The week in Switzerland
Dear Swiss Abroad,
A lot of news came out of New York this week, specifically the UN General Assembly, where Switzerland warned against the spread of “autocratic tendencies” and US President Donald Trump claimed many European countries, including “beautiful Switzerland”, were being destroyed by illegal immigration and were “going to hell”.
Heaven, however – at least for dogs – is the open-air pool at Opfikon on the last day of the summer season…
The time has not yet come for the Swiss government to officially recognise Palestine, according to Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis.
On Monday several countries, including France and the UK, recognised the state of Palestine at the opening of the 80th UN General Assembly in New York.
“Every state that has decided for or against a recognition of Palestine has naturally invented its own narrative to justify its choice,” Cassis told Swiss public radio, RSI, on Wednesday. “Switzerland remains consistent with its position, which is to recognise Palestine because it wants a two-state solution – but when there is a road map, a clear map for peace, where the two states can exist and live in peace with each other,” he said in New York.
Asked whether he feared a disconnect between Swiss public opinion, which is outraged by the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, and the government’s perceived inaction on recognising Palestinian sovereignty, Cassis responded that the government was “far from inactive”. He maintained that Switzerland was “doing more than the vast majority of other countries in the world” in humanitarian and diplomatic terms. “So there’s a narrative in Switzerland that in my opinion doesn’t reflect reality.”
Cassis told Swiss public television, RTS, that recognising Palestine was a “symbolic and political act that can give hope”. However, he believed it was “better to keep this leverage available for when the time comes, when a peace plan is on the table, so that we can provide a major incentive,” he said. “If Switzerland wants to be useful to the world, the best solution is the one that the government has chosen.”
Read our explainer on why Switzerland doesn’t recognise Palestine.
Karin Keller-Sutter, who holds the rotating Swiss presidency this year, has warned against autocratic tendencies and has called for multilateralism to be upheld.
In her speech at the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday, Keller-Sutter said that 80 years after the end of the Second World War and the founding of the United Nations the world was experiencing an era of extreme political and economic upheaval. Autocratic tendencies were on the rise in many places in the world, including Europe, and free trade was being put to the test, she said.
“International law, including the UN Charter, was in danger of becoming obsolete,” she warned. International organisations and the UN were indispensable for peaceful coexistence and economic prosperity, she said. In this context, Keller-Sutter advocated Geneva as the first operational centre of the United Nations. The international institutions there had great expertise in numerous areas that were crucial for the future, she said.
“Illusion-free and constructive – in other words, very Swiss” was the headline of Swiss public broadcaster SRF about Keller-Sutter’s speech. Powerful states were increasingly turning their backs on the UN, its principles and rules, it said. “For Switzerland, on the other hand, the UN remains relevant. This was demonstrated by the Swiss president’s appearance in New York.”
In his speech to the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, US President Donald Trump claimed many European countries, including Switzerland, were being destroyed by illegal immigration.
“In Switzerland – beautiful Switzerland – 72% of the people in prisons are from outside Switzerland,” he said. “When your prisons are filled with so-called asylum-seekers who repaid kindness […] with crime, it’s time to end the failed experiment of open borders. You have to end it now. I’m really good at this stuff. Your countries are going to hell.”
The fact-checkers immediately got to work. “Many of his statements were exaggerated, one-sided or simply false,” concluded Blue News, although it conceded that Trump “surprisingly has a point with Switzerland”.
“The figure is essentially correct,” Blue News wrote in its fact-check. “According to the Federal Statistical Office, the proportion of prisoners without a Swiss passport is around 72%. However, these statistics include all people without Swiss citizenship – from asylum-seekers and temporarily admitted persons to EU citizens residing in Switzerland. It is important to note that pre-trial detainees and persons in preventive detention are also included. In addition, the high figure is explained by factors such as the risk of absconding or a lack of social ties in Switzerland, which are assumed to be more common among non-Swiss nationals. The figure is correct, but misleading without context.”
Read our explainer on why most of Switzerland’s prisoners are not Swiss.
If you go down to the outdoor pool in Opfikon on the last day of the summer season, you’re sure of a big surprise: hundreds of dogs diving into the water, going down slides and generally having the time of their lives.
On “dog day”, canines and their owners are allowed into the pool for free. The water has been freed from chlorine especially for the dogs, says operations manager Peter Pfluger, whose idea it was to let the dogs into the pool just outside Zurich. Sunday was the fourth time the event has taken place. “Last year around 600 dogs came, this time there should be up to 800,” he told Swiss public broadcaster, SRF.
The dogs are allowed to do anything, Pfluger says. “The owners are very considerate and clean up anything that might be left lying around.” There has never been any aggressive behaviour, he says.
At the end of the day Pfluger and his team have their work cut out: as soon as the water has been drained from the pools, the dogs’ hair is collected. “There’s quite a lot of it,” Pfluger admits. “Enough for a cushion.” But he says the effort is worth it – seeing the dogs’ joy gives him a lot of pleasure. That’s why the “dog swim” in Opfikon is set to take place again next year – and in more than 20 other swimming centres throughout Switzerland.
The week ahead
Data on glacier melt in 2025 will be announced on Wednesday.
Swissair was grounded 24 years ago on Thursday. Do you remember where you were when you heard?
The gaming and pop culture trade fair HeroFest opens at the BERNEXPO venue on Friday and runs until Sunday.
Saturday night is Award Night at the Zurich Film Festival. Tickets will be available from 11am on Thursday.
Edited by Samuel Jaberg
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