Though the initiative to curb the influx of foreigners from the EU has been sparking controversy for a while, the Swiss People’s Party (SVP) has officially launched its campaign on March 24th – less than thre months before the issue is voted on in a referendum.
The ‘No to 10 million’ initiative will be voted on in a national referendum on June 14th, bringing an end – one way or another – to months of heated debates about this highly contentious and divisive topic.
The proposal’s basic premise is that immigration should be drastically reduced, so that the country’s population doesn’t exceed the 10-million mark, which the party says will overburden key infrastructure, such as housing, public transport, the health system, and schools.
READ MORE: What exactly does the Swiss ‘no to 10 million’ anti-immigration proposal aim to do?
Stepping up its strategy
Though it may seem that everything has already been said and written about this measure, those arguments have only provided a foretaste of what the party has brought out during the launch of its official campaign on March 24.
It listed these arguments to strengthen its position:
- Since the introduction of the free movement of persons within the EU, 1.5 million immigrants have arrived in Switzerland.
- The Swiss population is growing 16 times faster than Germany’s.
- The foreign population now stands at 2,414,408, representing 28 percent of the total population. Furthermore, over 1 million foreigners have been naturalised since 2002.
- Currently, more than 100,000 additional immigrants arrive in Switzerland each year from the EU, third countries, and via the asylum process.
- Since 2000, over 655,000 asylum applications have been filed in Switzerland, mostly by young Muslim men from around the world.
- Every second, approximately one square metre of green space disappears [to construct new housing in order to accommodate new arrivals]. Our beautiful Switzerland is being paved over.
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Opposing voices
Though demographers do confirm the population growth due to immigration expected to reach the 10’-million mark before 2050 – SVP’s other arguments about the danger of itoo many foreigners have been repeatedly refuted by the Federal Council, the Parliament, economists, employers’ associations, and a multi-party coalition, among other critics.
READ MORE: Who is leading the fight in Switzerland against the anti-immigration proposal?
They say that if the imitiative were to become law, Switzerland would suffer significant lossses in terms of its economic growth and relations with the European Union.
For instance, according to the Federal Council, “Switzerland needs immigration. Without German and French workers, the Swiss healthcare system would collapse. And sectors such as agriculture, tourism, and hospitality are also particularly dependent on foreign labour.”
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And Beat Jans, the minister in charge of the Police and Justice Department, which is responsible for immigration, also proffered this warning: “The British have experienced what it means to leave access to the single market and free movement. And the majority of the country now regrets Brexit. We must learn from this lesson.”
READ MORE: How will you be affected if Switzerland’s anti-immigration proposal wins?
