this post was submitted on 30 Nov 2025
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Swiss voters on Sunday decisively rejected a call to require women to do national service in the military, civil protection teams or other forms, as all men must do already.

Official results. with counting still ongoing in some areas after a referendum, showed that more than half of Switzerland’s cantons, or states, had rejected the “citizen service initiative” by wide margins. That meant it was defeated, because proposals need a majority of both voters and cantons to pass.

Voters also heavily rejected a separate proposal to impose a new national tax on individual donations or inheritances of more than 50 million francs ($62 million), with the revenues to be used to fight the impact of climate change and help Switzerland meet its ambitions to have net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

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[–] aldhissla@piefed.world 12 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

ITT: people judging the vote and the voters by the magnanimous title alone.

The initiatives were worded and implemented so poorly, that it wouldn't surprise me if the initiants wanted to lose both these votes.

  1. The inheritance tax would have caused mass nationalisations and it had pegged the tax proceeds to go towards climate goals instead of let's say the federal pension fund deficit (AHV-Loch). It would be incorrect to state that the voters don't support an inheritance tax or climate goals based on this vote.
  2. The "service citoyen" proposal would have made some kind of civil or military service mandatory for all, but would have essentially reduced the military to a volunteer force, which would be socially unacceptable. The Swiss have a historically repeatedly confirmed will to keep a citizen's militia as the country's only security force.
[–] Leomas@lemmy.world 1 points 1 hour ago

There is no "AHV-Loch", we're doing well in that respect. I'm against the second initiative too, but your rationalization is wild.

[–] kandoh@reddthat.com 36 points 18 hours ago (11 children)

Insane that any democracy would reject an inheritance tax

[–] wooffersyt@lemmings.world 9 points 7 hours ago

Most workers have been conditioned to fight tooth and nail for their oppressors.

It's really sad.

[–] gandalf_der_12te@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

with the revenues to be used to fight the impact of climate change and help Switzerland meet its ambitions to have net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Maybe the people wanted to have actual social services provided to them instead of climate action.

[–] kandoh@reddthat.com 2 points 5 hours ago

They could light the money on fire and it would still be worth impleminating

[–] Ibisalt@lemmy.world 8 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago)

the problem how i understood is, that we are not only talking about cash money but also money that is in businesses. family owned businesess may then be forced to sell their business to shareholder owned foreign corpos, because they could not afford it due to the tax. that sparked some major fear among voters. the result was not even close, it was 78% No! thats hughe and beyond any left/right worldview, not a single canton voted yes, that alone is a clear indicator that this bill was not very well-thought-out

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[–] SlartyBartFast@sh.itjust.works 7 points 18 hours ago

I thought everyone had to serve. Sad.

[–] oxysis@lemmy.blahaj.zone 68 points 1 day ago (27 children)

If men have to sign up for the draft then it is only fair that women have to too. It’s unfair that only men have to risk being drafted and losing so much of their life to war.

[–] biotin7@sopuli.xyz 3 points 3 hours ago

Actually I rather if Drafting was abolished altogether

[–] Barrington@feddit.org 15 points 12 hours ago (3 children)

Personally, I think having a draft is a terrible idea regardless of gender.

They voted down adding women to this already bad idea. Potentially in the future, they remove the draft altogether.

I guess my point is, why would you want them to make the situation worse just so it is equal?

Counterpoint: with a draft, people are less willing to support the government going to war.

[–] JcbAzPx@lemmy.world 3 points 5 hours ago

Removing the draft is never on the table.

[–] remon@ani.social 10 points 11 hours ago

Potentially in the future, they remove the draft altogether.

Support for mandatory military service in Switzerland has been going up in recent years, so I wouldn't count on it.

[–] EndlessNightmare@reddthat.com 18 points 1 day ago

As a general rule, I oppose gender roles codified into law.

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[–] SARGE@startrek.website 80 points 1 day ago (9 children)

Is Switzerland full of sexist people who think "someday I'LL be rich so I don't want to tax MYSELF more, hypothetically maybe in the distant future"?

[–] freijon@lemmings.world 2 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 1 hour ago)

The main counter argument was that this tax would make Switzerland quite unattractive to rich people, and that they would simple leave the country so that they don't have to pay this tax. And then Switzerland would even lose tax income overall.

[–] trxxruraxvr@lemmy.world 70 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Afaik, Switzerland is a very conservative place. So that pretty much aligns with what you said.

[–] Kirp123@lemmy.world 59 points 1 day ago (2 children)

They are so conservative that women got the right to vote federally in 1971. In one Canton they only got the right to vote at the local level in 1990 after a Supreme Court decision. They were the last Western Democracy to do so.

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