What are arguments against the proposal?
Many Swiss lawmakers have pushed back against the initiative over concerns that it could hurt the Swiss economy, especially after U.S. tariffs last year impacted several Swiss industries like luxury goods, watches, machinery, and pharmaceuticals. Potentially terminating the free movement agreement with the E.U. could also impact Switzerland’s security and cooperation with the E.U.
“To permanently restrict immigration,” the country’s governing Federal Council said last March, “Switzerland would have to take measures that would be detrimental to its prosperity and incompatible with Switzerland’s international obligations.”
In December, both chambers of the Swiss Parliament formally recommended a “no” vote to the initiative.
Some have argued that the initiative may be limited in how it can meaningfully reduce immigration by restricting asylum, given that it would still be constrained by international human rights legal protections. Last year, just 7,300 of some 30,000 asylum applications were granted a refugee permit, and another 5,000 were provisionally granted a temporary permit to stay and work because returning them to their home countries would violate the principle of non-refoulement that is protected by international law.
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