Anti-Immigration Policies win Swiss Favor

Swiss general elections have ushered in the nationalist People's Party, an outcome which signifies a major change in the longstanding tone and structure of the Swiss parliament. The Swiss People Party (SVP), formerly the smallest of four governing parties in the Swiss coalition, won the biggest share of the parliamentary votes in the recent election. This has upset the traditional system of "consensus politics" known as the "magic formula," which was established to distribute power between the four Swiss parties since 1959. The SVP - a far-right party, won on an anti-foreigner platform, which depicted asylum seekers as "criminals and drug dealers." But the campaign according to the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Bern, "found favor with more voters than it offended." Jason Morancie, a junior math major, suggested that, "Perhaps the Swiss were dissatisfied with the current makeup of the government. The BBC may have highlighted the negative aspects of the SVP, but there has to be some positives about the party which struck a chord with the Swiss public." Christoph Blocher, the party's leader and billionaire industrialist, said that it "looks superb for Switzerland. The fact that the Swiss have expressed such trust in the SVP means they want a change in policy." Analysts however do not share Blocher's optimism. Julius Baer's Chief Economist, Janwillem Acket told the BBC on Sunday that, "The developments of this evening surely show us that the myth of a stable political Switzerland is probably waning away now." He continued, stating that, "The result of the general election is a prelude to more political instability in this country and probably the prelude to the vanishing of another myth - the special status (wealth and stability) that Switzerland has enjoyed since the end of World War II." Switzerland's economy has not been faring well and may soon be in a slump, given increasing unemployment and cut backs in social benefits. But according to the BBC, the SVP's anti-immigration propaganda dominated the election campaign and stole the limelight from economic concerns. Keisha Mc Lean, a junior political science major, said that 911 could be one of the factors behind the Swiss vote for the SVP. "Since 911, the perception of immigrants has changed. Not only are immigrants being seen as a threat, but people are beginning to resent their access to federal funds." Kevin Aberdeen, a sophomore mechanical engineering major, suggested that the outcome of the election could be linked to the composition of its electorate. "The older heads," he said, "tend to be deeply rooted in their beliefs. They probably judged the campaigns not on what was presented on the platform but stuck with their strong ideals." Andreas Gross, an MP from the Socialist Party, said that the vote for the SVP could stem from Switzerland's own economic successes. In recent years, far-right parties have done well in countries reputed for "wealth and stability." "Austria, the Netherlands and Denmark have all seen openly anti-immigrant parties enter government in the past five years. The richer the people in Switzerland get," said Gross, "the more they are afraid to lose." The fact that asylum applications rose by 26.6% in 2002 to 26,125 in Switzerland does not help. Barbara Polla, the centre-right liberal party parliamentarian told the BBC that "I think there is a very large amount of work that needs to be done to reassure people, and to show that the presence of foreigners... is a positive factor, especially for the economy." Professor Thomas Fleiner of the Institute of Federalism said in the BBC analysis that "at the moment people are very insecure." Economic growth has turned to recession, and unemployment has hit a new high of nearly 4%. "That is what Mr Blocher appealed to with his anti-immigration campaign, which is in any case an issue a lot of people are worried about. We are seeing a political polarization in Switzerland, which is a country that has always stressed the importance of consensus." He continued, "And the big question now is whether the system of Swiss Government and the consensual style can cope with this, or whether an entirely new form of politics is needed."