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Tamil life in Switzerland

There are an estimated 42,000 people of Sri Lankan origin in Switzerland. Between 90 and 95 per cent of them are Tamils. They represent the largest migrant group from outside Europe.

Gone are the negative headlines about Sri Lankans of the 1980s.After repeatedly hearing phrases such as “Tamils are the most loved foreigners” and “Tamils are well integrated”, Swiss photographer Vera Markus decided to spend two and a half years documenting their lives in Switzerland.

“In der Heimat ihrer Kinder – Tamilen in der Schweiz (In their children’s homeland – Tamils in Switzerland) was published by Offizin-Verlag Zürich in 2005.

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SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR