According to an official report (see BBC article) the process of naturalisation in Switzerland is discriminatory and even racist.
Let's not forget that Switzerland is one of the most democratic countries in the world, because each of the 26 cantons is a parliamentary state of its own. In a country of 7.5 million residents (1/5 of which is made of foreigners), this means that the population is extremely close to their politicians. If we exclude foreigners, there is a parliament for 230,000 people in average. Even more democratic than Luxembourg !
In such a closely knit society, where dialects can be mutually unintelligible just on the other side of a mountain, it is normal that the opinion of local communities is so important. Therefore it is also natural that one would need the approval of that tiny local community where one is living to obtain citizenship. A place where everybody knows each others is utterly different from big impersonal cities where neighbours don't even recognise each others in the street, as is often the case in cities of over 1 million people. No such thing exist in Switzerland.
One cannot apply moral judgement universally without taking characteristics of each country and culture into account. In this case it is nonsensical to call the Swiss system racist when it is the essence of Switzerland and Swiss lifestyle itself.
BBC said:Switzerland has Europe's toughest naturalisation laws. Foreigners must live for 12 years in a Swiss community before they can apply, and being born in Switzerland brings no right to citizenship.
Under the current system, foreigners apply through their local town or village.
They appear before a citizenship committee and answer questions about their desire to be Swiss. After that, they must often be approved by the entire voting community, in a secret ballot, or a show of hands. This practice, the report says, is particularly likely to be distorted by racial discrimination.
It cites the case of a disabled man originally from Kosovo. Although fulfilling all the legal criteria, his application for citizenship was rejected by his community on the grounds that his disability made him a burden on taxpayers, and that he was Muslim.
Let's not forget that Switzerland is one of the most democratic countries in the world, because each of the 26 cantons is a parliamentary state of its own. In a country of 7.5 million residents (1/5 of which is made of foreigners), this means that the population is extremely close to their politicians. If we exclude foreigners, there is a parliament for 230,000 people in average. Even more democratic than Luxembourg !
In such a closely knit society, where dialects can be mutually unintelligible just on the other side of a mountain, it is normal that the opinion of local communities is so important. Therefore it is also natural that one would need the approval of that tiny local community where one is living to obtain citizenship. A place where everybody knows each others is utterly different from big impersonal cities where neighbours don't even recognise each others in the street, as is often the case in cities of over 1 million people. No such thing exist in Switzerland.
One cannot apply moral judgement universally without taking characteristics of each country and culture into account. In this case it is nonsensical to call the Swiss system racist when it is the essence of Switzerland and Swiss lifestyle itself.