Studies in Communication Sciences 17.1 (2017), pp.137–140
Migration and Swiss identity: How much space for the foreign in the familiar? Diana Ingenhoff, University of Fribourg, DCM – Departement für Kommunikationswissenschaft und Medienforschung [email protected]
Twentyfive years ago, in 1992, the Seville and their relations to media reception. Expo world exhibition took place on the Dr. Camelia Beciu, professor at University subject of “national identity”. The Swiss of Bucharest in communication sciences pavilion presented its country in a rather and senior researcher at the Institute of controversial and provocative way with Sociology, Romanian Academy, presented the slogan “La Suisse n’existe pas” (Swit- an analysis of the contexts and discours- zerland does not exist), created by the art- es of migration in Europe with respect to ist Ben Vautier. Romania and Great Britain. Alina Dolea, Today, the topic is even more relevant former Fulbright Fellow at University of and up-to-date, probably more so than Southern California, associate lecturer at ever before, as voting results show society University of Bucharest, Romania, con- to be deeply divided on many aspects of nected the construction of the image of the issue. the other with the self-image, resulting in Therefore, the Swiss Academy of Hu- discourses of “sameness” and “difference”. manities and Social Sciences (SAHSS) Subsequently, Alexander Buhmann, assis- launched a series of events under the slo- tant professor at BI Norwegian Business gan “La Suisse existe – la Suisse n’existe School, gave examples of the handling of pas” – one of them dedicated to “Con- refugees in Norway and Sweden. structing Swiss Identity and Country Im- Switzerland’s unique position – geo- age in times of Migration: Integration and graphically at the heart of Europe, yet his- Exclusion in Europe” on 20.03.2017 at the torically and culturally independent from University of Fribourg, which sought to the European Union – has made it a focal reflect on the discursive construction of point for the immigration debate. The Swiss identity and country image in the re- “cherry picking debate” (Rosinenpicker- current debates about migration and refu- Debatte), alleged foreign infiltration and gees in Switzerland and Europe. “Dichtestress” (overcrowding stress), pleb- Diana Ingenhoff, full professor and iscites on banning minarets, or the “Mass vice dean at the University of Fribourg Immigration Initiative” have not only re- who specializes in public diplomacy and vealed strong divisions within Switzerland organizational communication, opened but also been closely monitored by inter- the conference and introduced the Swiss national media. The domestic debates history on migration discourses and ple are having a clear impact both on the way biscites as well as her research on country Switzerland is seen abroad and how the identity and image. Ruth Wodak, Emer- Swiss see themselves. ita Distinguished Professor at Lancaster By attempting to grasp what we mean University and former full professor at when we speak about a country’s identity, University of Vienna, explored the discur- the difficulties we face become immedi- sive construction of European identities ately clear: does a collective entity we call and the rise of right-wing populism. Julia Switzerland even exist? A country uniting Metag, associated professor at Universi- four languages in a small area and shaped ty of Fribourg who specializes in science by the most diverse cultures and climes, and political communication, presented whose struggle for supremacy between the her research on attitudes towards refugees two major Christian belief systems nearly
https://doi.org/10.24434/j.scoms.2017.01.12 © 2017, the authors. This work is licensed under the “Creative Commons Attribution – NonCommercial – NoDerivatives 4.0 International” license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). 138 Ingenhoff / Studies in Communication Sciences 17.1 (2017), pp. 137–140 broke it apart, yet which has repeatedly a long tradition of giving voice to fears of put the emphasis on what united the Swiss the consequences of migration and put- rather than what divided them. How does ting the spotlight on the issue of identity a shared historical conscience emerge, in various discourses in the media, politics how does the media build a common iden- and the general population.1 tity of a “Willensnation” (a nation created Recently, strongly voiced citizens’ by the people’s will and consensus) in the fears that refugees and migrants threaten heart of Europe, and which are the domi- the well-being of society (Bauman, 20162) nant discourses? have joined the fray. The same author pos- As shown by research on the national its “responsibility” as a central issue here, identity, the perceptions about a country – describing citizens who feel disconnected whether internal or external – are shaped from the decision-making process and the by all kinds of generic attributes including democratic process, and the appropria- functional, ethical-social, aesthetic and af- tion of the issue by political parties all over fective components. Alongside functional Europe. aspects such as a country’s economic However, it might be hard to imagine stability, innovation, power and political how landmark projects for Swiss cultural leadership, it is also aesthetic components identity would have been possible without such as the country’s beautiful scenery, as immigration – think, for example, of the well as culture, traditions and charismat- construction of the Gotthard and Simplon ic personalities that shape the image of a tunnels. Nevertheless, the high number of country. The latter often play an