Automatically expelling foreign criminals would be an attack on equal rights, says a committee that is against both the deportation initiative and its counterproposal.
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Certain groups will be subject to special punitive law if either version is accepted, according to Green parliamentarian Marlies Bänziger.
This would be unconstitutional and especially unfair for people who had been born here but had not acquired Swiss citizenship, she told the media in Bern on Thursday.
A lawyer speaking for the group said the legislation would be unnecessary as Switzerland is already strict with foreigners who have been convicted of crimes.
The committee represents 70 leftwing organisations, unions and parties.
On November 28, Swiss voters will have their say at the ballot box.
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Attitudes towards minorities “getting worse”
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Gülcan Akkaya, vice president of the Federal Commission against Racism, says Switzerland needs a policy that includes and recognises everyone living here. Her comments come after the population voted in favour of a controversial anti-minaret building initiative in November 2009 and prepares to vote on a people’s initiative to deport foreign criminals. Another issue making…
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Parliamentarians on Thursday approved a counterproposal that watered down an initiative brought by the rightwing Swiss People’s Party on automatically deporting any foreigner convicted of a serious crime. After a long and heated debate, a majority in parliament decided to give voters an alternative to the People’s Party initiative “for the expulsion of foreigners who…
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Swiss political campaigners have a long history of using animals to get their message across. (Pictures: Swiss People’s Party, Museum für Gestaltung Zurich, swissinfo, huegli-bern)
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