On behalf of the Swiss Associations for Shared Parenthood, the VeV, together with mannschafft, carried out a survey of all incumbent national and state councilors. We wanted to know what parliamentarians thought about the objectives of our proposed law. 46 of them responded - practically all positive!
online survey in September 2007; Email to 200 National Councilors and 46 Councilors of States (S), replies by September 30, 2007
Asked questions
- Fathers should be given more rights and responsibilities when it comes to raising children
- The state considers parents to be capable of managing their own affairs regarding their children
- The parents concerned take care of such matters themselves as far as possible
- The state supports the parents in finding an amicable agreement
- The state (judge, authorities) only intervenes if the parents fail
- Father and mother are equally responsible for raising and caring for the child
- Children born in wedlock and born out of wedlock are treated equally in terms of their relationship with their parents
- As parents who live separately, they must agree on their share of child care and the distribution of maintenance costs in an agreement.
- If the parents cannot agree on these issues for the child, they must undergo a mediation process.
- If they still cannot come to an agreement after this, both parents will each share half the care of the child and the judge will decide on the details.
- Anyone who refuses or makes it impossible for the other parent to carry out their care responsibilities will, upon request, be punished with a prison sentence of up to three years or a fine.
- The parent with whom the child is staying should make everyday and urgent decisions for the child alone. Important decisions for the child must be made jointly by both parents.
- Do you support a legal regulation of shared parental custody that is designed according to the criteria mentioned above?
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Will you try to influence the discussion in your party or in parliament in the spirit of your answers given above?
The questions met with widespread approval from the parliamentarians who responded. An exception is question 11 (criminal liability of obstructing contact). The answers here were controversial. It will now be up to the parliamentarians to formulate the laws in such a way that they are more than just a dead letter.
