The European constitution can not come into effect unless all 25 EU members ratify it. What the EU headquarters plans to do now remains to be seen, but this week's turn of events has clearly brought into focus the sharp divide in thoughts between some governments and their peoples.

In the case of France, the rural populace feared that an ultra-free market mechanism within the EU would put their interests in jeopardy. They are skeptical about giving up too much sovereignty to the EU. The Dutch voters, apart from the fear of losing their identity, were not too keen on countenancing the domineering attitudes of the bigger economies and more populous countries among the member states. They probably want to believe in the idea of One Europe, but not at the expense of losing their individuality into what they apparently perceive to be a whirlpool of a supra-national identity.

So what happens now? Though as many as nine member-countries, including Italy, Germany and Spain, have already ratified the constitution, more countries like Ireland, Luxembourg, probably United Kingdom too, are likely to hold referendums in the coming months. Whether they will go ahead with the vote, or the recent results would have any impact on their minds otherwise, only time will tell; but one thing is certain -- the debacles both in France and Netherlands have set the clock of progress of European integration back.

All this doesn't mean though, that the pursuit of give-and-take in Europe, inter-penetration of markets, increasing employment opportunities, cultural exchanges, freedom of movement across borders have lost any of their original appeal.

It is the people of Europe who may have forced a rethink on the part of governments about the need for rewriting the constitution of Europe. That is the message.