The Swiss village Oberwil-Lieli has voted to accept a fine of nearly $300,000 rather than host 10 refugees.
The town’s 2,200 residents voted 52-48 in a referendum on whether to accept the refugees, the quotas for which are set by the Swiss government.
Switzerland is accepting 50,000 asylum seekers across the country.
“We do not want them here it is as simple as that,” one resident told the Daily Mail. “We have worked hard all our lives and have a lovely village that we do not want it spoiled. We are not suited to take in refugees. They would not fit in here.”
The town mayor said that one of the reasons the residents rejected the refugees is because they would not be told where they would come from.
The mayor also said that the news of the migrants sexual assault in Cologne, Germany on New Years Eve had also influenced the people’s decision on the matter.
‘The rejection was a protest at the quota being imposed on us by the Government,” the mayor said.
Punitive actions against countries that have refused to accept refugees are also being considered. Earlier this month, the European Commission unveiled plans to introduce a fine of $277,000 per refugee rejected on a national level.
