The vote decides whether Switzerland will adopt two agreements with the EU on travel, security and immigration, thus loosening its 400-year-old tradition of neutrality in the heart of Europe.

The Schengen and Dublin accords, which Switzerland has already signed but has yet to ratify, would ease travel, loosen border controls, beef up security cooperation and adopt common asylum laws.

While big business, center and left parties and prominent government officials support the accords, advocacy groups and the right-wing Swiss People's Party, SVP, winner of the last parliamentary election, say Switzerland is giving up crucial political sovereignty.

"We would adopt hundreds of laws that, in the future, could be altered in Brussels without Swiss influence," Roman Jaeggi, spokesman of the SVP, said Friday in a telephone interview to United Press International.

In its unusual direct-democracy system, Swiss voters take part in up to 10 referenda a year. Sunday's vote was initially thought to be an easy 'yes' decision for the country, but latest polls show the tides might be turning.

Schengen-Dublin supporters now claim 55 percent of the vote, down from 62 percent six weeks ago. And the recent EU constitution naysayers in France and the Netherlands could tip that decision over completely, Jaeggi said.

"This is a clear statement against this European super-nation," he said. "There was a large yes majority a few months ago. This majority is getting smaller by the day."

But Guido Schommer, head of the Swiss Free Democratic Party, a center party in favor of the accords, says although the vote will be much closer than anticipated, influence from the French and Dutch referenda will likely be limited.

"Some protest voters might be encouraged to say 'no' on Sunday," he said Friday in a telephone interview to UPI. "But many people have voted by letter in the last five weeks, so before the French referendum. We expect a majority of these to have said 'yes.'"

But especially in rural areas, where isolationism remains a well-kept Swiss tradition, observers believe voters might say no in large majorities. With one in 10 Swiss still undecided and a high turnout expected, both sides are running ambitious campaigns to win over swing voters.

The SVP drew upon familiar EU-related fears such as increased immigration, crime and unemployment. Visual highlight of the campaign -- apart from flashy posters that feature screaming, terrified faces -- is a 24-foot, 5-ton wooden replica of the Trojan horse, which the SVP has rolled around the country to show that it feels the Schengen-Dublin accords are a "questionable gift" from the EU.

EU politicians with foreign-sounding names are featured on ads launched by a conservative advocacy group. "EU commissioner Dalia Grybauskat�� would be happy to soon to have an influence on Swiss politics," the slogan placed next to the Lithuanian politician's picture reads.

Schommer said the populist campaigning is falsifying the message. "We're not voting to become part of the EU," he said. "We are voting on a treaty that has been proven successful for many years."

"With our limited funds, we had to run an emotional campaign," Jaeggi said, adding that Schengen-Dublin opponents are rightfully concerned over an increase in criminality.

"We have crime rates three times lower than our immediate neighbors," he said. "I don't believe the Schengen countries will become safer, but that Switzerland is becoming less safe."

But Schommer says the treaties would actually improve domestic security because it gives Swiss law enforcement access to transnational crime databases and it improves communication with police in other Schengen area countries.

The Dublin agreement would bar asylum seekers denied in other EU countries from trying again in Switzerland, whereas now, "we have many double-asylum seekers coming to the country," Schommer said.

But Jaeggi said that domestic policies on immigration are "very effective in keeping non-eligible asylum seekers out of Switzerland," and thus a "yes" to Schengen-Dublin isn't necessary.

Saying "no" to the accords is also hurting Swiss tourism, Schommer said. "There is a big potential for increased travel from India and China. But with visa costs running high, these tourists might go elsewhere," he said.

A no vote on Sunday would be a serious blow to Swiss standing in Europe, said Jean-Philippe Jeannerat, spokesman for the Swiss Socialists, a left wing party that advocates Swiss integration into the European Union.

"There is a need for more cooperation and for those treaties," he said. "The only alternative is a Switzerland that is an outsider."

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