Switzerland Today

Hello from Bern,

What do the following numbers have to do with each other?

152,000,000

1,300

51.2

You’ll have to read our 2021 in numbers to find out.

Here’s the latest news and stories from Switzerland in our holiday-week edition of our daily briefing

Keystone/Salvatore Di Nolfi

In the News: A new Covid-19 drug; a booster approval; and an ice hockey tournament on ice

• On Monday, the Swiss medicines regulator, Swissmedic, gave the green light to the monoclonal antibody cocktail Ronapreve developed by Roche and Regeneron for use in the treatment and prevention of Covid-19. It is the first drug authorised by the Swiss regulator for the prevention of Covid-19 in cases where there is not a sufficient immune response after vaccination. Swissmedic also authorised use of the Janssen booster shot.
• SWISS International Airlines indicated that over the weekend that, due to “restrictions and demand”, it is cancelling 8% of flights from October 2021 to March 2022. This corresponds to about 2,900 flights. The airline didn’t specify the routes that are likely to be affected but said the focus is on reducing the number of flights on “frequently served routes so that as many connections as possible remain in place”. 
• A day before the Spengler Cup ice hockey tournament was scheduled to take place, organisers announced that it couldn’t go forward. According to reports over the weekend, most players of the host team Davos had tested positive for Covid-19 and as a result, the cantonal health authorities withdrew the public licence for the event. This is another blow to the resort town after the World Economic Forum announced its annual meeting, scheduled to start on January 17 in Davos, will be postponed.
• Russian Present Vladimir Putin said over the weekend that the US and Russia have agreed to hold security talks in January in Geneva. Tensions have been mounting in the region amid a Russian troop buildup near Ukraine in recent weeks. Putin put forward security proposals but the US and NATO have yet to respond. Apparently though bilateral talks are in the works. Geneva has already played host to a high-level summit between the two countries in June, and strategic dialogues on a range of issues.

© Keystone / Gaetan Bally

The big question on your wedding day – to hyphenate or not to hyphenate?

I recently learned that my double surname – a mix of my family name and that of my husband’s – is a relic of the past. In 2013, Switzerland abolished double names without hyphens (à la Hillary Rodham Clinton). Now, there are calls to bring it back.

The decision in 2013 was intended to advance equality by allowing men and women to each keep their family names or choose the name of their spouse (husband or wife). They can also choose one of the family names for their children. You could still use a double name (but hyphenated) in everyday life, but it wouldn’t appear in the civil status register.

Nearly a decade later, what impact has the law had? What did couples choose to do?

As the Neue Zürcher Zeitung reported today, it turns out that the majority of women still chose the traditional route – adopting her spouse’s surname. Seven out of ten brides adopted the groom’s surname and the rest kept their own names. Of the grooms, only one in 20 took the bride’s name, with 95% sticking with their own surname.

But some groups argue that many married couples would like to have the option for two names again. Parliament will apparently discuss three different options next year – with a hyphen, and then two options without a hyphen. One commentary said this is all getting a bit much, calling the proposal an “unnecessary comebackExternal link”.