SWITZERLAND - Population Cap Rejected

Switzerland rejected a proposal to cap its population at 10 million as voters prioritized economic stability and ties with the European Union over worries immigration was stretching public ‌services and pushing up rents.

The vote, which was likened to Britain’s 2016 Brexit referendum, had put businesses on edge due to concerns it could end the free movement of labor between Switzerland and the EU, the country’s main trading partner.

Urs Bieri from pollster GFS Bern said the cap failed to pass because while concern about population growth is widespread, people were worried it could damage Swiss relations with the EU and make it harder to recruit staff, and find workers like carers.

The Swiss population already stands at 9.1 million and has grown far more quickly than in the surrounding EU. Foreigners make up nearly 28% of the total, which official projections forecast will reach 10 million by the early 2040s.

Sibel Arslan, a Green Party federal lawmaker, said the result showed Switzerland remained committed to working with its European neighbors. But she warned a taboo had been broken that was likely to resurface.

-www.reuters.com, 13 June 2026

Commentary: Switzerland is doubtless an extraordinary nation. Wikipedia notes 15 November 1350 as the significant date for “the growth of the old Swiss confederacy.”

According to Wikipedia: “The last full-scale war Switzerland fought in was the Sonderbund War of 1847. This was a brief, month-long civil war fought between seven Catholic cantons (the Sonderbund) and the rest of the country, resulting in the creation of the modern Swiss federal state.”

During the Second World War, Switzerland stood neutral, and it paid off for them. Switzerland was not invaded by Nazi Germany.

This super-rich and free country is the dream of many foreigners to enter. They can, but only for a limited time, just like any other country. In the meantime, 28% of the population is foreign-born.

When it comes to financial strength, we know that in 1966, the US dollar equaled 4.32 Swiss francs. Today, to buy one Swiss franc, you need $1.25.

Also, in gold ownership per capita, the Swiss stand unchallenged with about 118 to 136 grams per citizen (USA: 24 grams per capita).

The World Zionist Organization selected this most peaceful nation on planet earth to host the first Zionist Congress on 29-31 August 1897. Theodor Herzl famously made this proclamation then: “At Basel, I founded the Jewish State. If I said this aloud today, I would be greeted by universal laughter. In five years, perhaps, and certainly in fifty years, everyone will perceive it.”

Genesis 12:3 is applicable: “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

(See Israel Matters, Item #2328, $17.99.)