Swiss Politics Archives - Page 1273 of 1338

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Swiss Politics

Celebrating the battle of Morgarten

This content was published on Nov 6, 2000 Anyone watching the procession could easily believe they’ve been transported back in time to the original battle. The advance is led by men dressed in 14th century costume carrying historical weapons, followed by modern day soldiers from the Swiss army, and thousands of spectators. Back in 1513, the men of fighting age from the three…

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Kägi takes over leadership of Swiss Olympic Association

This content was published on Nov 4, 2000 Sixty five year old Kägi garnered 351 votes, against a mere 73 that were cast in favour of his challenger, Paul Engemann. Kägi takes over from René Burkhalter at the helm of the organisation on January 1 2001. A native of St Gallen, Kägi previously held the top job at the Swiss rowing federation, and…

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Controversial proposal to slash defence spending

This content was published on Nov 3, 2000 Under the proposal, part of the money saved would be used for international projects to promote peace, including development aid and disarmament. It foresees gradually slashing the army’s current annual budget of SFr5 billion ($2.75 billion) to just over SFr3 billion ($1.7 billion). The people’s initiative was launched by left-wing parties as well as peace…

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At issue: Halving defence spending and earlier retirement?

This content was published on Nov 3, 2000 On November 26 the Swiss armed forces will be in the spotlight when voters decide whether military expenditure should be halved. In 1989, Switzerland rejected a proposal to disband the military completely. At the time more than one million voters, 35.5 per cent of those who went to the polls, wanted to do away with…

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Swiss Politics

Prince Charles on Swiss soil

This content was published on Nov 2, 2000 Prince Charles will start his visit with a tour of Berne’s old town. On Friday, the prince will head off to the Kandertal in the Bernese Oberland. He will get to see a biological farm, meet local farmers and be informed about cheese production. Ogi will also take Charles to his native village of Kandersteg…

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Social Democrats want People’s Party out of federal government

This content was published on Nov 2, 2000 The Social Democrats said on Wednesday they did not want a People’s Party member to take over Ogi’s position when parliament meets to elect a successor on December 6. They said the People’s Party was no longer prepared to be part of a unified federal government. The government is made up of four parties under…

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Swiss Politics

Switzerland organised secret Afghan talks

This content was published on Nov 1, 2000 Several meetings were held in Switzerland last year and at the beginning of this year, but broke off after failing to make progress. Andrei Motyl, a Swiss official who was involved in organising the meetings, said the talks involved senior representatives of the ruling Islamic Taleban movement and of the main opposition leader, Ahmad Shah…

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Swiss Politics

Sri Lankan refugees offered aid to go home

This content was published on Oct 30, 2000 It also said the new measure was aimed at discouraging those without permission to stay in Switzerland from going underground and living in the country clandestinely. “The main aim is to see fewer people disappear and have more people returning home regularly. About 200 people have returned to Sri Lanka each year since 1994, so…

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Swiss Politics

Deiss pledges to continue giving aid to Ukraine

This content was published on Oct 30, 2000 After talks with his Ukrainian counterpart, Anatoly Zlenko, Deiss said: “Ukraine belongs to those countries in eastern Europe which are of great interest to us.” He added that Switzerland spends about SFr4 million ($2.23 million) on aid projects in Ukraine every year. Most of these deal with education, health care, the environment, and building “civil…

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Switzerland to complete signing of Alpine Convention

This content was published on Oct 30, 2000 The Swiss environment minister, Moritz Leuenberger, will sign the remaining protocols covering transport, energy and the settlement of disputes, before the meeting closes on Tuesday. The aim of the convention is to coordinate the use and protection of the Alps among the nations which have approved it. So far, Switzerland has signed five of the…

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