61340 Vorabseiten_e - Unabhängige Expertenkommission Schweiz

taken seriously. It was not until 1944 that a more determined refugee policy was
adopted under pressure from public opinion, the Treasury Department, and in
particular the newly created War Refugee Board. Between 1933 and 1945, the
USA admitted a total of around 250,000 Jewish refugees.
If inspite of the specific conditions prevailing in the various countries of refuge,
we attempt to make a comparison, the following is relevant:
In Switzerland as in other countries, the tightening of policies concerning
foreigners and refugees in 1938 was basically an accentuation of attitudes
adopted in the 1920s. In each case, the admission of foreigners was increasingly
restricted for reasons of what was defined as the national interest. It must be
noted that Switzerland (like Sweden until the end of 1942) seems to have been
the only country to openly apply racist selection criteria according to the Nazi
definition.
From 1940 on, Switzerland’s restrictive admission policy proved to be especially
dramatic because, due to its geographical position, it was the easiest country of
refuge to reach on the continent, and several thousand refugees were turned
back although the authorities knew that this might mean sending them to their
death. In autumn 1942, influential circles publicly manifested their rejection
of official refugee policy. This, however, only led to a temporary uncertainty of
the Swiss authorities, who – unlike the Swedes – only decided at a very late stage
to admit all refugees in mortal danger.
In conclusion it can be said that the refugee policy applied in Switzerland in the
1930s was comparable to that pursued by other countries. In 1942 and 1943,
however, Switzerland found itself in a historically unique position which cannot
be compared to that of other countries. The international community as a whole
did far less than it might have done to save refugees. In this respect individual
countries reacted in different ways to the challenges specific to their own
position. Switzerland, and in particular its political leaders, failed when it came
to generously offering protection to persecuted Jews. This is all the more serious
in view of the fact that the authorities, who were quite aware of the possible
consequences of their decision, not only closed the borders in August 1942, but
continued to apply this restrictive policy for over a year. By adopting numerous
measures making it more difficult for refugees to reach safety, and by handing
over the refugees caught directly to their persecutors, the Swiss authorities were
instrumental in helping the Nazi regime to attain its goals.
168