important immigrants arriving in the wake of these role in establishing a national identity, as projects brought the issue of “Überfrem- exemplified, for instance, by the persona dung” (“over-foreignization”) to the table of Roger Federer: he succeeds as no other as early as 1914, when the foreign-born sportsperson has done before in linking proportion of the population stood at up the story of his success to Swiss attributes to 15 per cent, even reaching over 30 per (or “clichés”) such as modesty and stami- cent in cities such as Geneva and Basel. na, thereby creating a positive image for This provided fertile ground for the be- Switzerland and acting as an internation- ginnings of right-wing populism and the al ambassador for an entire country. This politicization and xenophobic rhetoric generates a particular payoff in terms of of immigration, which saw its first peak the emotional dimension of the country’s in the Schwarzenbach Initiative “Against image, putting the focus on the friendli- Floods of Foreigners and Overpopula- ness and openness of its inhabitants. These tion” 3. While in the past the focus was impressions are often partly shaped by an on the Jewish people and Bolsheviks, the ethical-social dimension, where a coun- main target in the 1970s was Mediterra- try’s responsibility towards its citizens and nean migrant workers, with the initiative’s the environment, human rights and hu- goal to limit the share of foreign residents manitarianism play a central role. Here to 10 per cent. On 7 June 1970 the motion too, Switzerland can boast a long tradition, was rejected, relatively narrowly, with only with Nobel Peace Prize laureates such as 54 per cent, by the men of Switzerland; Henri Dunant achieving international re- at that time, women did not yet have the nown and standing, and institutions such vote. Characterized as more of an outsid- as the United Nations High Commissioner er personality, James Schwarzenbach at for Refugees being headquartered in Ge- neva forming part of Switzerland’s image. 1 Wodak, R. (2015). The politics of fear:Under- Yet, the question of how to deal with standing the Meanings of Right-wing Popu- lism. London, UK: Sage. refugees and migration is dividing the 2 Bauman, Z. (2016). Strangers at our door. country. The diversity and inner divisions Cambridge/Malden: Polity. both within the Confederation and its 3 Manatschal, Anita (2015): Switzerland – Re- sovereign cantons is particularly evident ally Europe’s heart of darkness? In: Swiss Po- during the federal plebiscites, which have litical Science Review 21(1): 23–35. Ingenhoff / Studies in Communication Sciences 17.1 (2017), pp. 137–140 139 the time used a rhetoric that from today’s residents at 500,000. On 20 Oct 1974 this perspective seems grotesque, stigmatizing initiative was soundly rejected, with 65 per the “brown sons of the South” (usually re- cent of “no” votes. One of the demands of ferring to Italian immigrants) as “foreign the “Limiting Immigration” initiative was plants” and a “creeping disease” threat- to allow only 90,000 cross-border com- ening direct democracy, Swiss culinary muters and to issue no more than 100,000 habits and labour relations4. Even back annual seasonal permits. This initiative then xenophobia served “mainly to cover was rejected on 4 Dec 1988 with 67 per cent up the true reasons behind the situation – of “no” votes. Plebiscites such as the one i.e. a policy providing entrepreneurs with “against the mass immigration of foreign- immense wealth on the backs of the wor ers and asylum seekers” (1991), or “for a kers”5. This also shows that the foreigner sensible asylum policy” (1996) failed at the is always flagged up in terms of creating a early stage of collecting sufficient signa- distinction, a difference “from us”: identity tures or were declared void by Parliament. construction is framed and becomes man- Eventually, in the 1990s the SVP (Swiss ifest in “who we are” and how this “WE” is People’s Party) took on the mantle of right- defined by language, linguistic behavior wing populist initiatives, for instance with and symbols. the initiative “against illegal immigration” Consequently, campaign posters of launched in 1992, which ended up being this and other, similar, initiatives and the rejected on 1 December 1996 with 54 per language used by politicians not only cent of “no” votes. The initiative “against show how “otherness” is constructed and the abuse of the right to asylum” failed symbolized – but also how national iden- only very narrowly on 24 Nov 2000 to gain tity is constructed. These discourses on a popular majority. identity can be characterized by applying Then, on 9 February 2014, the first the method of critical discourse analysis to “Initiative against Mass Immigration” 1) the notion of a typical representative of was in fact adopted (albeit with a margin a nation, 2) the narrative of a shared politi- of only 19,500 votes, just 50.3 per cent). cal past, 3) the discursive construction of a Critical of immigration and demanding a shared culture, 4) the discursive construc- restriction of foreigners entering Switzer- tion of a shared present and future, and land through annual caps and quotas, it 5) the discursive construction of the “na- ran counter to the bilateral contracts with tional body”, the state territory (the land- the European Union in terms of freedom scape, architecture and cultural heritage) of movement, and earned major interna- (Wodak & Meyer, 20096). tional attention. The concept that kept The Schwarzenbach initiative was fol- cropping up in the debates surrounding lowed by a number of further initiatives the mass immigration initiative was the against the perceived threat of the