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Swiss Politics

Human rights sculpture finds home in parliament

This content was published on Jun 6, 2000 At a ceremony in Berne on Tuesday, Dreifuss said the work of art “paid tribute to those who have fought for freedom of expression, freedom to criticise those in power and the freedom to defend ideals which were ahead of their time.” The sculpture is the work of the Basel-based artist, Bettina Eichin, and underlines…

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Parliament says 16 too young to vote

This content was published on Jun 5, 2000 The House of Representatives voted 89 to 79, with four abstentions, against the motion championed by the Social Democrat, Ursula Wyss. In a first reaction, the parliamentarian, who is 27, said she would continue her campaign to extend voting rights to young people. Ironically, one of the most outspoken critics of the motion was Toni…

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Swiss Politics

Government bill promotes equal rights for the disabled

This content was published on Jun 5, 2000 The cabinet wants to guarantee the disabled access to all public buildings, sites, and services. Many cantons have already addressed the problems of the handicapped, but some would have to amend or complete their legislation. As a major employer, the federal authorities also want to introduce positive discrimination, so that where handicapped and non-handicapped job…

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Europe expected to dominate summer session of parliament

This content was published on Jun 4, 2000 The normally tranquil summer session is being watched more closely than usual this year, coming as it does just weeks after Swiss voters overwhelming endorsed a series of bilateral accords with the European Union. The joint session of the House of Representatives and the Senate will consider whether to approve a referendum calling for Switzerland…

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Swiss Politics

Poll shows Swiss parliament against “Yes to Europe” initiative

This content was published on Jun 3, 2000 But there are differences in the levels of support between the House of Representatives and the Senate. Those are the findings of a poll published on Saturday by the French langauge daily newspaper “Le Temps”. It says that sixty per cent of the members of the House of Representatives polled, agree with the cabinet’s counter-proposal,…

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Swiss army opens combat ranks to women

This content was published on Jun 2, 2000 Women volunteers serving in the Swiss army are restricted to certain units, typically those involving support staff such as administration and signals. Some are attached to infantry divisions, but these are only permitted to participate in training exercises and musical bands. Those who are armed, carry weapons for self-defence only. But from 2003, all restrictions…

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Swiss Politics

Cabinet debates EU membership timetable

This content was published on May 31, 2000 The long term aim of the entire government is EU membership. Less certain is the timetable for restarting negotiations which have been on hold since 1992 when Swiss voters rejected membership of the European Economic Area. The issue has been in the news all week with two ministers publicly stating their position ahead of the…

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Switzerland to deport 500 Kosovo asylum seekers in June

This content was published on May 30, 2000 The Federal Refugee Office said the first repatriations would start in June, following a May 31 deadline for all Kosovo asylum seekers to leave the country. The 500 deportees are the first of 14,500 Kosovars, who will eventually be sent back to the province. The authorities say the asylum seekers no longer need to remain…

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Swiss Politics

Deiss says Swiss should press ahead on Europe

This content was published on May 30, 2000 Speaking in Zurich on Monday, Deiss said it was important to create the conditions which would allow negotiations to be opened, and that full membership of the EU could only happen when the Swiss people were in favour. “We must use the time until we enter the EU, to carry out necessary domestic political reforms,”…

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Polls show mixed attitudes of Swiss towards Brussels

This content was published on May 28, 2000 While Sunday’s survey in the ‘Sonntagsblick’ paper shows little over half of the population to be against membership of the bloc, last Thursday’s poll in the weekly ‘L’Hebdo’ showed opposition running as high as 62 percent. Furthermore, while the French-speaking ‘L’Hebdo’ found that seven out of every ten German-speakers in Switzerland opposed full EU membership,…

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