The Justice Ministry has banned entry into Switzerland of Henri Roques and Pierre Guillaume, French neo-Nazi propagandists who deny the Holocaust occurred.
The ban, to be in effect for three years, is based on a 1948 law which prohibits political statements by non-residents without permission. Roques and Guillaume held a press conference here last month to propagate their views though they were denied permission by the police.
The Justice Ministry acted on the complaint of Geneva Police Chief Bernard Ziegler. Unlike France, Switzerland has no law forbidding propaganda against minority groups because of race or religion. The Roques-Guillaume incident may lead to such a measure.
Israel’s Ambassador to Switzerland told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency Tuesday that the government is preparing legislation aimed against racist propaganda. It will be introduced in Parliament in February.
Roques and Guillaume came to Geneva last month to speak in support of Mariette Paschoud, a Lausanne high school teacher notorious for anti-Semitic statements, including denial of the Holocaust. Paschoud was relieved of her duties as a history teacher after parents protested. But she continues to teach French.
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