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Swiss Politics

Swiss keep a watchful eye on Florida ballot

This content was published on Nov 3, 2002 Led by the Swiss Gérard Stroudmann, the group also includes Swiss parliamentarian Andreas Gross. “I have participated in at least 20 identical missions, but I think I might be the only person who has observed [elections] in both Russia and the United States,” Gross told swissinfo. As one the observers of the Office for Democratic…

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Swiss UN ambassador urges unity on human rights

This content was published on Nov 1, 2002 Jenö Staehelin told the UN General Assembly that dialogue was preferable to confrontation. Speaking on Thursday in New York during a debate on the organisation’s reform, Staehelin said the UN’s reporting system on human rights must be reviewed. “The system must be simplified and made more transparent for member states, UN commissions and the public,”…

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Swiss Politics

Swiss forge closer ties with Iran

This content was published on Oct 28, 2002 In an interview with swissinfo, he said the two countries were gradually forging closer ties, which was paving the way for dialogue over difficult issues. Deiss told swissinfo he had pressed his Iranian hosts to ratify international conventions against torture. He said he received no conclusive answer but the fact that Iran was willing to…

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Swiss Politics

EU gets tough on asylum seekers

This content was published on Oct 28, 2002 In response to popular fears of mass immigration, they have chosen to toughen asylum laws. Until the Amsterdam Treaty entered into force in 1999, it was up to member states to form and enforce their own asylum laws. At the Tampere summit in October of the same year, the 15 countries agreed that a common…

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Swiss Politics

Swiss asylum policy faces tough times

This content was published on Oct 27, 2002 Parts of the population are concerned Switzerland is being flooded by asylum seekers, while academics fear xenophobia is rearing its ugly head. According to a recent poll by the GfS institute, 57 per cent of the electorate said they would vote in favour of a people’s initiative launched by the Swiss People’s Party against abuses…

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Swiss Politics

Swiss doctors to treat Russian hostages

This content was published on Oct 25, 2002 The Swiss foreign ministry said Russia had requested the doctors and that two – including a psychiatrist – would leave for Moscow on Friday. Foreign ministry spokesman, Manuel Sager, told swissinfo that the Russian authorities as well as other foreign diplomats had specifically asked Switzerland to send personnel. The doctors will join several Swiss already…

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Swiss Politics

Germany rejects Swiss appeal on aviation deal

This content was published on Oct 24, 2002 The ruling means that weekend flights over southern Germany will now be prohibited between 2000 and 0900. Swiss and the airport were trying to overturn a bilateral aviation deal, still to be ratified, between Switzerland and Germany, which imposes tough restrictions on flights over German airspace. The administrative court in Baden-Württemberg, a German state that…

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Swiss Politics

Lessons from the Gotthard tragedy

This content was published on Oct 23, 2002 A staggered entry system for trucks and independently controllable air vents are among the main improvements. Escape procedures have also been made clearer as part of a safety overhaul costing some SFr36 million ($24.3 million) to date. “A good solution” “We wouldn’t like to say that the Gotthard is the safest tunnel in the world,…

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Swiss renew efforts to make Kyoto a reality

This content was published on Oct 23, 2002 Talks among representatives from the 185 member states of the United Nations Climate Change Convention kick off on Wednesday. Delegates are hoping to establish a coherent political framework for tackling climate change, despite the United States’ opposition to Kyoto. A recent spate of natural disasters – from droughts in India to severe flooding across Europe…

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Swiss favour tougher line on asylum seekers

This content was published on Oct 22, 2002 The government has urged voters to reject a right-wing proposal, which would limit asylum applications and cut benefits to those whose requests have been rejected. A quarter of the 1,283 people polled said they would reject the proposal by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party, with 19 per cent saying they had no opinion on the…

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