Tonight, February 9th, 2014, around 600 people gathered in the city of Bern to protest the anti-immigration ballot results in Switzerland.
As a racist initiative was once again accepted by the majority of eligible voters, numerous people took to the streets to demonstrate against this racist policy. Fear propaganda has agitated against foreigners for years. Racism and xenophobia are widespread in society. Xenophobia is only covering up the true causes of housing shortage, competition at the workplace, etc. The capitalist economic system—and not foreigners—is responsible for the fact that people compete with each other. Neither are foreigners to blame for the fact that houses are renovated and rented at higher prices; the profit-oriented system is responsible for all this. The parliamentary left has little to nothing to out-argue the right-wing populists, and they were so pathetic that they went along with business representatives and their arguments in the voting campaign.
After a gathering at the Church of the Holy Ghost, the noise demo moved through the main streets of Spitalgasse and Marktgasse. After a brief detour to the Waisenhaus Square, the march paused in front of the Federal Palace, where a speaker over megaphone pointed out the xenophobic climate in Switzerland and throughout Europe. The protest against the tightening of regulations for the right of asylum is, however, just one step in the struggle against dominant capitalist relations, and should be seen as part of a general resistance.
With antifascist slogans and several stop-and-go’s the protesters left the Federal Square, and headed to the train station. At the train station we made more noise, before the demonstration dispersed at the Schützenmatte stadium. Then it was reminded that we need to take a stand against racists on March 29th, 2014: On this day, in Bern, a right-wing nationalist alliance is planning to protest against “Kuscheljustiz” (“soft justice”).
NO BORDER, NO NATION – STOP DEPORTATION!
source: bern bleibt nazifrei via switzerland indymedia