Tents set up by displaced Palestinians from the northern Gaza Strip in the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip on September 25.
EPA/HAITHAM IMAD
The official launch of the popular initiative “For the recognition of the State of Palestine” is due to take place in the coming weeks.
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Swiss public broadcaster RTS has obtained confirmation from several sources that the Federal Chancellery has just approved the text of the initiative and that the collection of signatures can begin this month.
A 26-member national committee comprises people from civil society, lawyers and a number of left-wing parliamentarians. The formal support of the Social Democratic and Green parties has yet to be formalised.
+ Why Switzerland doesn’t recognise Palestine as a state
“The government is not doing its job, because Switzerland’s official position has always been the two-state solution. But the government is refusing to take the step and move towards this recognition. So the popular initiative is there to give this recognition through the Swiss democratic process,” parliamentarian Raphaël Mahaim, a member of the initiative committee, told RTS.
In concrete terms, the initiative seeks to enshrine in the constitution the obligation for the government to take this step. “If recognition of the State of Palestine is accepted by the people and the cantons, the government shall send the UN Secretary-General and the UN General Assembly a declaration to that effect within three months,” the text states.
Translated from German by DeepL/ts
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