14-year dispute over Vgt commercial still not over
In 1994, the SRG refused to air a commercial by the Association Against Animal Bans that denounced industrial animal farming. Fourteen years later, the legal wrangling—which has also involved the Federal Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights—is still not over. Watching the commercial today, it’s hard to understand why it caused such a stir.
For 14 years now, the Swiss and European judicial authorities have been dealing with a ban on broadcasting an advertisement by the Association Against Animal Factories (Vgt). Swiss television refused to broadcast the commercial in 1994. Using images that are comparatively harmless by today's standards, the Vgt denounced the industrial farming of animals, especially pigs. This was linked to the recommendation to eat less meat, and the legal wrangling that began back then is now entering another round. The judges of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg approved Switzerland's application to bring the case before the Grand Chamber of the ECtHR. This application is a reaction to the condemnation of Switzerland by the ECtHR in September 2007, when the judges came to the conclusion that freedom of expression had been violated.
The dispute began in 1994 when Vgt wanted to broadcast the TV commercial via SRG, the only television station on Swiss soil at the time. However, Vgt was denied this by television. The AG responsible for commercial television justified the rejection by claiming that the commercial was political advertising and would damage business. This position was confirmed by the Federal Council and in 1997 by the Federal Court. As early as 2001, however, the ECHR upheld a complaint by Vgt and found a violation of freedom of expression.
The Vggt subsequently asked the Federal Court to review its 1997 decision, but the Lausanne judges rejected this request in 2002, whereupon the Vgt once again appealed to the ECHR, which again upheld the complaint in the fall of 2007. Erwin Kessler, President of the VgT, is still campaigning for the broadcasting of images from industrial animal farms. However, the commercial will not be shown on television until the Grand Chamber of the ECHR has issued its ruling.
Looking at the advertisement today, thanks to the Internet, it is hard to understand why it was rejected by Swiss television in 1994 and subsequently by the Federal Council and the Federal Supreme Court. Also incomprehensible is the passage in various news reports on Tuesday that the commercial contained harsh and sometimes shocking images. It seems as if the dispute over the Vgt ad has long since taken on a life of its own and is about everything other than the ad itself.
