found out about the result on sunny morning in Rome where I was attending an interesting meeting of people who are involved in public and civic life. As you can imagine, I was inundated with questions from people from Italy, Spain, Argentina, Slovenia or even South Korea.
As an EU migrant, someone who doesn’t hold the British citizenship, I have been part of the referendum debate for quite some time. I couldn’t vote, but I was very keen to get across the reasons behind staying.
But now, let’s put aside the economical argument, GDP, trade, jobs, opportunities to live, work and study freely in any of the European countries. That’s a whole other story.
What worries me the most are divisions created by the EU referendum. Six months on and nothing has really changed…I lived in number of European countries but I don’t remember seeing anything like this. Hatred, complete lack of ability to have a proper and mature debate on issues which affect us all: globalization, migration, refugee crisis.
I am worried that many EU citizens, who come here for good reasons will be seen as “`intruders” in all walks of life just because of where we come from and irrespective of what we bring.
In my case, as well as in the case of other EU nationals, living in the UK enabled me to improve my life chances and my language skills. It has also helped me to break down various barriers and recognise the importance of diversity. Settling in the UK, trying to be part of the local community, encouraged me to get to know other cultures and people of other faith groups. The whole experience has broadened my horizons and it made me more tolerant and rounded person.
The result of the referendum is of course not the end of the world but I am disappointed. What’s next? Will we have to start paying for NHS treatment or schooling for our kids? Will my UK-born kids get a rough deal in life?
It is difficult to predict, particularly now when the PM is ‘keen’ to implement ‘hard Brexit’ how it would affect my long-term future and the future of many other EU migrants however I know that it could be the end of the ‘united Europe’. I am sad that the British voters decided to ‘walk away’ from a project which overall produced a lot of positive outcomes. I also think that the UK’s ability to demonstrate modern and forward thinking society where people from all sorts of walks of life are treated the same, may be also affected.
I am upset that liberal Britain which cherishes every opportunity to build bridges and fosters integration has decided, in one way or another, to take a step back. I am worried that Britain has chosen the ‘isolation path’. I was always felt that we are stronger if we stay together. I always believed that you are weaker if you are on your own.
Re – building trust, so damaged during this campaign, may take a lot of time. I hope it won’t affect building the cohesive society which I want to be part of.
A friend sent us this text: “To all my European friends, sorry about the vote. I still love you. You are welcome to my country. I will continue to cheer for your football teams.”
Thank you to all people who stay strong in building bridges among people.
* Michal Siewniak is a Lib Dem activist and councillor for Handside ward, Welwyn Hatfield.
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17 Comments
Michal
Thanks for a well written moderate article. You are very welcome to stay! Your status and that of your children could have been secure by now if the EU had been willing to guarantee the status of British citizens in other EU countries.
Leave welcomes you and we are not the problem. My wife is also an immigrant.
Nobody is going to cause you any bother, never fear!
William
Why should British people overseas be given special treatment?
Because they are our people Manfarang. We need to fight for them. That is what independent sovereign countries do. We are only asking the decent treatment that all legal immigrants should be afforded.
The truth is that EU leaders were taken aback that the UK government didn’t guarantee the status of EU citizens in the wake of the brexit vote but rather regarded them as ‘bargaining chips’. The issue could have been resolved months ago if the UK government had the moral courage to face down the xenophobia of some sections of the Leave vote.
Imagine the effect on the management of the Premier League for an Italian, a German, a Frenchman, a Catalan, Portuguese, etcetera, for their support staffs and for their players.
William
British Embassies are not very helpful to British expats so I can hardly see foreign governments giving preference.
@AndrewR
You are just wrong with your statement. The UK government has offered an early resolution to the residency status of EU nationals here and UK nationals abroad. It has been the other 27 countries who have not been willing to stike an early deal to take the issue off the table. I was watching the David Davies in the Commons debate afterwards and he confirmed this once again.
This hold up is not from the UK side on this issue.
