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- Switzerland should get a stricter anti-terrorism law. That was decided by the National Council and the Council of States in the fall session.
- Several young parties resent it: The Juso, the Young Greens and the Young Liberal Greens have now taken the referendum together with others.
- They find that the law severely restricts the fundamental rights and freedom of each individual.
In the fall session, federal councils passed a federal law giving police preventive measures against so-called terrorist threats.
The referendum committee, made up of the Young Greens, the Juso, the Young Liberal Greens and the Pirate Party, criticizes the fact that the far-reaching measures provided in the law against possible threats severely restrict the fundamental rights and freedoms of all people.
“Every citizen could be considered a terrorist threat”
To be considered a terrorist, one would not have to plan or carry out an act of terrorism, stated Tobias Vögeli, co-chair of the Young Green Liberals of Switzerland. The corresponding police suspicion would be enough to order measures such as house arrest, travel ban, mandatory search or shackles.
According to Jorgo Ananiadis, co-chairman of the Swiss Pirate Party, “the absurdly vague wording of the law” means that virtually every previously innocent citizen could become a terrorist threat.
The mere suspicion justifies the measures
The law violates article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights with the right to security and liberty, said Juso Vice President Nicola Siegrist. The measures went beyond prevention. They are a punishment without committing a crime or pronouncing a sentence. These laws are known from dictatorships. Switzerland would set a precedent for the relaxation of human rights.
The referendum committee presented its arguments against the so-called anti-terrorism law at a press conference in Bern.
Keystone
With the new anti-terrorism law, the police can independently decide what measures would normally require judicial review, said Ana Martins, co-chair of the Young Liberal Greens. On the altar of the fight against terrorism, the rule of law and the protection of human rights are sacrificed without people receiving more security.
Affected adolescents
For the referendum commission it is particularly offensive that the law contains a whole series of police measures that can be used against children from the age of twelve. These include bans on contact, electronic monitoring, and a ban on leaving the country.
The law violates the UN child protection convention, criticized Julia Küng, co-chair of Young Green Switzerland. Violating the rights of the child is not a measure against terrorism, but a crime.
In the autumn session, the Federal Assembly in the fight against terrorism agreed police measures to combat terrorism. In addition, a new criminal law on terrorism criminalizes recruitment, training and travel for an act of terrorism. No referendum is currently being held against this proposal.
