Preserving Swiss hospitality

last updated 8 January 2015

Bern

Swiss voters narrowly rejected an anti-refugee measure that would have made Switzerland the least friendly country in Europe for people seeking political asylum. A far-right party initiated the proposal, alleging that African immigrants were “nearly all drug dealers,” not refugees. Every other party was against the measure. But it was popular among voters—especially German-speaking ones—and was defeated by less than 3,000 votes out of more than 2 million. The French speakers who rejected the measure, analysts said, were far more likely to actually know some Africans, as most African immigrants speak French.