A victory for human rights

With 66.3% of votes and all 26 cantons against it, the Swiss electorate clearly rejected the Self-Determination Initiative yesterday. The initiative aimed to enshrine a supremacy of national law over international law in the Swiss constitution. Since it was rejected, Switzerland will maintain the current balance between international law and national law, and Swiss citizens will keep their right to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

Together with over 100 other NGOs, Helvetas has actively participated in the Alliance of Civil Society against the SBI since 2015. Many thanks to all those who made this success possible, whether in the run-up to the vote or by participating on the day of the vote.

The surprisingly strong success is due not least to the broad cooperation of civil society, political parties and business, which have joined forces to defend themselves against the targeted weakening of legal security and human rights protection in Switzerland.