Beat Jans surprises with attitude towards procedures in third countries

Beat Jans reports on falling refugee numbers – and surprises with his attitude towards asylum procedures in third countries

“If we controlled everyone, our system would collapse,” says the Minister of Justice in an interview, explaining why he does not believe border controls are a panacea for migration problems.

Federal Councillor Beat Jans, Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police FDJP, in an interview with CH Media.

Photo: Severin Bigler

When it comes to sweets, Beat Jans is a local patriot. The Minister of Justice offers CH Media Basler Läckerli at the interview. The autograph card in his office, however, is international. It comes from Dominic Lobalu, who was taken in as a refugee in Switzerland. The top athlete thanked Jans for supporting him so that he could compete for Switzerland at major events.

Beat Jans, two Arabic-speaking rejected asylum seekers attacked an Orthodox Jew in Davos in August. What was going through your mind?

Beat Jans: I was shocked. At the same time, the incident strengthened my conviction that we must do more to combat racism, religious intolerance and violence in Switzerland. We do not accept any form of violence.

A Syrian asylum seeker carried out a deadly terrorist attack in Solingen, Germany. Will this act change the debate in Switzerland?

The hectic pace that broke out in Germany has spilled over into Switzerland. Numerous proposals have been submitted since then. But there is no reason to rush into things. That is un-Swiss. The situation in the asylum sector in Switzerland has relaxed somewhat in recent months.

Really? The cantons and municipalities are having great difficulty finding enough accommodation and housing for asylum seekers.

The challenges remain great. But in the most likely scenario, we assume that 28,000 to 29,000 applications will be submitted by the end of the year instead of up to 33,000. We also now expect 17,500 applications from Ukrainians instead of 25,000. The other good news is that there are significantly fewer security-related incidents in federal asylum centers, partly because of the 24-hour procedures. We also have clear indications that crime is also falling around the asylum centers, for example in Boudry and Chiasso. And we are better at providing medical and psychological care to asylum seekers.

How do you view the extraordinary asylum session next week? There are a number of proposals for tightening the rules being discussed in parliament.

I will point out that we do not make hasty decisions in Switzerland, and also that we trust in the constitution and our democratically legitimized asylum law. That is my compass. The constitution obliges us to protect people from persecution and inhumane treatment. The constitution protects families and personal freedom, and it obliges us to act proportionately. That applies equally to all people in Switzerland. We must hold on to that at all costs. It would be wrong to give up our fundamental freedoms. That is the goal of unscrupulous power politicians and terrorists: they want to divide Europe.

Germany has extended border controls to all its neighbouring countries. Do you think this is a hasty move?

It is not up to me to judge German politics. But there are big differences between Germany and Switzerland. Germany is the destination for many migrants, Switzerland is more of a transit country. I have noticed that we have done a lot of things right in the past. We have accelerated the procedures and concluded many migration and readmission agreements. The number of pending returns is just over 4,000. We are one of the countries in Europe with the best returns enforcement and are constantly improving. By comparison: Germany alone has more than 200,000 pending returns.

As a Basel resident, you will have noticed the controls in Weil am Rhein. Is the idea of ​​a borderless Europe over?

On the contrary. With the new European asylum and migration pact, the EU has declared its commitment to open borders and to curb asylum migration by better protecting the EU’s external borders. Internal migration is also to be combated.

But the border controls in Basel are noticeable.

The following applies: Switzerland is not part of the customs union. It has always carried out customs controls at its borders. Germany is now doing what Switzerland has been doing for years. I made it clear to the German Federal Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser, that border controls must not make everyday life more difficult. I also told her that we would not accept rejections. But the current regime is moderate. Faeser also confirmed to me that the current German government will not introduce rejections and will not take any measures that will cause problems in Switzerland.

Faeser sells the border controls as a great success. Why do you reject systematic controls at the Swiss border?

The question is what exactly “systematic” means. If we checked everyone, our system would collapse. Endless traffic jams at the border would be the result. The current system works. The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security carries out risk-based checks and continually reassesses the situation. It sets priorities, for example on combating human trafficking. I asked the Federal Council to increase the frequency of checks during the European Football Championship and the Olympics. This had no effect on the number of asylum applications. This shows that it is an illusion to believe that border controls are the Panacea for all migration problems.

