Posted on October 8, 2008

Swiss to Vote Anew on Free Movement With EU

AP, October 6, 2008

Switzerland will vote again on whether European Union citizens should be allowed to live and work in the country after nationalist groups collected enough signatures to force a referendum, the Federal Chancellery said Monday.

Members of the youth wing of the nationalist Swiss People’s Party, together with the far-right Lega dei Ticinesi and Swiss Democrats, say the vote is aimed at stopping “uncontrolled mass immigration” from Romania and Bulgaria.

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The 50,000-signature petition that forced the referendum was an embarrassment for the Swiss People’s Party, which has distanced itself from the youth wing’s demands.

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All other major political parties said they supported renewing the deal and extending it to the two Eastern European countries.