Politicians discuss reducing sentences for remorseful criminals: should Switzerland use key witnesses to hunt mafiosos?

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Those who come forward will spend less time behind bars: in Italy, the clemency program is an important tool in the fight against the mafia. However, this option does not exist in Switzerland.

Not yet? Because the introduction is now – again – up for discussion in the House of Representatives. Last week, the Legal Commission of the Council of States adopted a proposal calling on the federal government to investigate the introduction of the leniency policy.

The question is not new. It was last introduced seven years ago by then SP Council of States member Claude Janiak (74). But Parliament has so far refused to hear about a reduced sentence or even a remission of sentences for criminals who are willing to testify against their accomplices.

The federal public prosecutor’s office is lobbying

Now you make another attempt. The impetus for this was – as was the case last time – the federal public prosecutor’s office. Federal prosecutor Stefan Blättler (64), the country’s top investigator, called for a change in the law in an interview with the “Tages-Anzeiger” last June. “Key witnesses would help us fight the mafia,” says Blättler, who has been in power since 2022. He admits that it is annoying when members of criminal organizations get away with a reduced sentence. ‘But we have a choice: to die in beauty and do nothing. Or make concessions that undermine the sense of justice.”

Investigative journalist Maria Roselli (61) from television channel RSI from Ticino, who has done a lot of research into the mafia, also thinks it is right and important that Switzerland creates the possibility of key witnesses. “Regulation is fundamental in the fight against organized crime,” she says. Because it gives law enforcement authorities a unique insight into criminal organizations.

‘Smuggling undercover agents is often too dangerous’

‘Pentiti’ – penitents – are the names of key witnesses in Italy. It is important that they not only come forward to reduce their sentences, but also that they receive protection from law enforcement authorities. “In some cases they are given a new identity and are also protected after the trial. This has repeatedly made it possible in recent years to file lawsuits against leading members of clans,” says Roselli.

There are two points that make the clemency program so valuable from Roselli’s point of view: on the one hand, the guaranteed protection can break the Omertà, the silence. On the other hand, the authorities find out how an organization works internally. Because: “Infiltrating undercover agents is often too dangerous in such organizations.”

Victims of human trafficking can also benefit from this

But it’s not just about the mafia, Roselli emphasizes. “The leniency program would also be an important tool in the fight against human trafficking,” she says. Women who are victims of forced prostitution would be able to testify against their tormentors because they would be protected.

The Council of States will now vote on the initiative of its legal committee. If it accepts the request, the federal government must demonstrate in a report the advantages and disadvantages of introducing leniency. Parliament must then decide how to proceed.

Source:Blick