The German federal police check a Basel tram on line 8 that crosses the border near Weil am Rhein.

Bild: Dlovan Shaheri

After all, Germany says it has sent 12,000 migrants back to Switzerland since last autumn. That’s not nothing.

The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security receives the people and dutifully informs them that they can apply for asylum at a federal asylum center. But the number of asylum applications at the federal asylum center in Basel has also fallen. We assume that these people will leave Switzerland again.

Can you understand that attacks like the one in Solingen trigger fear among the population?

Yes. That is why we immediately analyzed the situation in Switzerland. With all due modesty, we can say that we are doing and have done a lot of things right when it comes to preventing terrorism. Every asylum seeker is subjected to a security check. The intelligence service only identifies a threat in very few cases. The greater terrorist threat comes from young people who are already in Switzerland and are becoming radicalized, for example on social media. That is why the federal government aimed an existing action plan at young people two years ago.

Can action plans really dispel people’s fears about immigration?

I will do my part to implement targeted measures to strengthen security. This will achieve more than submitting random proposals.

Anyone who applies for asylum in Switzerland has passed through several safe third countries in the Schengen area. What is wrong with rejecting these applicants?

If we find that someone has already received protection or applied for asylum in another country, we reject such applications today. That is the Dublin rules. However, we do not send anyone back to countries where they face torture and persecution. That would violate the Federal Constitution.

Your message today is: Don’t rush, the situation is easing. Do you see the pressure from the SVP and FDP as just theater?

(Laughs.) You just said that! But it’s true: you should do what works, not what sounds good.

In February, your hopes were resting on the deterrent effect of the 24-hour procedures for applicants from North Africa. But they are of no use. The number of applications from these countries has not decreased.

It is true that this measure has not led to a decline in asylum applications. This is also due to the fact that we now register applications immediately and not only when fingerprints are taken. The 24-hour procedures are nevertheless a success. They have led to a 40 percent drop in the number of overnight stays in federal asylum accommodation by people from the Maghreb states. This relieves the burden on staff and has also noticeably improved the security situation in the accommodation. We want to take further measures.

Namely?

I have ordered another comprehensive pilot test to be carried out in October: Asylum seekers will now also be registered over the weekend. Up until now, people have come to the asylum accommodation on Saturdays, but they were only registered on Mondays – when some have already left. Our evaluation of the 24-hour procedure has shown that asylum accommodation is still being misused as a weekend hotel by this group of people. We don’t want that.

Could the 24-hour procedures be extended to countries other than the Maghreb states?

That is difficult. Our procedures are already faster than those abroad, which is not least in the interest of those affected – including those who really need our protection. But the decisions must also stand up in the Federal Administrative Court.

Several countries are currently considering outsourcing asylum procedures to third countries. Is this a good idea?

I had a meeting with Filippo Grandi a few days ago. He is the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and something like the highest advocate for people on the run. He says that these procedures can be useful under certain conditions. That is also my belief. Of course, you can’t do what Great Britain did with Rwanda by simply sending money and refugees and thinking that the problem is solved. But if you can guarantee the rule of law and human rights by having our staff carry out the procedures on the ground in cooperation with other states, that can be more effective than if people take the risk of drowning in the Mediterranean. We have to think about migration policy along the entire chain of refugees – including by helping the countries from which people emigrate in the first place.

“I am a constitutional patriot”: Beat Jans in the corridors of the Federal Palace.

Photo: Severin Bigler

You have now presented various measures. One could say that you are reacting to the criticism that the SVP has recently voiced.

This criticism is part of the business. But you could also mention when something works.

Does the sharp tone from the right hit you?

No, I expected that…

… and the criticism from the left that you are an asylum hardliner?

(Hesitates.) This one may have been a bit more intense than I expected, but that’s part of the business.

Where do you locate yourself?

I am guided by the values ​​that the constitution prescribes for us. I am a constitutional patriot. This also includes international law and Switzerland’s humanitarian tradition.