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In Switzerland, people rubbed their eyes in amazement: Has Operation Libero become Operation Spaetzle? An advertiser from Zurich participated in the mayoral elections of Stuttgart (D) in November. He supported the campaign of the SPD candidate. Unsuccessfully.
Operation Libero has nothing to do with action. Because said Swiss is known to “Liberos” and was even a member of the board there, the association had to defend itself once again from negative headlines.
The episode illustrates the current state of the organization, which was founded in 2014 following SVP’s mass immigration initiative. Students in the fragile Bundesbern quickly advanced to become political prodigies. Her biggest triumph was the no to SVP enforcement initiative in 2016. The group that surrounded then-co-chairs Flavia Kleiner (30) and Laura Zimmermann (29) gave the winners that young, fresh look their opponents had. in Blocher-SVP. He is lost.
From spontaneous group to field machinery
The media celebrated the overcoming of young people by conservative and isolationist Switzerland. Although Vox’s analysis painted a different picture, the FDP and CVP voters who followed their parties were decisive.
But that did not matter anymore. The myth was born. The image of the cheerleader Flavia Kleiner in a pink coat was imprinted in the national memory.
The spontaneous force became a professional campaign machine. Other successful political battles followed, such as the “No Billag” initiative or the 2018 self-determination initiative.
There was admiration – and rejection – from all sides. They were too neoliberal for the left, too leftist for the conservatives. To this day, Zimmermann has to fight the rumor that business associations pay him.
And at some point the group lost their step. In the federal elections of 2019, an attempt was made to win candidates for a list of recommendations through a declaration of intent and thus influence the composition of parliament. That earned Aktion Libero criticism from all sides.
In the fall, he finally participated in the corporate responsibility initiative campaign down the stretch. The «Kovi» failed due to the number of stands.
When his opponents called political activists “scoundrels” for this reason, Zimmermann later found it appropriate to apologize. An act of great rarity in politics.
No public funding
Was Operation Libero the influence? Have you run out of luck? Have you lost your political compass?
The crisis culminated last week with Zimmermann’s announcement that the company was facing financial failure. By the end of February, CHF 500,000 would have to be produced, otherwise Operation Libero would be history.
How can professionals encounter such a situation? One is slim, says Zimmermann, and features SonntagsBlick figures. The office consists of six employees, spread over five full-time positions. Of the CHF 47,000 fixed monthly expenses, the salaries represent 38,000 francs. The rest is spent on space rental, administrative and IT expenses.
But the problem is different: Operation Libero is not a non-governmental organization (NGO) with a scientific or charitable mandate. Therefore, it does not receive public funding.
Donations of money flow mostly in the face of politically heated voting. And it becomes particularly emotional when a party sets the theme: the senior vice president.
The group depends on the fate of the political force that fights them most vigorously: if Christoph Blocher (80) and his senior vice president are weak, Operation Libero is also doing it wrong.
Zimmermann’s call for donations or crowdfunding works. “Today we passed the 200,000 franc mark,” he announced to SonntagsBlick on Saturday.
So it is very likely that this actor will stay on the political stage. A “2023 Strategy Document” has already been drawn up: they want to recruit new members, build a “sustainable financing model” and “get active where the shoe tightens the most.”
And sometime in the near future Zimmermann will finally be able to dive into the fateful dispute he has seen coming for a long time: a vote on the institutional framework agreement with the European Union.
