New start for the Council of the Swiss Abroad

Claudine Morier, Rolf Blaser, Simone Höch and Pascal Méan (left to right) are among the new delegates to the parliament of the Swiss Abroad. Swissinfo

The first SwissCommunity Days mark the start of a new legislature for the Council of the Swiss Abroad (CSA), strengthened by elections that are more democratic than ever. Electronic voting is at the heart of the demands.

On Friday, some 150 Swiss Abroad from the four corners of the globe converged on the Federal Palace in Bern. They are taking part in the very first SwissCommunity Days, organised by the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA). The event also marks the inaugural session of the new legislature of the Council of the Swiss Abroad – the first since the large-scale direct elections to the “parliament of the Swiss Abroad”.

With this election, the Council has largely made up for its chronic democratic deficit, thereby strengthening its legitimacy on the national stage.

The elected candidates – whether nominated by direct vote or under the old delegation system – will be officially confirmed at Saturday’s constituent meeting. More than half of the 140 seats were renewed, with 71 new faces.

>> Watch our video of Friday:

“We are certainly not a real parliament,” admitted OSA President Filippo Lombardi as he welcomed the delegates. “But the Council of the Swiss Abroad is our organisation’s most representative and most important body.”

Charged with voicing the concerns of the Swiss expatriate community and defending its interests vis-à-vis the authorities and the public, the Council has limited resources at its disposal. “Our power is limited, as are our resources,” Lombardi emphasised. “But our members are essential ambassadors in their countries of residence.”

Creating a support network

Claudine Morier, 42, is one of the new faces in the parliament of the Swiss Abroad. A freelance evaluator, she has been living in Seville for just over five years. “It’s essential to be able to forge links with other Swiss people abroad, so that we can help each other out in times of need,” she says.

She explains that administrative procedures in Spain are often a headache. “As Swiss people, we’re not used to this. So being able to share our experiences and exchange advice is invaluable,” she says. One of her aims is to set up a club of Swiss people in Andalusia, in order to develop a local network.

Claudine Morier also wants Swiss nationals abroad to be able to continue to contribute to the Old Age and Survivors’ Insurance (AHV, the first pillar of the Swiss pension system). “When I arrived in Andalusia, it took me a year to register for social security. Now I have a gap of a year in my contributions. We need to come up with solutions to prevent this from happening again,” she says. The new delegate for the Swiss in Spain also intends to campaign for electronic voting and for expatriates to be able to maintain banking links with their country of origin.

On Friday, the new delegates took part in workshops to prepare for their term of office. Swissinfo

Electronic voting as a priority

Chris Stern, 68, has also just been elected to the Council of the Swiss Abroad. The Florida-based entrepreneur intends to act as an intermediary between his compatriots and the consulates. “It’s important for the diaspora to be better informed about issues that concern them,” he says. To this end, he has already launched a new Facebook page dedicated to the Swiss in the southern United States.

But for him, the priority is to make progress on e-voting, which came to a halt in 2019. At the time, the government put an end to the pilot project under way in certain cantons for security reasons. Since then, only four cantons – Basel City, St Gallen, Thurgau and Graubünden – have resumed trials.

“I sometimes receive my voting material after federal elections, because the US postal system is deficient,” says Stern. In his view, the direct online election system set up by the OSA proves that it can work.

Pascal Méan, a 61-year-old Swiss citizen living in Calgary, Canada, also recently elected to the parliament of the Swiss Abroad, agrees. “I’ve already been able to experiment with online voting, when the canton of Geneva was conducting trials. I’m going to work to make it possible for all expatriates to vote online, because the deadlines are often too short to take part in ballots,” he laments.

>> Read our survey on electronic voting:

Democratically re-elected

Simone Höch, 51, is starting her second term on the Council of the Swiss Abroad. A hotel manager in Egypt and honorary consul for the past year, she was re-elected this spring in her country of residence, following a democratic process – albeit outside the framework of the direct elections pilot project. “In Egypt, we introduced this online voting system a long time ago,” she explains.

Her goal for the next four years is to reach a greater number of Swiss citizens living in Egypt. “People often only find out about the opportunities available to them as Swiss Abroad when they run into difficulties,” she says.

She also wants to continue her commitment to the e-ID and the possibility for expatriates to remain affiliated to a Swiss health insurance scheme.

Höch believes that these direct elections represent “the right path” for the future of the parliament of the Swiss Abroad. “In Egypt, this method of voting has enabled Swiss nationals living outside the capital, Cairo, where there are no Swiss clubs, to stand as candidates and be elected,” she says.

A new, more dynamic legislature

Rolf Blaser, based in Sri Lanka, was also re-elected. Director of the Swiss company A. Baurs & Co. he beat 12 other candidates in a constituency covering 28 countries. He will now represent the Swiss in Central, Western and Southern Asia on the Council.

“I want to make an active contribution to improving the lives of Swiss people abroad,” he says. He is particularly committed to e-ID and e-voting. He too often receives documents too late.

Blaser also attaches great importance to the issue of health insurance for the diaspora, but also to the need for the Swiss living abroad to make arrangements in good time for the end of their lives. “Abroad, we have to worry more about these issues than the Swiss at home, if only because of the bureaucracy,” he explains.

Blaser hopes that the next legislature of the Council of the Swiss Abroad will be more dynamic. A wish that could come true with the arrival of young delegates, elected directly to the parliament of the Swiss Abroad.

Edited by Samuel Jaberg. Translated from French by DeepL/ts