Solidarity Statement for Campaign against New Swiss Foreigners Law and Modification to Asylum Law

It is with steadfast resolution that we, the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, representing dozens of immigrant rights community organizations and hundreds of immigrants and immigrant rights advocates in the United States, and Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), a regional network of NGOs, associations and trade unions of migrant workers and individual advocates in Asia, stand in solidarity with the campaign against the proposed foreigners law and modifications to asylum law that was adopted by the Swiss parliament in December 2005.

The new Swiss law for foreigners violates international human rights principles by forbidding entry of almost all migrant labour, except those possessing only very specialized skills, thereby discriminating against and excluding a majority of migrants who are struggling to seek a sustainable living after having been displaced by global economic policies. Furthermore, this law goes against basic community and family values by preventing re-unification for migrant families, and tying foreign partners’ status to their Swiss marriage status. These create a dangerous situation that place an undue burden on women and particularly make them vulnerable to domestic violence.

Meanwhile, the law lacks any form of regularization process for migrants and contains no protections for victims of trafficking. Instead, this law criminalizes migrants by imposing 2-year jail sentences for irregular adult migrants, and 1-year detentions for minors. This will only result in the creation of many more irregular migrants who will be susceptible to abuse and discrimination in Swiss society.

The modifications to the asylum law further violate international law around refugees and asylees, by making the asylum process virtually impossible. After having to bear economic and political persecution in their home countries, migrants in Switzerland will now be further persecuted by needing to provide identity documents within only 48 hours, and making an appeal within only 5 days. Furthermore, asylum-seekers who receive a negative decision will be forced to endure further hardship since they will be immediately excluded from any social security system, regardless if they are the elderly or children.

As such, we CONDEMN these laws and stand in unity in saying NO! to the new law on foreigners, and NO! to the modifications to the asylum law.

National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (NNIRR)
310 Eighth Street, Suite 303
Oakland, California 94607
Tel: 410-565-1984
Fax: 410-565-1885
Email: nnirr@nnirr.org
Web: www.nnirr.org

Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA)
59B Malumanay Street, Teachers Village West
Diliman, Quezon City 1104 Philippines
Tel: (63-2) 433-3508
Fax: (63-2) 433-1292
Email: mfa@pacific.net.hk
Web: www.mfasia.org

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