Swiss public pool 'bans foreigners' and forces visitors to provide proof of citizenship after girls were subjected to sexual harassment
The rule, mainly affecting people coming across the French border, was brought in by authorities in the town of Porrentruy at the start of the month and is expected to last for the whole summer.
In the last few weeks alone, some 20 incidents are reported to have occurred at the pool, each involving visitors from France who were then banned.
'We have young girls who were followed and whistled at,' city councillor Lionel Maitre said, adding that employees were also disrespected and even attacked in one case.
In response, access to the outdoor bathing area has been limited to Swiss nationals and holders of settlement and work permits.
The 'blanket ban' has been described as 'problematic and irritating' by the Swiss government's Federal Commission Against Racism (FCR).
The commission's president Ursula Schneider Schüttel suggested that the move may even contravene Article 8 of the country's constitution, the principle of non-discrimination.
But Porrentruy Mayor Philippe Eggertswyler and city council members strongly denied that the measure amounted to discrimination against any section of the public.
'We need to look at the problem differently,' he said. 'There are huge crowds today, and it's imperative that we ensure that the people of Jura can already benefit from this infrastructure.'
The decision has faced criticism from the public and politicians in Switzerland and France.
'Not all of these people came from neighboring France - some also came from Switzerland, but that's the minority,' Maitre said.
He also hit back at the accusation of racism, saying it was largely coming from 'left-wing political organizations or individual representatives of the political left.'
But among those labelling the decision discriminatory was Christian Zimmerman, a council member who is part of Marine Le Pen's anti-immigration party Rassemblement National.
In a letter to the Mayor, the official said he had been alerted 'by many French citizens' that access had been restricted, and requested that he 'reverse this discriminatory and disproportionate measure vis-à-vis the public of neighboring France.'
An editorial in Swiss newspaper Le Temps said the decision set 'a dangerous precedent'.
'In the middle of the tourist season, this decision damages Switzerland's image and causes diplomatic unrest,' the paper's deputy editor wrote.
The FCR told Swiss outlet Blick that the local authorities should consider whether the ban 'is truly proportionate and whether less drastic measures could be considered, such as individual bans on swimming pools for people who repeatedly violate the rules.'
Maitre said that those critical of the move are failing to come up with 'concrete solutions' of their own, adding that the local government had tried multiple different rules to curtail the problems before implementing the ban.
He said that the move would not affect tourists staying overnight in the city as they are able to get permission to use the pool from their hosts, who are able to provide them with a 'guest card'.
Maitre blamed the crowds at his city's pool to the pool closures in France, saying French towns, plagued by the same problem of anti-social behaviour, would rather 'close their pools completely than solve the problems.'
This, he suggested, meant young people from neighbourhoods near the border were going to Switzerland.
The city previously stopped non-citizens from using the pool during the Covid-19 pandemic, to stop the spread of the virus.
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