A friend of my mother’s just called and told her about something incredible that happened to her son, which makes me wonder whether I really live in such a civilized country…

Apparently, his apartment was basically invaded by four policemen, without a warrant and under false pretenses (‘a neighbour heard a child cry’). In reality they were looking for dope – which, admittedly, they found (he’s a dry alcoholic but still smokes and even grows a little bit for his personal use) – but the whole thing must have happened in such an insulting and rude way (for example they made fun of him when he wanted to call his mother) that it puts to mind a police state, not uber-civilized Switzerland… Also, they took his cell phones and all the money he had, as well as the dope stuff. Tomorrow he has to go to the station – I wonder how that will go. He’s trying to reach a lawyer (not really possible on a Sunday) and has already written a letter to the Minister of Justice in Basel.

I’m not condoning his drug use – although possessing weed is semi-legal in Basel, as long as it’s small quantities, he deserves all the legal ramifications. But he definitely didn’t deserve being treated by the police in a way that I can’t imagine is legal in any way. In my mind – if someone’s a law officer, they have to obey the law, no matter with what kind of people they have to put up with on a regular basis. That’s how our system, our society works – people have rights and there are rules that have to be followed by everyone. Human Rights aren’t just a phrase, are they?

I mean, someone else that my mom knows was stopped by police riding his bike at night – and slammed against a wall so hard that eventually they had to bring him into the emergency room. But not before dragging him to the station and hassling him there.

It really makes me question in what kind of country I live where stuff like this is allowed to happen… And that on the very day when I was so excited that the new partnership law was accepted by the people!