On Friday Evening, a debate over the referendum of the mass-immigration initiative took place on Swiss television station SF1. In it, SVP (Swiss People’s Party) Oskar Freysinger met in the broadcast “Arena” with assistant SPD (Socialist Party of Germany) chief Ralf Stegner who had commented (PI reported) on the result of the SVP initiative with “The Swiss, they’re nuts!” Freysinger countered Stegner in the program with: “If what the EU is doing is normal, then I’d rather be a nut case.”
SRF writes about the course of the round of talks:
[...] When asked at the beginning of the program what he thought of the tweet, the SVP politician made his statement in his typically poignant way. “Our image can’t be so bad if Mr. Stegner is flying here extra from Hamburg.” For him, it was clear that politics must control immigration and not the economy. “If we had not said ‘yes’ to the initiative, then we would have had to continue following along with waves of immigration – but not control them.” Whoever doesn’t look at this critically is nuts.
“Rhetorically speaking, that is very impressive, but it is, of course, wrong in actuality,” Ralf Stegner countered dryly. “You are actually complaining here that the economy decides, but in reality, however, it is such that you want only the free movement of goods and services, but not that of people.” That is simply and easily not reconcilable with the bilateral agreements, said Stegner.
Thomas Borer, former Swiss ambassador in Germany sees a structural problem of understanding most of all in the differences in recent weeks. Stegner, for example, represents a part of Europe that has no understanding for the referendum. “As surveys have shown, though, many Germans understand the Swiss very well,” Borer thinks. Therefore, in his opinion, Europe would do well to take the fears and concerns of its citizens seriously.
An opinion that Oskar Freysinger could only endorse. “We haven’t made the mistakes of the EU until now. Just ask the simple people what they want and how they want to shape their future, and don’t insult my fellow citizens as kooks.” By the way that wasn’t a campaign, but rather he really thinks this way, Freysinger said.
“I fear just that, that you think the stupid things that you say,” SPD vice chief Stegner countered. And he didn’t leave off here with just this verbal slap. “The world is now much more complex than in your speeches, and Switzerland is a beautiful country, but it has deserved others to be in charge than those who think so one-dimensionally.” Because that is much less than what Switzerland is intellectually capable of.
“You are insulting the Swiss people,” Oskar Freysinger countered immediately struggling for form. Only a call for order by the moderator could tame the upset debaters. Nonetheless, things continued on emotionally.
Because the round discussed the question of whether the people should be allowed to vote with just “yes” or “no” on every question. “No,” said Stegner and got support by author Adolf Muschg: “Yes/No decisions are an unimaginable simplification of reality.”
Oskar Freysinger was not at all in agreement with this statement. “Even the most complex patterns allow for simplification,” he stated with conviction and reaped contradiction from Muschg. “The people indeed have more legitimacy than the parliament, but the complexity of the referendums has increased enormously.” In addition, each one votes these days in accordance with how it agrees with his wallet.
“Then I would rather be a nutcase.”
At the end of the discussion, SPD vice Stegner attempted a conciliatory end to the round. Should he make another tweet, then it would have the following wording: “Switzerland belongs to Europe. Don’t seal yourselves off. Hopp Schwiiz! (Go Swiss! A slogan used for sports)”
Oskar Freysinger stood neither for overtones of peace nor for an olive branch. His short message was a rebuttal to Stegner’s nutcase tweet: “If what the EU is doing is normal, then I’d rather be a nutcase.”
Here is the video of the program with an Oskar Freysinger in his best form, who as the only studio guest to speak – also from the area of the listeners – voted with YES (Swiss television there is certainly “democratic” in a way like the German):
Original on PI-German / Translation: Anders Denken
