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Swiss call for clarity on Saudi journalist disappearance

The Swiss foreign ministry has expressed concern over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, asking the charge d’affaires at the Saudi Arabian embassy in Bern for clarification on the subject.

Published: 15 October 2018 15:07 CEST
Swiss call for clarity on Saudi journalist disappearance
OZAN KOSE / AFP

A statement from Antje Bärtschi, who is the spokeswoman for the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), said: “In a conversation with the Saudi Chargé d'affaires ad interim in Bern, the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs has expressed its concern and called for clarification on the journalist's fate. Switzerland is very worried about the events surrounding the Jamal Khashoggi’s disappearance.”

This is the first official position that the Swiss have taken since the journalist went missing. 

When asked if Switzerland would impose economic sanctions on Saudi Arabia, Bärtschi said the government would decide on a “case by case basis.”

Bärtschi added that sanctions would only be “”legally binding under international law” if implemented by the United Nations. If this were to happen, however, Switzerland would be expected to do likewise.

A well-known Saudi journalist and former adviser to the Saudi royal family, Jamal Khashoggi, went into his country's consulate in Istanbul on 2nd October in order to obtain a marriage document.

According to reports, Turkish police will today search the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul. They believe Khashoggi never left and was murdered inside the consulate.

Some sources in Turkey allege that he was killed by a team of 15 Saudi agents.

The Saudi government strongly denies this and maintains Khashoggi left shortly after arriving, describing suggestions he was murdered as “lies and baseless allegations”

In the face of growing diplomatic pressure to give a fuller explanation of the situation, Saudi Arabia's King Salman ordered an investigation on Monday 15th October.

A Saudi official was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying: “The king has ordered the public prosecutor to open an internal investigation into the Khashoggi matter based on the information from the joint team in Istanbul.”

US President Donald Trump has promised to severely punish Saudi Arabia if it is found to have killed Khashoggi. However, he has ruled out blocking military sales even if the allegations prove to be true.

Saudi Arabia is a key partner for Switzerland and, according to SECO, the trade volume between the two amounted to CHF2.5 billion last year. 

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POLITICS

Could Geneva be first Swiss canton to grant foreign residents more voting rights?

Voters in the country’s most "international" canton Geneva will soon have their say on whether non-Swiss citizens living in their midst should have more political rights.

Published: 29 April 2024 12:19 CEST
Could Geneva be first Swiss canton to grant foreign residents more voting rights?

Foreigners are not allowed to vote on national level anywhere in Switzerland.

Though there had been attempts in the past to change this rule, the latest such move was turned down by legislators in 2022.

However, five cantons are permitting foreign residents to cast their votes in local referendums and elections: Geneva, Vaud, Fribourg, Neuchâtel, and Jura. Conditions vary from one canton to another, but in all cases a certain length of stay and a residence permit are required.

(In Zurich, a similar move was rejected in 2023).

Of the five cantons, only Neuchâtel and Jura authorise foreign residents to vote on cantonal level in addition to communal one; in the others, they can cast municipal ballots only. 

Additionally, three other cantons have similar laws on their books, but they this legislation remains mostly inactive.

Basel-City, Graubünden, and Appenzell-Ausserrhoden have authorised their communes to introduce the right to vote, the right to elect, and the right to be elected for their non-Swiss residents. 

However, only few of the communes in these cantons have actually introduced these measures.

Wait…Geneva’s foreigners already have the right to vote?

Yes, they have had this right since 2005, but only on municipal level.

However, this could change on June 9th, when Geneva residents will go to the polls to weigh in on an initiative launched by the trade unions and political left, calling for foreigners who have lived in the canton for at least eight years, to be able to vote and stand as candidates for political offices at the cantonal level.

This ‘upgrade’ to the cantonal voting rights is important, supporters argue, because it would enable foreigners to have more political impact.

“Municipal votes are quite rare, and the issues at stake are relatively limited,” the initiative committee said.

Therefore, “access to the cantonal vote will allow these same people to express their views on wider subjects that affect them on a daily basis.”

Is this  measure likely to be accepted?

No reliable forecasts exist at this point.

And while foreigners constitute nearly 40 percent of Geneva’s population — the highest proportion in Switzerland —  it will be up to Swiss citizens to decide on the outcome.

However, some members of the Geneva parliament are urging the ‘no’ vote on June 9th.

“No canton, no country, provides such generous rights to their foreigners,” the MPs from the centre parties pointed out in an interview with Tribune de Genève over the weekend.

(Neuchâtel and Jura allow voting, but not standing for election, at cantonal level).

“The only path for foreigners to obtain full political rights is through naturalisation,” the MPs added.

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