Switzerland Today

Dear Swiss Abroad,

Rain and cool temperatures continue to make for a miserable Swiss spring. Many outdoor public swimming pools in the country opened their gates for the new season over the weekend, to a largely absent crowd. At my local pool, the water barely reached 16°C for the few brave swimmers who, on the plus side, had no queues to contend with at the giant water slide.

© Keystone / Pierre Albouy

In the news: Switzerland and the UK talk trade, Tariq Ramadan on trial in Geneva, and more trafficking victims seek help

• British state secretary for trade Kemi Badenoch paid a visit to economics minister Guy Parmelin in Bern to officially launch talks for a new bilateral free trade agreementExternal link. Both countries are keen to adapt existing rules following Brexit, particularly in exchanging services, such as in the financial sector.
• Swiss Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan arrived at a correctional court in Geneva on Monday to a gaggle of reporters and a packed gallery for the start of his trial on rape charges for an incident dating back to 2008.
• A support group for migrant women registered a record 375 victims of human trafficking seeking its help in 2022. In all, the Zurich-based FIZ assisted 822 people last year, including victims of domestic violence and labour exploitation.

© Keystone / Philipp Schmidli

Kosovo-born politician makes history in Switzerland

It most certainly was not raining on one woman’s parade this weekend (at least not figuratively speaking). On Sunday the Social Democrat Ylfete Fanaj registered a first in Switzerland during cantonal elections in Lucerne: she became the first personExternal linkborn in Kosovo to be elected to a cantonal government. Her win helped the Social Democrats to secure a seat on the Lucerne government for the first time in eight years.

Since her victory, Fanaj has been fielding congratulations from important people – like the president and prime minister of Kosovo – and ordinary folks too. On Sunday night, she told Swiss public radio SRF, a taxi driver recognised herExternal link as she was leaving an election party and told her he would be happy to drive her home. “I was very pleased – it was a wonderful encounter at midnight,” she said.

Originally from Prizren, Kosovo, Fanaj immigrated to Switzerland as a nine-year-old. Her father was a seasonal worker. She grew up in Sursee, central Switzerland, the only pupil from the Balkans at her local school.

Fanaj is not new to politics. She was a Lucerne city councillor from 2007 to 2011, before joining the cantonal parliament. In that time, she founded an association to represent the interests of sex workers in Lucerne and submitted motions against domestic violence and for greater equality.

“For me, politics is very much about offering a platform to people who are less heard and don’t have that opportunity themselves,” she told SRF. In addition to being the youngest member of the new executive, Fanaj is also a city-dweller and the mother of young children. “That’s what’s important and what counts: that different perspectives come into these institutions,” she said.

© Keystone / Gaetan Bally

Risk of burnout high among intern physicians, survey shows

Physically tired, emotionally drained and seriously thinking about quitting their day job: that’s not the patient talking, but the symptoms being reported by assistant doctors and clinicians working in Swiss hospitals. With an average work week of 56.3 hours, half of them say they are tired most or all of the time, according to a new survey from the Swiss association of assistant physicians and clinical directors (VSAOExternal link). Among those working more than 60 hours a week, 77% say they’ve reached their limit.

The VSAO contends that two-thirds of hospital doctors are working more hours than is permitted under labour law. But as one physician toldExternal link Swiss public television SRF, people seem to be turning a blind eye: “If you rob a bank, the law says you can’t do that. The police will come and lock the person up. Why aren’t people paying more attention [to this problem]?”

Signs of burnout are increasingly evident among young doctors, saysExternal link the president of VSAO, the Social Democrat parliamentarian Angelo Barrile, in the pages of the Tribune de Genève. But overwork is also dangerous for patients: close to 60% of interns say they’ve witnessed at least one incident in the last two years where a patient’s life was put at risk because of fatigue on the job.

On Monday, the VSAO announced a roundtable discussion will take place on June 9 to address better working conditions. Participants will include the federal public health office, the association of hospitals, cantonal authorities and other doctors’ associations. The VSAO says reducing administrative tasks for doctors could potentially improve their workload – and help hospitals to retain qualified physicians.