Swiss Foreign Criminal Deportation Referendum, 2010

A Swiss Foreign Criminal Deportation Referendum was voted on in the country of Switzerland on November 28, 2010.

This measure was approved

This measure will force the country to send criminals who have committed certain crimes back to their country of origin. Optional deportation is already in place in the country but this will force the country to deport those criminals. This measure was brought to a referenda vote via a petition process. The Swiss government was not content with the content of the measure so they issued a counter proposal. Swiss residents were able to choose between the two options. A far right party campaigning for this measure were ordered by the Geneva government to remove a picture form their poster campaigns which they deemed offensive to foreigners. The picture was of Kadhafi, the head of the Libyan government. The picture was to urge a vote for the proposal to expel foreign criminals.

Additional reading

• Swiss Info, "Ballots are counted in nationwide votes," November 28, 2010
• World Radio, "'Black Sheep' initiative favored by some migrants," November 22, 2010
• The Sydney Morning Herald, "Swiss set to oust foreign criminals," November 22, 2010
• PBS News, "Swiss to Vote on Deporting Criminals," November 16, 2010
• Sky News, "Criminals Are Not Welcome!," November 4, 2010
• Daily Mail, "Swiss immigrants face instant expulsion if they commit ANY crime under proposed get-tough law," November 3, 2010
• The Telegraph, "Swiss poised to vote on controversial immigrant law," November 2, 2010