Court rules in favour of families left out of Geneva school system
Switzerland attracts large volumes of cross-border workers, notably in the Lake Geneva region and around the city of Basel.
Keystone
A Swiss court has ruled in favour of more than a hundred families who would be unable to enrol their children in Geneva schools at the start of the upcoming academic year because of a new policy that caps placements for students domiciled outside the canton.
This content was published on
2 minutes
The appeal was presented by 141 families affected by a local government decision to limit the enrolment of students from outside the canton for budgetary reasons. The court said this decision violated equal treatment, according to the Swiss News Agency.
The cantonal government, in new rules made public in January, decided to admit pupils living outside the canton to compulsory education in Geneva only within the limits of the places provided for in the budget.
As a savings measure, it did not apply to the cantonal parliament for a credit, as it usually did, to finance an additional 194 places at the start of the 2018 academic year.
Out of 443 school applications made by families living outside the canton, 141 were refused, noted the court. It said these families could not have anticipated this situation and were notified too late of the change in practice.
The court said the new policy should not be implemented immediately. It accepted the parents’ appeal and annulled the cantonal government’s decision. The file will return to the department of education for further decisions.
‘No discrimination’
Confirming these details published on Thursday by the Tribune de Genève, lawyer Romain Jordan says he advises the 140 other Geneva school families “to call on the department so that an equal solution can be found for all”.
“We will closely follow the evolution of the problem, ensuring that there is no discrimination and that all these children can be welcomed back to school,” he told the Swiss News Agency.
On behalf of the municipality of Saint-Julien in neighbouring France, Jordan drafted a legal opinion denouncing the illegality of the new procedure which in his opinion constitutes a restriction to the agreement on the free movement of persons. The court did not rule on that point, he noted.
The case is far from over. The question will come up again in 2019 because, according to the amended regulations, no new pupils living on the French side of the border will be accepted from the start of the 2019 school year unless they have a brother or sister who is already attending compulsory school in Geneva.
Currently, nearly 2,000 border students are enrolled in Geneva.
SDA-ATS/ds
More
More
More parents delay kindergarten start date
This content was published on
Children in Switzerland will have to start kindergarten from age four in line with school harmonisation rules. Too young, some parents say.
What do you think Switzerland’s Alain Berset can bring to the Council of Europe?
The former interior minister is to become the first Swiss Secretary General of the Council of Europe – which issues should his five-year term focus on?
How is your country dealing with the return of stolen artifacts?
Western nations like Switzerland often have to deal with the process of recovering or returning looted artifacts which have been illegally imported. What’s the situation like in your country?
Another body found in southern Switzerland following June storms
This content was published on
A body was found in the Maggia river in the southern Swiss canton of Ticino on Thursday, police said. It is “likely” to be the sixth victim of devastating storms which hit the region at the end of June.
Swiss helicopter rescue pioneers safe autopilot approach system
This content was published on
Swiss air rescue company Rega has received approval for a new kind of instrument flight system for approaching a hospital.
Algerian to face trial in Switzerland for ties to Islamic State
This content was published on
A 51-year-old Algerian man has been charged by the Swiss Federal Prosecutor's Office for involvement in the banned terrorist group.
Sylvain Saudan, ‘skier of the impossible’, dies aged 87
This content was published on
The Swiss father of extreme skiing pioneered descents from the Alps to the Himalayas – and became the sport’s first star.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss charity wants training geared to young refugees
This content was published on
Aid agency Caritas Switzerland is urging the government and cantons to invest in better and faster training for young refugees.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.