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Officials may speak as voters on matters they once handled

VVGE 1971/75 Nr. 7Other CourtAug 3, 1971Other

Open source

Extracted by Omnilex

Omnilex summary

The Regierungsrat held that officials, authority members, and former commission members are not barred from expressing opinions as voters on issues they once handled ex officio. A blanket speech ban would contradict democratic principles. The decision emphasizes that democracy depends on discussion and that the government's authority is not undermined by reasoned participation from public officials.

Omnilex headnote

Art. 13 Bst. b and Art. 15 KV; freedom of speech of officials as voters. Officials, authority members and former commission members may not be subjected to a general ban on speaking about matters with which they previously dealt ex officio. Such a prohibition would be incompatible with democratic principles, since democracy presupposes open discussion and the exchange of reasoned views. The mere fact that a person holds, or has held, an office does not deprive them of the political rights of an ordinary voter; the authority of government is not impaired by factual and argumentative participation, but only by attempts to silence one side of the debate (consid. 1).

Full text

Entscheidpublikation VVGE 1971/75 Nr. 7, S. 12:

Art. 13 Bst. b und Art. 15 KV.

Redefreiheit von Behörden und Beamten als Stimmbürger.

Entscheid des Regierungsrates vom 3. August 1971 (Nr. 449).

Es besteht selbst für Beamte und Behördemitglieder kein Redeverbot über Sachvorlagen, mit denen sie sich jemals von Amtes wegen auseinanderzusetzen hatten. Ein solches Verbot wäre mit unseren demokratischen Grundsätzen gar nicht vereinbar. Im Gegenteil: Demokratie ist Diskussion - jede sachliche Meinungsäusserung ist erwünscht. Es wäre daher tatsächlich nicht einzusehen, weshalb bei der Diskussion über Nachfragen von weittragender Bedeutung Beamte, Behördemitglieder oder einstige Kommissionsmitglieder als Fachleute nicht wie alle übrigen Stimmbürger mitreden dürften, nur weil sie zufällig gerade Beamte, Behörde- oder Kommissionsmitglieder sind oder waren. Die Autorität der Regierung oder eines Departementsvorstehers leidet darunter gewiss nicht. Sie würde nur dann leiden, wenn von Regierungsseite versucht würde, den Gewaltunterworfenen einen Maulkorb umzuhängen, damit das Volk die Gegenargumente nicht zu hören bekäme.

Keywords

political rightsfreedom of speechdemocracyofficialsvoterspublic debate

Extracted by Omnilex

Key legal questions extracted by Omnilex

Key legal question

Whether officials, authority members, or former commission members may speak publicly as voters on matters they previously dealt with in office.

Extracted holding

Yes. There is no prohibition on speaking about proposals merely because a person once dealt with them officially; democratic debate requires such participation.

Extracted reasoning

A speech ban for officials would be incompatible with democratic principles. Sound political discussion is welcome, and the authority of government is not harmed by factual and reasoned participation by officials as voters.

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