Rightwing risks wrath of Swiss abroad
Expatriate Swiss have vowed to give the rightwing People’s Party a bloody nose if it pushes ahead with plans to end dual nationality.
Jean-Paul Aeschlimann, vice-president of the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad, told swissinfo that such a move would incense the 600,000-strong community.
Buoyed by last month’s success in persuading voters to throw out proposals aimed at easing citizenship restrictions, the Swiss People’s Party has fixed its sights on dual nationality.
Shortly after the vote on September 26, party leaders announced that they wanted parliament to repeal the 1992 law on dual citizenship.
The legislation allows newly naturalised Swiss to keep their old passports. Previously, they had to give them up.
The justice ministry, headed by Christoph Blocher, a member of the People’s Party, is reported to be studying the proposals.
swissinfo: The Swiss abroad would be directly affected by the threat to do away with dual nationality as 70 per cent of you hold at least two passports…
Jean-Paul Aeschlimann: It would certainly be a major step backwards if this were to happen.
I think the People’s Party is shooting itself in the foot. Its intention is clearly to do away with the right of Swiss living in Switzerland to hold another passport. But in doing so, the party is forgetting the sizeable lobby of Swiss abroad.
To me, this is a clear error of judgment. If the People’s Party pushes for this change, it will provoke a very strong reaction from most of the people concerned.
swissinfo: But the People’s Party could not insist that this measure be applied retroactively, which means that the Swiss abroad, and more precisely those who have the right to vote, would not be affected.
J-P.A.: I don’t see the difference. This comes down to a question of basic principle, and even common sense.
Dual nationals who are citizens of the country they live in are always treated as such. The same applies for Switzerland. The problem [of dual nationality] is therefore already taken care of at an administrative, fiscal and political level.
swissinfo: If the people are called to vote on this issue, what stance will the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad adopt?
J-P.A.: The Swiss Abroad Congress will certainly take the position that the proposal is pointless and, what’s more, very damaging for the Swiss abroad.
If the People’s Party is neglecting us somewhat at the moment (although there are roughly the same number of Swiss expatriates as there are foreigners living in Switzerland), it is because it is under the impression that expatriates are somehow nostalgic and inclined to vote for the party. But the party is mistaken in this regard.
Perhaps it has analysed the results of nationwide voting and seen, for example, that on September 26 expatriates were overwhelmingly in favour – by more than 70 per cent – of two proposals on easing citizenship requirements. This includes those from supposedly conservative cantons such as Appenzell or Lucerne, bastions of the People’s Party.
The People’s Party can therefore see from this that the Swiss abroad do not necessarily vote the way the party would want. And perhaps it’s drawing the conclusion that the Swiss abroad should be “punished” in some way by taking away their Swiss nationality?
swissinfo: Are you extremely worried about the People’s Party proposals?
J.P. A.: Not really, because we will certainly find a way of ensuring that those entitled to a Swiss passport get one.
What concerns me more is what will happen with the second round of bilateral agreements with the European Union, with the Schengen/Dublin accord and the accord on combating international fraud. The political parties will have to watch their step as there will be some score-settling going on.
At this stage, you could say that September 26 has not hurt Switzerland very much, as no one was surprised by the double “no” to simplified naturalisation. In fact, if the same question had been put to voters in neighbouring countries the result would probably have been the same.
swissinfo-interview: Isabelle Eichenberger
Around 70% of the 612,000 Swiss abroad are dual nationals.
90,000 of them have the right to vote in Switzerland.
Foreigners make up around 20% of the Swiss population of 7.3 million.
Slightly less than 9% of those living in Switzerland have dual nationality.
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