A larger group of voters , however , voted " No " for reasons that were connected to the Constitution itself . 48 % thought the new Constitution was worse than the existing treaties , and 44 % cited the declining influence of the Netherlands in the EU , with the treaty as an important motivation . Linked to this was a fear of being dominated by the powerhouses of the European Union ( particularly the United Kingdom , France and Germany ) . The perception of an aggressive and ruthless style on the part of the " Yes " campaign also put off many . The Minister of Justice , Piet Hein Donner , warned that a rejection would raise the chances of war and stated that " the C in CDA '' for ' Christian ' '' implies that you vote in favour of the constitution . " The Minister for Economic Affairs , Laurens Jan Brinkhorst , said that " the lights would go off " in the case of a rejection and that The Netherlands would become " the Switzerland of Europe . " The People 's Party for Freedom and Democracy withdrew a controversial television broadcast , in which rejection was connected with the Holocaust , the genocide in Srebrenica and the terrorist attacks on March 11 , 2004 in Madrid . This seriously damaged the " Yes " campaign
genocide
Srebrenica massacre
2005 Dutch European Constitution referendum