Parliament wants to equip transport police with Tasers
Published: Thursday, Dec 5th 2024, 14:20
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In future, transport police officers will be allowed to use stun guns in Switzerland. After the National Council, the Council of States has also spoken out in favor of the use of these so-called Tasers.
On Thursday, the small chamber adopted a motion by Vaud SVP National Councillor Michaël Buffat by 27 votes to 7 with one abstention. It had already been approved by the National Council in February. It will now be passed on to the Federal Council for implementation. Buffat argued that stun guns could be useful for transport police officers.
This is particularly the case in "obscure situations" where blunt objects or knives are used in the presence of many passengers. Police equipment and weaponry must continue to evolve. Since 2008, many Swiss police forces have introduced Tasers.
The Federal Council requested that the motion be accepted. The federal government will amend the ordinance regulating the use of transport police, said Transport Minister Albert Rösti. However, it remains to be defined when these pistols can be used before this amendment is made.
In the National Council, Rösti had said that the Federal Council understood the motion as a request for a review. With reference to Rösti's statement, a minority in the Council of States led by Mathias Zopfi (Greens/GL) requested that the motion be rejected. It was unclear what mandate the Federal Council would receive.
The transport police ensure security at railroad stations and on public transport. It may stop people who are behaving unlawfully and carry out ID checks, as the Federal Office of Transport writes on its website. For more extensive police activities, it must call in the cantonal or local police authorities.
©Keystone/SDA
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