Police report rise in number of extreme right-wing gatherings

Activity by right-wing extremists is on the rise in Switzerland swissinfo.ch

Swiss police have reported a rise in the number of public meetings organised by right-wing extremists over the last twelve months.

According to statistics published by the Federal Office for Police, “several gatherings” across Switzerland during 2001 each attracted up to 900 right-wing activists.

Half of those who attended meetings held in Switzerland are thought to have travelled from neighbouring countries.

“This figure indicates a slight increase when compared to last year’s statistics,” said Urs von Daeniken, head of the federal police force.

But police officials point out that the number of violent acts committed by right-wing extremists registered a fall during 2001.

Just over 90 incidents involving right-wing activists have been reported to police authorities since January, as opposed to 134 during the previous year.

Police also said violent incidents involving left-wing extremists were mostly confined to large-scale public demonstrations, such as last January’s protest in the mountain resort of Davos against the staging of the World Economic Forum.

swissinfo with agencies