The National Council still does not want to allow dialect debates

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The Grand Chamber decided that on Tuesday. She rejected a motion by Lukas Reimann (SVP/SG) to allow Swiss German dialects during debates. The decision was taken by 164 votes in favour, 20 against and 2 abstentions. The advance is off the table.

Reimann argued for the strengthening of language diversity. «Dialects form the character and are a symbol and expression of Switzerland. Nothing expresses the diversity of our country better.” In various cantons, the regulations stipulate that members of parliament may use the dialect for their deliberations in addition to the written language.

However, the majority in the National Council followed the Council Bureau, which recommended that the initiative be rejected. Philipp Matthias Bregy (Central US) argued that the use of dialect in the Federal Assembly would make understanding and exchange between the language communities more difficult.

In the eyes of a majority, the change in practice would also lead to problems and questions about simultaneous interpretation and the written announcement of votes. Bregy underlined this by reciting a poem from Upper Valais that was difficult to understand even for trained ears. “We want everyone to understand each other and communicate in a language that everyone can understand,” concludes Bregy.

(SDA)

Source:Blick