SWISS CABINET REBUKES JUSTICE MINISTER

Swiss Info, Switzerland
Oct 19 2006

The cabinet says it regrets comments made by Justice Minister Christoph
Blocher in Turkey earlier this month that he wanted to change the
Swiss anti-racism law.

Swiss President Moritz Leuenberger said this gave the impression that
Switzerland could be pressured into changing its laws depending on
the circumstances.

"The cabinet remains opposed to a pure and simple abolition of the
anti-racism law," Leuenberger said on Wednesday. "This text will
remain in force and will continue to be used."

He said it was legitimate to propose making modifications, but said
the cabinet regretted that the discussion had been started during a
visit abroad.

Blocher, a leading light of the rightwing Swiss People’s Party, had
remarked during his Turkish trip that part of the anti-racism law –
which was adopted in 1994 and includes sections aimed at preventing
revisionist views about the Holocaust – gave him a "headache".

The law has led to investigations in Switzerland against two Turks,
including one historian, for allegedly denying the 1915 Armenian
massacre.

Armenians say around 1.8 million of their people died as a result of
a forced mass evacuation by the Turkish government during the Ottoman
Empire. Turkey puts the figure closer to 200,000. Under Swiss law any
act of denying, belittling or justifying genocide is a violation of
the country’s anti-racism legislation.

However, Blocher said at the time that it was ultimately up to the
government, parliament and possibly the population, to decide on
any changes.

What’s this? Federal Commission against Racism Under scrutiny

According to Leuenberger, Blocher has told his cabinet colleagues
that a working group at his ministry was already re-examining the law,
in particular article 261bis, the cause of Blocher’s headache.

The justice minister was ready to include a member of the Federal
Commission against Racism in this work, Leuenberger added, refusing
to any further questions on the matter – which caused a media and
political outcry in Switzerland – saying the content of cabinet
meetings was confidential.

For his part, Blocher, speaking at a different media conference
earlier in the day, said he was simply waiting for the feedback from
his working group by the end of the year.

"It’s about making the anti-racism law clearer, more secure and
unambiguous," he said.