I have lived in Europe all my life, mostly in Belgium, but never in Ireland, and I have never voted, despite the fact that the Maastricht treaty entitles me to vote both in European elections and in Belgium’s local elections. I suppose that I belong to an expat generation that has not been educated to consider voting an essential right, if not a duty, and I regret that.
我终身生活在欧洲，多数时间都在比利时，但从没在爱尔兰生活过；我也从未参与过投票，虽然《马斯特里赫特条约》规定我有权参加欧洲和比利时的国内选举。我觉得自己属于那种如果不把投票看成一项强制义务，也并不把它当作一种重要权利的老一代侨民，我也为此深感惋惜。但在比利时投票是一项必需履行的义务，因此一旦你在那里投过一次票，就不可能在不交罚款或找到好借口的情况下擅离职守。