Opfer des Schweizer Staates | Der Leidensweg eines «administrativ Versorgten» | Reportage | SRF

Rolf Horst Seiler hid in the forest for forty years. He wanted to evade the authorities' grasp. Seiler is one of the 60,000 victims of "administrative coercive measures." Their fundamental rights were systematically violated in Switzerland in the 20th century. 🔔 Subscribe to SRF Dok now on YouTube 👉 https://www.youtube.com/srfdok?sub_co... It was the early 1960s; Rolf Horst Seiler was barely of age when his decades-long ordeal began. He was considered a work-shy troublemaker who needed to be incapacitated and re-educated. To evade the authorities' grasp, he saw only one way out: he hid in the forest. However, he never had long peace. Sometimes he was given administrative care. They wanted to try to make him a useful member of society. Sometimes he ended up behind bars for his delinquency. Most of the cases involved vagrancy or dine-and-drink. If he could no longer bear the winter in the forest, he would stay in an inn and not be able to pay. At least 60,000 people fell victim to arbitrary government action in Switzerland during the 20th century. Under the guise of "administrative care," the fundamental rights of those affected were systematically violated for decades. Politicians long resisted any serious historical investigation and rejected financial reparations. This changed under Simonetta Sommaruga as head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police. Politicians had come under pressure because entrepreneur Guido Fluri had collected over 100,000 signatures for an initiative demanding reparations. Switzerland issued an official apology and pledged a "solidarity contribution" of CHF 25,000 per victim. This ended a decades-long struggle—or rather, it should have ended. Rolf Horst Seiler is far from coming to terms with his past. He already has mountains of files and is constantly demanding more. He wants to know everything that was done to him – and by whom. Reporter Simon Christen reports on the tragic story of a man about whom we now know: He would not have been a case for compulsory measures, but rather for the disability insurance system. An expert report has since determined that, as a result of severe meningitis in childhood, he was largely unable to work for the rest of his life. NEW DOCUMENTARIES AND REPORTS EVERY WEEK ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 🔔 Subscribe to SRF Dok now on YouTube and activate the bell: https://www.youtube.com/srfdok?sub_co... 👇 More on documentaries & reports can be found here: 👥 SRF Dok on Facebook: https://fb.com/srfdok 🎧 More stories to listen to: https://www.srf.ch/audio/themen/mensc... 👀 More documentaries on Play SRF: https://www.srf.ch/play/tv/themen/dokus ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Channel info: The SRF Documentaries & Reports teams report factually, avoid scripted reality, and are committed to journalistic integrity. The editorial team's credo: We show life in all its nuances. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SRF's Social Media Netiquette: ► https://www.srf.ch/social-netiquette #SRFDok #Reportage #injustice #SRF