dom of expression.” SP National Councillor for Aargau, Gabriela Suter, and SP National Councillor for Zurich, Angelo Barrile, doubled down with similar parliamentary initiatives. The SIG endorsed the motions in January 2022, the first time it has explicitly put its weight behind initiatives of this type. Far-right extremists at protest rallies and concerts were specifically taking advantage of Switzerland’s legal loophole, it said. “This is particularly hurtful and bewildering for the minorities affected.” The Council of the Swiss Abroad, which represents the interests of the “Fifth Switzerland” via-à-vis the authorities and the general public, also expressed support in March for criminalising all use of Nazi symbols and gestures in public. On behalf of the delegation from Israel, ety and are unacceptable in any country governed by the rule of law. And lo and behold, the Federal Council appears to have overcome its initial hesitancy amid reports that Justice Minister Karin Keller-Sutter is looking into the matter after all. The FDP Federal Councillor said her ministry would now see what legal options are available. Keller-Sutter also wrote a reply to the OSA (via which the Council of the Swiss Abroad had expressed its concerns to the Federal Council), assuring it that the government was well aware of the increase in anti-Semitic incidents in Switzerland. By all means you can prevent anti-Semitism and ban Nazi symbols at the same time, says Binder. It is necessary to do both. Building a Holocaust memorial (see box) while continuing to allow Nazi symbols and salutes defeats the object. Parliament is set to debate Binder’s motion in its summer session, after the editorial deadline for this edition of “Swiss Review”. Ralph Steigrad noted that Switzerland had been debating the issue for almost 20 years: “It now needs to act and follow the examples of other countries.” This did not mean stopping symbols from being shown in teaching material for purely educational purposes, he stressed. However, the Federal Council initially wanted to leave things as they were for the time being and rejected Marianne Binder’s motion. Even though Nazi symbols and salutes were “shocking”, they had to be tolerated as an exercise of freedom of expression, it wrote in reply. Educating people was better than enacting a ban. Experts are divided Legal and extremism experts are divided over the issue. Some say that far-right extremists might even feel vindicated if criminal proceedings were brought against them, and that a sweeping ban potentially moves us to a kind of penal law focused on punishing offenders’ attitudes or belief systems instead of the act itself. Others argue that Nazi symbols pose a threat to peaceful, democratic soci- “After debating the issue for almost 20 years, Switzerland now needs to act and follow the examples of other countries.” Ralph Steigrad, member of the Council of the Swiss Abroad Official Holocaust memorial to be built Switzerland is set to have its own official memorial commemorating the victims of National Socialism. During the spring session of parliament, both chambers unanimously approved motions, which had been submitted by Alfred Heer (SVP/canton of Zurich) in the National Council and Daniel Jositsch (SP/canton of Zurich) in the Council of States. We need to ensure that the terrible crimes of the Nazis remain rooted in our collective memory, said Jositsch. The memorial grew out of an initiative by five organisations, including the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA). Its purpose is to remember Swiss whom the Nazi regime persecuted, disenfranchised and murdered for being Jews or political opponents. At least 450 people with Swiss citizenship ended up in Hitler’s concentration camps. If you also include people who were born or lived in Switzerland, then you have well over 1,000 victims with Swiss connections. The monument will also honour the men and women who resisted the Nazis or offered protection or help to those who were persecuted. And it will be dedicated to people whom the Swiss authorities refused to rescue. Now parliament has given the green light, the Federal Council must flesh out the project. It is still unclear where the memorial site will be. The organisations that submitted the project to the federal government last year have proposed the city of Berne. In addition to an aesthetic public memorial, the aim is to include an additional space for exhibitions and events, and set up a virtual interface with other existing, private memorials. (SWE) Gino Pezzani’s prisoner number at Sachsenhausen concentration camp. “Sch.” stands for Swiss. Swiss Review / July 2022 / No.3 19
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