Swiss reject divisive anti-immigration proposal: predictions

The Swiss appeared on Sunday to have voted against a divisive anti-immigration proposal to limit the country’s population, early forecasts showed.

Shortly after polls closed at midday, initial forecasts from the gfs.bern institute showed around 55% opposition to the initiative, which had prompted warnings of “chaos” and devastating impacts on the Swiss economy and relations with the European Union.

“We are very relieved and happy. This is an important result for our country and for our relations with the EU,” Monika Ruhl, director of employers’ organization economiesuisse, told public broadcaster RTS.

Opinion polls had suggested the vote, held under Switzerland’s system of direct democracy, would be close.

Tensions have been particularly high for “No to Switzerland with 10 million!” initiative, presented by the far-right Swiss People’s Party (SVP).

That proposal called for measures to stop the population of the wealthy Alpine nation – currently 9.1 million – from going above 10 million before 2050.

In a country where foreigners make up more than a quarter of the population, the proposal, if passed, would curb immigration.

“There has to be a limit,” pensioner Gilles Hirt told AFP at a polling station in Bern on Sunday morning, comparing the situation in Switzerland to a ship.

“If it’s designed for 150 people and you put 250 on board, it becomes too small. If you put 350 on board, it will sink,” he said.

Swiss “Brexit”.

The SVP, Switzerland’s largest party, insisted drastic measures were needed, blaming “mass immigration” for a range of problems, from housing shortages and rising rents to overcrowded trains and traffic jams.

SVP MP Celine Amaudruz told RTS she was “disappointed” by the predicted results of Sunday’s vote, insisting Switzerland was facing “colossal challenges” from immigration.

Before the vote, SVP parliamentarian Yvan Pahud told AFP that “Switzerland is a small country that cannot expand”.

We “don’t want to welcome all of Europe”.

“The stakes are very high,” Swiss Justice Minister Beat Jans told the Tribune de Geneve newspaper ahead of the vote, warning that the vote could provoke the equivalent of a Swiss Brexit.

The initiative faces widespread opposition from the government, parliament and many sectors of the economy.

“In a globalized world, it’s just stupid to try to close the borders and put a number on the people who can be here,” teacher Josefina Luque told AFP in Bern as she cast her vote against the initiative.

Objection of conscience

The Swiss also voted on Sunday on a bill passed by parliament to make civil service less attractive and less accessible, at a time when the war in Ukraine and other geopolitical tensions are pushing European countries to bolster army numbers.

It was the political left in the militarily neutral country that called the referendum. They argue that the bill is dangerous and could eventually lead to the abolition of the alternative to military service.

Initial forecasts showed the referendum would pass with 53% in favour, although the gfs.bern institute pointed out that the margin of error was 3%, meaning the final result remained uncertain.

Switzerland has compulsory military service for men. They serve in a unique militia system in which army recruits complete at least four months of service before being called up repeatedly over a decade for weeks-long refresher sessions.

People who conscientiously object to military service have since 1996 been allowed to perform civilian service instead.

Since access to the civil service was simplified in 2009, the numbers choosing that option have risen steadily – a trend the government warns has become “problematic”.

(in)