Congress Center in Winterthur Refused Hosting March for Life Event Fearing Radical Left Violence
The congress center "gate27" in Winterthur withdrew the right to hospitality from the Swiss pro-life association "Marsch fürs Läbe", which had planned to host a substitute event for the March of Life on September 19th. An estimated 400 to 1,000 unauthorized counter-protestors were expected to attempt to block the event, causing the police to give out serious warnings about the danger of violent left-wing extremist attacks. The organizers of Marsch fürs Läbe regret the restriction of freedom of speech and assembly caused by left-wing extremist threats and filed a complaint.
Due to the Covid-19 conditions for events, the organizing committee of "Marsch fürs Läbe" decided to host a family-friendly event with 300 participants in the public congress center "gate27" in Winterthur instead of a public demonstration.
On September 1, the police informed them about the large, left-wing extremist mobilisation which had formed both in Winterthur and online to block the pro-life event. Plans for an unauthorized counter-demonstration were announced online by left-wing extremist and gender groups: Gather two hours before the start of the event, then move to gate27's entrance to block guests from entering. An estimated 400 to 1,000 of people, ready for forceful intervention, were expected. This would have required the largest police force to date in Winterthur to seal off the congress center and protect the safety of the participants, mainly families and children.
The expected escalations lead the management of gate27 to withdraw the right of hospitality, referring to their share of responsibility for local residents, club members, buildings and the public. "Provocation, vandalism and extremism contradict the desire of gate27 to be there for the city as a public congress center", they explained in a press release. The owner of gate27 is the local free church, Freie Evangelische Gemeinde Winterthur. Manager Roger Tacheron said: "It was a rationally-oriented decision to prevent an escalation of violence."
Past events had shown that some concerns were legitimate. During March for Life in Zurich in 2019, counter-demonstrators lit barrels on fire. After the announcement of this year's march in July, a partner organization found an animal carcass and maggots in its mailbox. While they understand the fear of damage and uncomfortable restrictions, the organizers regretted that a left-wing, anarchist minority was successful in stopping an event in a private congress location. The association has already taken legal action, seeking to host the March for Life again in Zurich in 2021.
Furthermore, they expressed their disappointment in the quality of preventive police measures. They argued that in the past years, the police had always been able to successfully fend off attacks. Police already had hundreds of names of left-wing extremist opponents who were prone to violence at their disposal, compiled from identifications and arrests during pro-life events in 2015 and 2019 in Zurich. In July, the organizers had sent a list to the police with hundreds of e-mail addresses from fake registrations which had been made to disturb the event. The preventive measures created by the police will have to be evaluated, but they find themselves accused of enabling the left-wing extremist intentions. The organizers were left wondering if the state is still willing to actively protect the freedom of speech and assembly.
Daniel Oswald, president of Winterthur's municipal council, stated in an online event: "The situation clearly shows that freedom of expression and freedom of assembly is no longer guaranteed everywhere in Switzerland. This results in a need for action. The monopoly on the use of force must be returned to the state."
EDU party in Switzerland sees the freedom of speech, and hence the democracy in Switzerland, at risk. "Where is the outcry about the cancellation of fundamental constitutional rights?"
Sources: Die Tagespost, Marsch fürs Läbe, Life Site
Symbolic Photo by Maria Oswalt on Unsplash