Covid vote judged a ‘victory for the silent majority’

Unprecedented cordons around parliament in Bern were a “sign of the times” for 'Le Courrier' in Geneva Keystone / Anthony Anex

Following voters’ support of the government’s Covid law, Swiss newspapers have focused on the clarity of the result and the victory of a “silent majority” over a “strident minority”. The latter must accept the outcome, but their concerns can’t be brushed aside, the papers said.

“It’s the silent majority that won today. Not the minorities that we hear screaming and raving in the streets, on social networks, in the forums that the media open up to them only to be insulted themselves,” said 24HeuresExternal link in Lausanne.

“Those who want to continue to add fuel to a fire that no one chose to light will have to learn to change their tune. There’s no such thing as a ‘health dictatorship’ when almost two-thirds of citizens support the difficult path of their leaders.”

On Sunday 62% of the electorate supported the government’s policy to deal with Covid-19. With one of the highest turnouts in decades – almost 66% – 24 of the country’s 26 cantons said Yes.

The campaign was marked by loud and sometimes violent protests, mostly aimed at what opponents called a “discriminatory” Covid certificate. On Sunday police took the unprecedented step of cordoning off the area around parliament to prevent demonstrations called for by some protestors online.

These cordons were a “sign of the times” for Le CourrierExternal link in Geneva, which wrote of a “very Trumpian posture” regarding the refusal of one of the referendum movements to acknowledge defeat by invoking vote rigging.

The paper said it was “no small thing” that voters could have their say on the issue. “How many of our neighbours have been able to do the same? And it was indeed a democratic vote that we witnessed. The Swiss People’s Party [the only major party to oppose the law], which has played a macabre game throughout this campaign, has once again shown its ugly face as an extreme right-wing party. It undoubtedly hopes to gain some electoral advantage; it doesn’t think for a moment about the common good.”

The problem, as the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) pointed outExternal link, is that the principle of democracy works “only if the defeated minority accepts and supports the result. How great the willingness is among the opponents of the law seems questionable, however: many of them, including spokespeople, have in recent weeks called Switzerland a rogue state, compared it to Nazi Germany and called cabinet ministers dictators”.

‘Triumph of reason’

The result is a “triumph of reason”, according to the Tages-Anzeiger in Zurich. “A clear majority of Swiss voters support a fact-based and scientifically supported fight against the coronavirus pandemic. Covid certificate included,” it wroteExternal link.

“Our democracy using referendums isn’t fast. On Sunday we voted on a bill that reflected measures against the pandemic from last spring. Nevertheless, the ballot is irreplaceable. It’s a pressure relief valve – not only for the strident minority, but also for the majority who didn’t take to the streets every week.”

Blick said the government should keep a closer eye on the majority in future decisions and act more decisively.

“Until now the government, fearing of a No to the Covid law, has faffed around and avoided making clear announcements because it didn’t want to upset anyone,” it wroteExternal link.

“It can now dispense with this tactic, especially since, unfortunately, everything points to the situation spiking again: the number of (mostly unvaccinated) people being hospitalised is rising and the consequences of the Omicron mutation are uncertain.”

It’s clear what the government must do next, Blick concluded: let only people who are vaccinated or who have recovered from Covid access indoor spaces and events. “On this point, too, the government has a solid majority of two-thirds of the population behind it.”

‘Bitter realisation’

That said, the Tages-Anzeiger pointed to a “bitter realisation” after Sunday’s vote: “Trust in science in Switzerland isn’t great enough to bring Covid-19 under control via voluntary vaccination. The triumph of reason is short and deceptive.”

Pressure will grow, it said. The crisis is going to continue, and ideas such as obligatory vaccinations – as in Germany and Austria – could gain in popularity. If that should happen, and should that idea be taken seriously, we should insist now that the people will have the final word, it said.

“Because, ultimately, that is the currency that counts in Switzerland. Sunday showed that.”