The murders horrified Zug's townsfolk
Switzerland is still reeling from a shooting Thursday morning in which a man armed with an assault rifle and a grenade stormed into a local parliamentary session in Zug, killing 14 and injuring 18 others. Wearing a police vest, Friedrich Leibacher, a 57-year-old Zurich resident, walked into the crowded chamber of the cantonal parliament and repeatedly fired a rifle. He also denotated a grenade. Three of Zug's seven government officials and 11 of its 80 parliamentarians were killed. Leibacher, who has a string of felonies, threats and child abuse charges, then shot himself. Zug's mayor, Christoph Luchsinger, called the massacre an "attack on our democracy" and described the parliamentary chamber as "a terrible scene of horror."
A note found in Leibacher's car points to a dispute with a local bus driver as the motive for the killings. The note excludes any connection with the terrorist attacks in the United States, Zug officials said.
The attack, the first shooting of this scale in the country's history, is fueling a national debate on the need for tighter security at government and public buildings and is prompting questions about Switzerland's lax gun policy, one of the most liberal in the world. The massacre alarmed Swiss that such a savage crime could have been committed in this quiet, wealthy town, which has a reputation as a tax haven for foreign corporations.
No politician has been shot in Switzerland in over 100 years, but in the wake of the attacks security at the federal administration building in Bern as well as at some local government offices around the country was tightened. Rigorous identity and baggage checks were conducted on Friday, with police patrolling the streets around the capitol's parliament building. Next week metal detectors will be installed at the entrance.
These are unprecedented measures in a country that never had reason to seriously fear for the safety of its government officials and has taken pride in its open, grass-roots democracy. "The Swiss have always believed that politicians should be accessible and close to the people," says Heinrich Koller, head of the Federal Office of Justice. "But this killing has shocked a lot of people. Now they are thinking, 'It could have been me.'" Although Leibacher is reported to have used an Army rifle in the attacks, Koller says he was not serving in the military. There is no word on how the killer obtained the rifle.
Nearly half a million Swiss who serve in the military have rifles in their homes, but violent crime rates here are very low. "Our attitude to guns is different than in many other countries," Koller says. "We don't have a frontier mentality and have always felt safe within our borders. Now there is fear that our politicians could be in danger."
Although Switzerland's relaxed attitude to security is now being reviewed and stricter measures will probably be instituted, Koller says the Swiss are not giving in to panic. "We have a reputation for being calm and dispassionate," he says. "This attack has shocked us but we will react the best way we can-slowly and calmly."