foreign, so-called “overcrowding stress” (Dichte with similar content and rhetoric, such as stress), a phenomenon borrowed from the “Initiative for the Restriction of For- biology as the central argument of the eign Residents”, which aimed to limit the threat of a lower quality of life in the most number of annual grants of citizenship to diverse areas – and immediately earned a maximum of 4,000 and to cap foreign the distinction of the Unwort (ugliest, or literally, non-word) of the Year. The result 4 Maiolino, Angelo (2011): Als die Italiener of the plebiscite reflected once again the noch Tschinggen waren: der Widerstand country’s division along what is known gegen die Schwarzenbach-Initiative (When as the “Röstigraben”, the dividing line de- the Italians where still the Tschinggens: Re- fined by the popular Swiss potato dish. sistance against the Schwarzbach Initiative). In fact, the pattern is similar in nearly all Rotpunkt-Verlag. 5 https://www.woz.ch/-207d (3.6.10) the plebiscites that touch on Switzerland’s 6 Wodak, R., de Cillia, R., Reisigl, M., & Lieb- relationship with foreign countries, with hart, K. (2009). The discursive construction of the supporters of limiting immigration in national identity. Edinburgh, Scotland: EUP. German-speaking Switzerland (with the 140 Ingenhoff / Studies in Communication Sciences 17.1 (2017), pp. 137–140 exception of Zurich, Zug and Basle) and open itself up to the outside world, and the in the canton of Ticino, the opponents perceived threat of the foreign and a desire in the French-speaking Romandy part of to hold on to traditions.7 The debates have western Switzerland. A stark division be- historic precedents, and are by no means a tween “yes-voters” and “no-voters” on the purely Swiss phenomenon. Therefore, it is initiative became apparent, with a heavi- important to consider the complex macro ly pronounced contrast between city and context, particularly as “often nationalist country: the strongest supporters of the attitudes and ethnic stereotypes artic- initiative came from those rural regions ulated in discourse accompany or even least affected by pressures on population determine political decision-making, and density, with the strongest opponents in we note with concern the increase in dis- the densely populated cities. criminatory acts and exclusionary practic- One important question arising here is es conducted in the name of nationalism how countries strategically project images in many parts of Europe” (Wodak et al., to out-groups (country images) and how 2009, p. 1). At the same time, anti-immi- these images are perceived by in-groups grant and, specifically, anti-Muslim preju- (country identity). With international dice and islamophobia is on the rise both media putting a questioning spotlight on in Europe and the United States (Ogan et Switzerland’s model of direct democracy, al., 2014). national media gave voice to two differ- At European level, parties such as ent types of discourses: 1) the unexpect- France’s Front National (FN), Austria’s ed vote as a reflection of a deeply divided Freedom Party, the Dutch Party for Free- society, marking a change in the repre- dom, Alternative für Deutschland (AfD, sentation of Swiss identity, 2) while the Alternative for Germany) or the United government tried to explain the result of Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) en- the vote mainly in terms of respecting “the joy a strong following and are gaining con- will of the people” and the consequences sistently high voting percentages in their of direct democracy. Furthermore, media national elections. Even in countries his- grant visibility to the collective actor “the torically welcoming of immigration, such Swiss people” and often portray ordinary as the United States and Australia, the citizens as representative and symbolic of migration issue has been used to stir up a multicultural and diverse Switzerland fears and to distract from the mistakes of (whether a Geneva resident with Iraqi or- home-grown policies. The only thing that igins or the children of past immigrants). has changed over time is the countries of The populist discourse works by cre- origin of the “scapegoat” migrants. At the ating and exaggerating the differences be- centre of the debates constructed by the tween various categories of Swiss (masses media we find, time and again, a desire to vs. elites; Italian vs. Romands vs. German hold on to the myth of Swiss traditions and Swiss; the “yes” voters against the inte- traits which don’t really exist in any mea- gration of foreigners vs. the “no” voters surable shape or form. The opportunities in favour). Another strategy used is vic- created by migration and change are rarely tim-perpetrator inversion, emphasizing a mentioned, nor are we aware of the histo- threatened identity and portraying Swit- ry, and the obligations to provide protec- zerland as a victim of foreigners/migrants tion in accordance with the Geneva Con- and of the EU. To this end, the Swiss Peo- vention on Refugees signed by nearly 150 ple’s Party have started projecting fictitious countries worldwide, but this seems much scenarios suggesting the end of the coun- more needed nowadays. try and its power to decide its own fate. Explanations for the result of the vote 7 Sciarini, P., A. Nai and A. Tresch (2014): Analyse de la votation fédérale du 9 février appear to stem from a growing skepticism 2014. Bern/Geneve: gfs.bern et Universite towards immigration, once more firmly on de Genève.; Abu-Hayyeh, Reem/Fekete, Liz the rise since 2012, an identity conflict in (2014): Swiss referendum: flying the flag for terms of to what degree Switzerland should nativism. Race & Class, Vol. 56(1): 89–94.