Following an investigation into corruption involving Malaysia’s state fund 1MDB, Swiss authorities have seized a large amount of money – and put it in its coffers. Malaysian pressure groups want that money back.
Switzerland didn’t waver: faced with the momentous corruption scandal surrounding 1MDB, the authorities took swift action. The attorney general investigated, the banking regulator pulled the plug at BSI private bank and issued a fine against Falcon Private Bank.
The government in turn seized 95 million Swiss francs and put it in its coffers as nobody claimed the money. That has now changed, according to a report by «Sonntagszeitung» (German-language newspaper).
Malaysian Protests
At the end of last year, 112 Malaysian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) demanded the Swiss government to return the money to the rightful owners, i.e. the people of Malaysia.
In Switzerland, the Bruno Manser Fonds has also campaigned to return the money. The Swiss NGO is a pressure group working to defend indigenous people and the rain forest.
Swiss Parliamentary Action
In parliament, some lawmakers have voiced their opposition to the Swiss government’s action. Socialist MP Carlo Sommaruga filed a motion demanding the return of at least part of the money seized in international corruption cases to the people of the countries where the money originally came from. His motion was sponsored by 26 fellow MPs.
The lower house of parliament will look into the motion in March. The government seized about 340 million francs from large corruption cases over the past 18 months.