@ethicsgradient
You’re being conned. The expectation in Europe was that the status of EU citizens would be swiftly confirmed. They were shocked by statements from the likes of Liam Fox that EU citizens were “bargaining chips” and “one of our main cards”. It was the UK which made the status of EU citizens a matter of negotiation meaning the EU couldn’t address the issue until article 50 is invoked. Brexiters blame the EU for the situation that they themselves created.
A family member of mine is an EU citizen in Britain and she has been very upset that Theresa May won’t guarantee her rights to remain here. She has a British husband and British child yet that on their own seems to not be enough. There are many others who will be even more worried.
People who came here legally shouldn’t be deported. We can’t move the goal posts for people once they have already settled down here.
Theresa May had a golden opportunity to take the high ground the day she became PM and simply guarantee the rights of EU citizens living here. The fact that she turned them into bargaining chips was really mean spirited, and I am really quite shocked that anyone agrees with her, given that even Farage does not! Only those people who think the EU is some sort of enemy could possibly think that they would have responded to such a gesture by deporting Britons!
Meanwhile she has decided it is a negotiation but the rules say there can be no negotiation until Article 50 is triggered! Again I am shocked that there are people trying to blame the EU for simply sticking to their own rules!
I am afraid though that being mean spirited is just par for the course for the most illiberal Prime Minister since Margaret Thatcher…
Ashcroft’s focus groups wanted the best of both worlds, albeit difficult to deliver as he said.
“Only those people who think that the eu is some sort of enemy…”
There’s no “some sort” about it!
Liberation won’t be easy – that should come as no surprise to anyone and some pain during the process is only to be expected. Of course, those who have embraced the falsehood of the eu federalist ‘dream’ will feel it more than most, but then that is the price of collaboration.
@William Ross – The whole point supposedly of Brexit is that we make our own decisions independently. We do NOT make decisions on whether or not to admit non-EU immigrants or allow them to remain based on them admiting comparable numbers of U.K. citizens. Therefore there is no reason whatsoever to make decisions on EU/EEA citizens on that basis.
Our Brexiter Ministers know they are termination of the rights that UK citizens living in other EU member states have as EU citizens. We have no right whatsoever to demand that those member states exercise their sovereignty in a particular fashion much less to threaten them to do so by suggesting we will use their citizens here as bargaining chips.
Paul
You are right that “taking back control” means that we make our own decisions. One of these decisions is the ability to put rationale propositions to other states. Because of our membership of the EU we have large numbers of foreign nationals from the EU legally living here and making a great contribution. Our government wants them to stay in total tranquillity. Not a single Leave campaigner suggested otherwise. At the same time we want security for our citizens in the rest of the EU. Giving them security is also decent. The blocker is the EU, not the supposedly xenophobic UK government.
@William Ross – No that is not what it means. Making decisions independently means we make the decisions independent of what other countries decide. It does NOT mean we are dependent on what the other EU member states decide.
We don’t make decisions on admitting non-EU citizens based on what their (non-EU) countries decide and in the case of very many countries with poor human rights records it would be downright irresponsible of us to make decisions on whether their citizens could immigrate here based on what their home country decides.
And it is us, not the others, that is using rhetoric about the EU immigrants here being “bargaining chips”. That is and will be seen as tantamount to blackmail by the other member states.
I agree with Theresa May on this point. We cannot end up with a situation whereby a German/French/Pole is allowed to live and work in the UK whilst a Brit is not allowed to live and work in Germany/France/Poland.
Paul
As a sovereign independent country we can decide to exclude all immigration or open our borders to the whole World. I am against both extremes. This is a good reason to create a special regime for EU citizens on the date of Brexit. That is because they came here in the genuine ( if erroneous) expectation that the EU was a permanent meaningful project. These people are already here legitimately. I want them to stay. However, I also want protection for our citizens in the EU. All the EU, as a sovereign entity which hands out citizenship, needs to do is to play ball. We are waiting.
Don’t blame the Brexiteers!