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Cabinet wants to stay with familiar anthem

The government has come out against a proposal to create a new Swiss national anthem with more people appeal.

This content was published on May 15, 2008

The lyrics of the Swiss Psalm date back to 1841 while the official tune was adopted less than 30 years ago.

The anthem compares favourably with more modern versions and it forms an entity, according to a cabinet statement on Thursday.

It adds that previous attempts to bring the anthem up to date came to nothing.

The proposal, launched by a centre-left parliamentarian, claimed the text is outdated and not very well known among the public.

Parliament is still to debate the issue, as well as a separate plan by a right-winger to open the three-week parliamentary sessions by singing the anthem in all four official languages.

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In compliance with the JTI standards

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