Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
How much chocolate do you eat? Is it good for you? It feels like a day doesn’t pass without the publication of a new study into its possible health benefits. Today we have yet another. Which reminds me – it’s time for some 70% Honduras dark chocolate and an espresso to help me finish this briefing. Enjoy.
Read on for more news and stories from Switzerland today.
In the news: Swiss Bankers Association, Mastodon, chocolate and health and pollen.
- The head of the Swiss Bankers Association, Roman Studer, has countered earlier allegations from the United States that Switzerland may be hiding Russian oligarch money. In an interview with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), he declared: “We pursue a zero-tolerance strategy towards black money.”
- Facebook, X, Instagram…now Mastodon. The Swiss federal authorities plan to open social media accounts on the new decentralised online platform, seen as an alternative to X, formerly known as Twitter.
- Giving up chocolate could be unhealthy. In a study, people who eat little or no chocolate showed poorer cognitive performance, a higher risk of hospitalisation for heart failure and a higher overall mortality rate.
- The plant growing season and therefore the pollenseason are coming to an end. Looking back, the pollen year 2023 was difficult for people with allergies.
Abuse and the Swiss Catholic Church
Recent news that the Vatican has ordered an investigation into high-ranking Catholic clerics in Switzerland in connection with sexual abuse and in parallel the publication of report on 1,000 acts of sexual abuse perpetrated by Catholic clerics and members of the Order since 1950 continue to send shockwaves.
Today senior Catholic clerics from across the country held press conferences or released statements to clarify their positions.
Jean Scarcella, father-abbot of Saint-Maurice, indicated that he was being investigated by the Conference of Swiss Bishops in connection with allegations of sexual abuse and their cover-up.
French-speaking bishops Jean-Marie Lovey and Charles Morerod also reacted publicly.
Morerod, bishop of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg, said the University of Zurich report highlights again the poor management of cases of abuse in the Church. He supports changes such as new institutional structures for reporting cases, psychological control of candidates for priesthood and a ban on the destruction of documents about abuse cases.
“We are committed to a change of culture within the Church,” he said.
According to SonntagsBlickExternal link, Morerod is accused of not intervening after cases of abuse were reported. The bishop said on Wednesday that he could not comment on the accusations because of the ongoing investigation.
The Sunday press had also claimed that Jean-Marie Lovey, the current bishop of Sion, had not followed up on the denunciation of a victim. At a press conference he said he would assume his responsibilities but could not comment further. The Zurich study shows that the diocese of Sion destroyed archives on sexual abuse, Swiss public radio, RTS, reportedExternal link.
In German-speaking Switzerland Markus Büchel, bishop of St Gallen, regrets not having checked the clarifications made by his predecessor regarding a priest suspected of sexual abuse. He apologised to the media, lodged a criminal complaint against the priest and opened a preliminary internal investigation.
The diocese of Lugano also announced that it would improve its handling of cases of abuse. According to the Zurich researchers, many archive documents were destroyed in Lugano.
Geneva’s iconic Salève cable car re-opens
After several years of renovation, the Salèvecablecar, a flagship attraction in the Geneva region, has re-opened.
It took two years to renovateExternal link the iconic cable car, which carries visitors to the top of the Salève, a flat mountain, at an altitude of 1,100 metres, overlooking Geneva and nearby France.
Commissioned in 1932 and designed by Geneva architect Maurice Braillard, the arrival station is listed as a historic monument and has been completely renovated.
The concrete façade has been restored and the gallery has been redecorated. New spaces have been developed and a panoramic restaurant is planned in the future. Renovation work cost over €13 million (CHF12.5 million). A special inauguration weekend of festivities is planned on October 7-8.
Nespresso and cocaine – Swiss investigation is suspended
Last year Swiss police seized over 500kg of cocaine concealed in a container shipped from Brazil to the Nespresso factory in Romont in western Switzerland.
How did it get there? Who was involved in the smuggling? Why Nespresso and Switzerland? There were many burning questions about this amazing drugs story.
What we do know is that the drugs were discovered by workers unloading bags of coffee beans on May 2, 2022. A subsequent search of five shipping containers turned up over 500kg of cocaine, worth over CHF50 million ($56 million). Initial investigations showed that containers loaded with bags of coffee arrived by sea from Brazil before being transferred onto a train. It was thought the drugs were destined for the European market.
On Wednesday it was announced that Swiss prosecutors had issued a stay of proceedings suspending their investigation opened in May 2022. Proceedings may be resumed if new facts emerge, the Office of the Attorney General of canton Fribourg said.
The new information is that the cocaine was not destined for Nespresso, the office said. It was without the company’s knowledge that the drug was introduced into the shipment and “in all likelihood, the drugs should have been unloaded between Antwerp and Romont”. But it’s unclear why the cocaine shipment continued to the Nespresso factory. No suspects have been identified yet, prosecutors said.
While the Swiss probe has been suspended, investigations are still ongoing in Brazil.
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