Cluster: Swiss Abroad

Start II seen as step forward in arms control

This content was published on Apr 9, 2010 But although editorialists consider the accord an important signal for progress on the nuclear issue, they also point out that there is still much work to be done. The pact is set to reduce the nuclear warheads limit to 1,550 per country over seven years after coming into force. The Basler Zeitung describes Start II,…

Swiss Politics

Kyrgyz coup brings promises of reform – again

This content was published on Apr 8, 2010 Mohammad-Reza Djalili, a Central Asia expert at the Graduate Institute in Geneva, tells swissinfo.ch that there is little hope the power grab will lead to sweeping democratic reforms and better conditions for the country’s poor. On Thursday, two days after uprisings spread from Talas in the west to the capital, Bishkek, the Swiss foreign ministry…

Swiss Politics

Switzerland praises US-Russia nuclear deal

This content was published on Apr 8, 2010 Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey called the new Start treaty, a replacement to a 1991 pact that expired in December, a first major step to a pledge between the two countries to create a world without nuclear weapons. US President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitri Medvedev signed the agreement at a ceremony in Prague. “I…

Swiss Politics

Suspicious financial transactions hit record

This content was published on Apr 8, 2010 The Federal Police Office said 896 incidents were reported in 2009, more than five per cent up on the previous year. Two out of three of all reports were made by the banking sector, followed by cases involving the payment service sector. Seven suspected cases concerned terrorism financing to the tune of SFr9,500. Records on…

Swiss Politics

Drivers rolling stoned is a “society problem”

This content was published on Apr 7, 2010 But cocaine use is growing rapidly among motorists, with the percentage of drivers testing positive for the stimulant nearly double that found just a few years ago. Maria-Cristina Senna, a doctor from Lausanne University hospital, and her team recently studied 4,794 blood samples police had gathered from people suspected of driving under the influence of…

Swiss Politics

Swiss national hero seen in a new light

This content was published on Apr 7, 2010 To this day Guisan has something of a cult status, an unusual phenomenon in a country not prone to putting anyone on a pedestal. His presence is everywhere, just check the maps of major Swiss cities. Almost all have a Guisan Street, an Avenue General Guisan or a Place General Guisan. And it is very…

Swiss Politics

Social Democrats seek to adjust their policy

This content was published on Apr 7, 2010 “We want more social justice and new jobs. We want Switzerland to offer equal opportunities instead of privileges for just a few,” said party president Christian Levrat. The revised party manifesto, which was presented on Wednesday, also calls for a strong social security system, Swiss membership of the European Union, a financial strategy banning untaxed…

Swiss Politics

Internally displaced “lack universal rights”

This content was published on Apr 5, 2010 Switzerland’s Walter Kälin, the United Nations special envoy for the human rights of the displaced, tells swissinfo.ch what can be done to lessen their suffering and, in a best case scenario, reintegrate them back into society. Kälin, a professor of law at Bern University, is also a member of the UN Human Rights Committee, and…

Swiss Politics

Respected Swiss mediator leaves UN in New York

This content was published on Apr 4, 2010 It takes a fair bit of optimism to succeed at the headquarters of the international community, Maurer told swissinfo.ch. The diplomat admits to feeling a touch of sadness at leaving the building on the shores of the East River. Maurer says he has many good memories of New York and the current period of transition…

Swiss Politics

Plan to boost GP numbers to be put to a vote

This content was published on Apr 1, 2010 Campaigners said they collected more than 200,000 signatures in five months – twice as much as necessary – to force the vote. More than 3,000 new GPs are needed by 2016 to ensure basic healthcare services for the country, according to the promoters of the initiative. No date for the vote has been set. There…

Cluster: Swiss Abroad

Popular Stories

Most Discussed