The referendum on the Egyptian investor’s marina project is causing emotions to run high in Uri. Accusations of intelligence and political interference are causing a stir.
The investor Samih Sawiris is currently facing a tough wind in the canton of Uri.
Urs Flüeler / Keystone
For Martin Iten from the Christian Social Party and Patrick Steinle from the Alternative Greens, Samih Sawiris’ tourism project on Lake Uri is a horror idea. In their recently submitted postulate “to save the Pearl Isleten” they defend themselves against the “sophisticated marina, which neither fits in with the canton of Uri nor would it comply with the protected status of the area (Federal Inventory of Landscapes and Natural Monuments, BLN)”.
They have the Egyptian investor in their sights because he wants to build a hotel with 50 rooms and 30 apartments, 70 apartments and 7 bungalows on the small Isleten peninsula. On November 24th, the people of Uri will vote on the popular initiative “Isleten for all”, which would effectively mean a ban on construction. The initiative is actually everyday political business. What is anything but normal, however, is that Iten and Steinle do not live in the canton of Uri. Rather, they are local politicians from Zug. They also submitted their proposal to the large municipal council of the city of Zug.
Conspiracy theory about political intelligence
Iten and Steinle draw the legitimacy to interfere in foreign affairs from the fact that the city of Zug has had a partnership with the municipality of Isenthal for over fifty years, on whose territory part of the planned marina would be located. The politicians are proposing to refresh this relationship and to build a “House of the City of Zug” for the city of Zug’s school children on the disputed area instead of a holiday resort. This idea should be implemented regardless of the outcome of the referendum.
In the canton of Uri, the move from the wealthy city is not going down well. “We don’t need any advice or political interventions from the Zug area,” says Councilor of States Josef Dittli. “The presumptuous postulate with which left-wing parliamentarians want to make a name for themselves at our expense is causing people to shake their heads in the canton.” The FDP politician is convinced that the postulate is counterproductive and will ultimately harm the initiators. The justice director Daniel Furrer is reserved and explains: “The Uri government does not comment on political initiatives from other cantons.”
Eveline Lüönd is president of the Uri Green Party and co-founder of the “Isleten for all” initiative. For them, the political initiative from the city of Zug shows that the issue affects people beyond the canton of Uri. One should not forget that the city of Zug in the mountain community of Isenthal has been involved in the construction of the schoolhouse and streets over the past decades. “Back then, no one spoke of interference; people were happy to take the money,” says Lüönd.
The intervention brings additional fuel to the voting campaign. An advertisement appeared in the local newspaper “Urner Wochenblatt” that was directed against politicians and Sawiris. An anonymous “IG Urnerinnen und Urner für Uri” accuses the investor of not keeping everything he had negotiated with the authorities in Andermatt. A sports hall was never built like this. The advertisement goes on to say that there is no need for a new project “because we have enough rooms that cost 2,000 francs per night (for example in the ‘Chedi’!)”.
The ad spreads conspiracy theories. The IG claims that the whole thing was a set-up from the start. The sale of the Isleten area was secretly arranged by the politicians involved for a long time. It was only the popular initiative that “made the Uri felt evident beyond the cantonal border”.
According to Lüönd, the advertisement does not come from the initiators’ kitchen. “We’re fighting above the belt,” she says. “The voting campaign stirs emotions and mobilizes both sides. “On the whole, the discussions are civilized.” According to the Green politician, it is difficult to predict how the vote will turn out. “We can achieve a good result,” she is convinced.
Sawiris needs patience
However, Lüönd is aware that it will be difficult for the initiators given the solidarity in the bourgeois camp, where all parties have recommended the initiative be rejected. The Green Party President is particularly disappointed with the SP’s vote approval. “We would have hoped for more support from this side.” Due to this constellation, Councilor of States Dittli assumes that the initiative will be rejected with around 60 percent of votes against.
Furrer sees the voting campaign as very committed. However, he believes that opinions have already been made due to the long and intense discussions. “I am more likely to say no to the initiative,” says the government councilor. “That would be a signal from the Uri people in favor of the project, which should not be underestimated.”
A success on November 24th would only be a first interim victory for Sawiris. There are still a few obstacles that need to be cleared out of the way before the marina can actually be built. A report from the Federal Commission for Nature and Heritage Protection (ENHK) will probably have to be obtained. This must assess whether the project is fundamentally eligible for approval in the landscape worthy of protection. In addition, structure and zoning plans must be changed. Whatever the decision at the ballot box, Sawiris will keep the people of Uri in suspense for a while.
