Swiss canton bans political debates in education ahead of elections

Switzerland holds elections to the federal parliament on October 22. © Keystone / Anthony Anex

Political debates at educational institutions in the western canton of Vaud are now forbidden in the ten weeks before elections, in a decision that has outraged left-wing parties.

This decision was taken by the cantonal education minister, Frédéric Borloz of the centre-right Radical-Liberal Party. It is intended to prevent vote-catching during the election campaign. Left-wing parties are outraged.

Borloz defended his decision at a meeting of the cantonal government on Tuesday. Debates in schools are important to educate young people to become citizens, but they cannot take place at any time, he said.

Debates in the run-up to votes that do not fall within the realm of pure politics are not a problem, Borloz continued. However, this does not apply to debates related to elections, where fairness is more difficult to ensure, according to him.

His decision provoked outrage from the left. Social Democrat party cantonal president Romain Pilloud explained that adversarial debates, where all political opinions can be heard, have nothing to do with “propaganda”. “On the contrary, they are invigorating moments that allow young people to engage with civic issues,” he said.

Alice Genoud  of the Green Party called the decision an “attack on the freedom” of schools.

Support from the right

Several centre-right MPs supported Borloz. Swiss People’s Party politician Céline Baux said that debates in election times were “manipulation” and only served to “put certain personalities in the foreground”. For François Cardinaux, a Radical-Liberal, “school is a place to learn, not to do politics”.

The Left wanted to overturn the decision with a resolution. However, it failed because of the centre-right majority in the cantonal government.

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