In September 2012, the Swiss government urgently introduced amendments to the Federal Law on Refugees (Asylgesetz) changing the rules for obtaining refugee status, which took effect immediately. Human rights organizations and the church, as well as left-wing parties and movements, immediately opposed this.
After long discussions, the issue was put to a national referendum. Its results convincingly showed the unwillingness of the citizens of the Alpine republic to turn their country into a 'cash cow' (most Swiss are convinced that 9 out of 10 migrants seek asylum for economic reasons). The government's amendments to the law were supported by 79% of referendum participants.
From now on, firstly, the possibility of filing asylum applications at Swiss embassies has been abolished, as it was before – now this can only be done at the Swiss border or at the country's airports. Secondly, the period for examining applications has been reduced from the current four years, during which the state bore all costs for the applicant's maintenance, to 100 days. Thirdly, deserters and persons refusing to serve in the armies of their countries for moral, religious, or other reasons are deprived of the right to be automatically recognized as refugees. And fourthly, asylum seekers who violate public order will be held in special closed centers (all other candidates will be housed in unused military barracks located outside populated areas).
Opponents of the reform called the referendum result 'evidence of a lack of tolerance,' 'alarming for the human rights situation,' and 'threatening dire consequences for asylum seekers.' However, those supporting the amendments are not put off by these statements – they go further and introduce stricter measures in the relevant cantonal and local regulations. For example, in the city of Bremgarten, asylum seekers are forbidden to appear near schools, sports facilities, and churches, or to visit the public swimming pool – a total of 32 such 'Tabuzonen' have been defined.
The neighboring community of Menzingen followed Bremgarten's example. As its head Roman Staub stated, 'asylum seekers should not appear in sensitive areas, and primarily near schools, where they could meet our schoolchildren – little boys and girls' (for a better understanding of the situation, I will provide the following data: currently, about 48,000 people are awaiting decisions from the Swiss authorities on asylum, most of whom are from Muslim countries such as Eritrea, Nigeria, Tunisia, Afghanistan).
And this is not a 'legal initiative' of local self-government bodies: the councils of Bremgarten and Menzingen coordinated the introduction of these restrictions with the Federal Office for Migration (BFM). Human rights activists immediately called these measures 'racist,' to which a BFM spokesperson stated that 'local authorities have the right to independently define particularly sensitive zones that migrants should avoid. This measure is not aimed at restricting their freedom of movement, but at preventing conflicts with the local population.'
Currently, in Switzerland, there is one asylum seeker for every 332 inhabitants. The average figure in EU countries is one such migrant per 625 inhabitants. According to the Constitution of the Swiss Confederation, based on the principles of direct democracy, controversial issues of national, regional, or local legislation can become the subject of a referendum.
Sergey Debrer,
"Russkaya Germaniya".