Strasbourg, 26 January 2012 ACFC/SR/III(2012)001 THIRD REPORT SUBMITTED BY SWITZERLAND PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 25, PARAGRAPH 2 OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES Received on 26 January 2012 NB. Appendixes are not available electronically but may be requested from the Secretariat of the FCNM. The Swiss Government’s Third Report on implementation of the Council of Europe Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities January 2012 2 INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................5 A. General remarks..........................................................................................................5 B. Latest relevant statistical data......................................................................................7 I. PART ONE ..................................................................................................................10 A. Participation of national minority organisations and NGOs in implementation and monitoring of the Framework Convention ........................................................................10 B. Dissemination of the results of the second monitoring cycle......................................10 C. Follow-up activities ..................................................................................................11 D. Raising awareness about the Framework Convention................................................12 II. PART TWO..................................................................................................................13 A. Implementation of the specific recommendations of Part 2 of the Committee of Ministers Resolution.........................................................................................................13 B. Article-by-article presentation of the measures taken in response to the findings contained in the Advisory Committee’s Opinion...............................................................14 ARTICLE 3..................................................................................................................14 1. Personal scope of the Framework Convention ...................................................14 2. Recognition of new national minorities?............................................................15 3. Intercultural dialogue and integration policy......................................................15 4. Transit sites for foreign Travellers.....................................................................16 ARTICLE 4..................................................................................................................17 1. Anti-discrimination legislation and monitoring of its implementation................17 2. Institutions for the promotion of human rights and the fight against discrimination ...........................................................................................................19 3. Discrimination against Travellers ......................................................................20 ARTICLE 5..................................................................................................................20 1. The Federal Law on Languages and the promotion of multilingualism ..............21 2. The promotion of multilingualism and the use of Italian and Romansh in the canton of Graubünden...............................................................................................25 3. Preserving the Travellers’ identity.....................................................................27 4. The lack of stopping places and transit sites for Travellers ................................29 4.1 Assessment of developments since the start of monitoring of the implementation of the Framework Convention......................................................29 4.2 Positive developments since the end of the second monitoring cycle..........31 4.3 Recommendations .....................................................................................34 4.3.1 New federal legislative guarantees to ease and speed up the planning and creation of sites .................................................................................................34 4.3.2 Better financial and other incentives to encourage the cantons to take action 34 4.3.3 Continued efforts to reallocate military sites ..........................................34 4.3.4 Strengthening intercantonal cooperation ................................................35 4.3.5 Encouraging spontaneous halts ..............................................................36 ARTICLE 6..................................................................................................................37 1. Raising awareness of the history and culture of Travellers.................................37 2. Climate of tolerance with regard to ethnic minorities and foreigners. Fight against intolerance and xenophobia in political discourse......................................................40 3. Anti-Semitism and discrimination .....................................................................42 4. Naturalisations ..................................................................................................46 5. Interconfessional dialogue.................................................................................47 3 ARTICLE 9..................................................................................................................48 6. Radio and television programmes in the Romansh language..............................49 7. The print media in the canton of Graubünden ....................................................50 8. Travellers and the media ...................................................................................51 ARTICLE 10 ................................................................................................................51 1. The use of languages, in particular Italian, in relations with the federal authorities 51 2. The use of a minority language in the canton of Fribourg ..................................53 ARTICLE 12 ................................................................................................................54 1. Harmonisation of language teaching and the promotion of multilingualism among teachers and students.................................................................................................55 2. Promotion of the language and culture of Travellers through educational projects 57 3. Schooling for the children of Travellers.............................................................58 4. Jewish history and culture in school curricula....................................................59 ARTICLE 14 ................................................................................................................59 1. Italian language classes outside the cantons of Ticino and Graubünden within the compulsory education framework .............................................................................60 2. The languages of primary education and the languages taught in bilingual cantons 61 3. The language of instruction and the languages taught in the canton of Graubünden ..............................................................................................................62 ARTICLE 15 ................................................................................................................64 1. Representation of linguistic minorities in the federal administration ..................65 2. Participation by the national minorities in economic life....................................66 3. Participation mechanisms for Travellers............................................................67 3.1. Strengthening the “A Future for Swiss Travellers” Foundation ..................67 3.2. Consultation of Travellers..........................................................................67 ARTICLE 18 ................................................................................................................68 1. Legislation on itinerant trade in the EU countries bordering on Switzerland ......69 4 INTRODUCTION A. General remarks 1. Switzerland attaches great importance to the protection of national minorities. It ratified the Council of Europe Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities on 21 October 1998. The Framework Convention entered into force in Switzerland on 1 February 1999. On 16 May 2001, Switzerland delivered its first State Report on the implementation of the Framework Convention; the first monitoring cycle was concluded with the Committee of Ministers Resolution of 10 December 2003 [ResCMN(2003)13]. On 31 January 2007, Switzerland delivered its second State Report, which led to the adoption of the Advisory Committee’s second Opinion on Switzerland on 29 February 2008. Switzerland submitted its Comments on that document in August 2008. The second monitoring cycle was concluded with the Committee of Ministers Resolution of 19 November 2008 [ResCMN(2008)10]. 2. Switzerland presents its third State Report below. It has been drawn up in accordance with the “Outline for state reports to be submitted under the third monitoring cycle” adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 11 June 2008. This third report focuses on the questions raised by the Committee of Ministers in its Resolution of 19 November 2008 and by the Advisory Committee in its Opinion of 29 February 2008. Switzerland was not asked to reply