The Jewish Trail of Tears The Evian Conference of ... - Haruth.com

After the Anschluss the number of refugees rose to greater than ten thousand
prompting the Swiss Government to increase border security and deportations. Between
March 12 and April 1 3,000-4,000 refugees from Austria entered Switzerland.
Reportedly, one thousand refugees came into the the country illegally over a three week
period in August of whom some were interned in a camp at Dupulsau and others forcibly
returned to Germany. Increased security was enacted in the mountain passes and on the
Austrian border. Consequently, the total number of refugees declined but again spiked in
1940 following the German occupation of France. Switzerland could continue to honor
its tradition of political asylum to refugees, Rothmund asserted, but current conditions
mandated that the nation serve as a point of transit to other destinations rather than a site
of permanent resettlement. 9
The closure of frontiers abutting Austria forced Switzerland to introduce a
system of visas for Austrian passports in order “to secure some control over
immigration.” The Swiss Federal Council declared on March 28, 1938 that all Austrians
seeking entry into Switzerland would require a travel permit. All refugees lacking proper
documentation were barred admission on August 18 and from October 4 onwards all
German non-Aryans required authorization as well. 10 By August an additional one
thousand illegal refugees had crossed the Swiss frontier prompting Canton Chiefs of
Police to warn that future undocumented aliens faced deportation, stricter police controls
9 Ibid., 52.
10 Circular of the Swiss Police Department September 7, 1938, Yad Vashem Archive, M 63/20 Federal
Police and Justice Department, Department of Police Bern available from http://yadvashem.org.il/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%203273.pdf;
Internet; accessed April 15, 2007.
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