Serbs in Switzerland

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Since there are generally no exact numbers on ethnic Serbs in Switzerland - the census only asks about nationality and mother tongue, not about ethnicity, the exact number of ethnic Serbs in Switzerland cannot be determined. At the end of 2012, around 98,700 Serbian citizens were living in Switzerland. The first large wave of emigration came due to the need for guest workers in the 1960s to 1980s, the second followed with the break-up of Yugoslavia in 1991 and the crises that followed.

history

The first migration of Serbs to Switzerland begins in the middle of the 19th century. Before and during the First World War , some Serbs studied at the University of Zurich , including those who later held important positions at home. Zurich was considered an important educational center for young Serbs. From 1863 to 1914, a total of 160 Serbian students studied in Zurich, including numerous women. This was a result of the good economic, cultural, diplomatic and political relations between Switzerland and Serbia at the time.

The second wave of migration by the Serbs took place after the coup by Alexander I. On January 6, 1929, he suspended the 1921 constitution, dissolved parliament and proclaimed the royal dictatorship . In the interwar period, many Serbs, as well as Croats and Slovenes , who were oppressed or found themselves in an economically hopeless situation, fled to the West.

In the second half of the 20th century, many Serbs went to Western Europe (especially to Germany , Austria and Switzerland ), North America and Australia as guest workers, mostly due to difficult economic living conditions . The Serbs were disproportionately involved in the Yugoslav guest worker migration in Switzerland. According to recruitment agreements, Switzerland concluded a corresponding agreement with Yugoslavia in 1961. There were also some emigrants who left Yugoslavia for political reasons. This migration made it possible for the then communist Yugoslavia to reduce unemployment and at the same time created enormous foreign currency income through the remittances of the emigrants to their families . Initially, it was not planned that the workers would stay in Switzerland permanently. In the meantime, women and children have followed suit, and some Serbs are already the third or fourth generation to live here.

The last wave of emigration came with the collapse of Yugoslavia (1991–1995), when Serbs left the country because of the new ethnic conflicts, the civil war, but also because of the catastrophic economic situation.

Relationship between the former Yugoslavia and the Serbs in Switzerland

By granting permission to emigrate, Yugoslavia solved two problems at the same time in a “humane” way: the “export” of superfluous workers, whose employment would have been extremely problematic under self-government socialism, and at the same time secured an enormous source of foreign currency income .

Yugoslavia benefited from the donations to her family members, their savings deposits in Yugoslav banks and investments (especially in the construction of houses). About forty percent of Yugoslavia's total foreign exchange income from goods exports flowed into the country in this way in 1975.

When moving from a non-democratic political system of Yugoslavia to the democratic system of Switzerland, the Serbs and the other citizens of the former multi-ethnic Yugoslavia were not allowed to be politically active. According to the political regime of Yugoslavia at the time, this could have been punished as “hostile action” with repression and legal consequences.

Any attempts to criticize Yugoslav real socialism or political engagement without regard to the actual objectives were described by the Yugoslav rulers as hostile activities and punished accordingly.

statistics

Number and origin

So far, no statistics have been collected in Switzerland on how many people are ethnic Serbs and where they come from. Based on the census in 2000, 103,350 people stated Serbian or Croatian as their main language. At the end of 2012, around 98,700 Serbian citizens were living in Switzerland.

The Serbs are concentrated in German-speaking Switzerland . Important centers of the Serbian diaspora in Switzerland are Zurich , Basel , Bern , Lucerne and St. Gallen .

religion

The majority of Serbs are supporters of the Serbian Orthodox Church .

Suffrage in Serbia

Serbs living in Switzerland can participate in Serbian elections, be it presidential or parliamentary elections. However, you have to register as a voter with the official representation of the country in order to vote.

Well-known Serbs in / from Switzerland

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Swiss Confederation - Permanent foreign resident population by nationality. Retrieved on November 22, 2017 (data in the XLSX file linked there ).
  2. ↑ Dejan Mikić: Identity Formation - How Yugoslavs became Serbs. (PDF; 40 MB) In: terra cognita, 13. 2008, pp. 94–97 , accessed on November 22, 2017 .
  3. ↑ The Serbs in Switzerland
  4. ↑ Federal Population Census 2000: Language Landscape in Switzerland