Swiss Politics

Canton Bern denies foreigners voting rights

This content was published on Jan 23, 2007 Political rights for foreigners – who make up 20 per cent of the Swiss population – vary from canton to canton, with the majority according no voting rights to non-Swiss inhabitants. The motion, which was debated in Bern’s cantonal parliament on Tuesday, wanted to leave it up to each commune in the canton to decide…

Swiss Politics

Calmy-Rey outlines Swiss foreign priorities

This content was published on Jan 22, 2007 Addressing journalists in Geneva on Monday, Calmy-Rey, who is also Swiss foreign minister, referred to Switzerland’s mediation role between Syria and Israel, and touched on the tax dispute between Bern and the European Union. “We shouldn’t imagine the worst,” she said, referring to the victory of the SRS, which won 28 per cent of the…

Swiss Politics

Swiss praised for commitment to Kosovo

This content was published on Jan 20, 2007 He said the Swiss foreign ministry had pledged to help protect members of the ethnic Serb minority in the new state and encourage other countries to recognise an independent Kosovo. His comments – published in Saturday’s edition of the Zurich-based Tages-Anzeiger newspaper – come after talks between Swiss president Micheline Calmy-Rey and Ceku in Bern…

Swiss Politics

Alternative Davos meets in Nairobi

This content was published on Jan 20, 2007 More than 100,000 people from non-governmental organisations and social movements are taking part in the seventh WSF, which got under way on Saturday. The WSF was launched in 2001 in response to growing mistrust of the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, Switzerland, which is also held in January. It is said to…

Swiss Politics

Davos meeting to examine changing world

This content was published on Jan 17, 2007 Issues including climate change, energy and terrorism will take centre stage along with the Middle East, but talks will aim to set an international agenda rather than provide concrete solutions. Speaking in Geneva on Wednesday, the forum’s founder Klaus Schwab said that figuring out where the world was headed was more necessary than ever. “We…

Swiss Politics

Challenges lie ahead for pension system

This content was published on Jan 17, 2007 The so-called three-pillar system remains vulnerable though, with structural issues still to be resolved. The Swiss love their insurance. When it comes to life coverage, they are ranked just behind the Japanese and the British. This high degree of cover is included in a complex social insurance scheme that takes into account retirement, disability and…

Swiss Politics

EU sends bill for Romania and Bulgaria

This content was published on Jan 17, 2007 Although no sum has been explicitly mentioned, it is no secret that the EU is looking for SFr300-350 million ($240-280 million) from Switzerland over five years. It was clear even before a referendum in November on contributing SFr1 billion ($800 million) towards the ten new European Union member countries that Romania and Bulgaria would also…

Swiss Politics

Swiss-German accord to deter terrorist attacks

This content was published on Jan 10, 2007 But the accord, which comes ahead of the 2008 European football championships, does not authorise military pilots to make use of force in German airspace, limiting their role mainly to monitoring suspect aircraft. According to the Swiss government, the convention it signed on Wednesday guarantees better flight security cooperation between both countries. Besides improving the…

Swiss Politics

Nepalese want a “Swiss Asia”

This content was published on Jan 9, 2007 “We want to be the Switzerland of Asia,” announced Prakash Man Singh, deputy secretary-general of the Nepali Congress – the biggest political party – in Bern on Tuesday. Singh said he had learnt a lot about the Swiss system, for example concerning federalism, but added he was aware that Nepal was not in a position…

Read more: Nepalese want a “Swiss Asia”

Swiss Politics

Swiss fathers encouraged to rock the cradle

This content was published on Jan 9, 2007 Among the raft of family-friendly measures to be introduced immediately within the economics ministry, new fathers will now be able to take five days’ paid and 20 days’ unpaid paternity leave. Although this is still a far cry from the generous situation found in most Scandinavian countries, paternity leave is slowly gaining ground in Switzerland.…

Swiss Politics

Popular Stories

Most Discussed