Swiss Politics

Bid to make people’s initiatives stricter

This content was published on Feb 29, 2012 The Senate followed the House of Representatives in backing the cabinet’s proposal, voting 21 to 20 in favour on Wednesday. People’s initiatives allow for any Swiss citizen to put forward a proposal to amend the constitution. It can go to a nationwide vote if 100,000 signatures are gathered in favour of the amendment within 18…

Swiss Politics

Vote issues fail to ignite emotions

This content was published on Feb 29, 2012 Researchers also found that the campaign in the run-up to the vote has been lackluster as citizens struggle to make up their minds on this and four other issues. Compared with a previous poll in January, backing for an initiative by a prominent environmental group and centre-left parties has dropped by nearly ten per cent.…

Swiss Politics

Parliament snubs national language rule

This content was published on Feb 28, 2012 The House of Representatives rejected a call by a French-speaking Green Party representative to draft an amendment to the language law. He argued that schools in the majority German-speaking part of the country were sending the wrong signal if they preferred English over a national Swiss language. He said students from the different language regions…

Swiss Politics

War materiel exports reach new peak

This content was published on Feb 28, 2012 The increase of 36 per cent on 2010 is due to the sale of 25 Swiss-built Pilatus PC-21 training aircraft to the United Arab Emirates. A Seco statement on Tuesday said the sale of aircraft was listed in the war materiel statistics because it could not be ruled out that the PC-21 plane could be adapted…

Swiss Politics

Financial policy tops parliament agenda

This content was published on Feb 27, 2012 Debates over the circumstances of the recent resignation of the Swiss National Bank president, as well as other financial policy issues, are also high on the agenda. In December, the Senate approved a deal granting information on US clients of Swiss banks to the authorities in Washington investigating suspected tax dodgers. The House of Representatives…

Swiss Politics

Burkhalter condemns Syrian rights violations

This content was published on Feb 27, 2012 Opening a four-week session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday, Burkhalter condemned human rights violations in Syria. The Syrian government led by President Bashar al-Assad has been involved in a violent crackdown against anti-government protesters which began more than a year ago. It is estimated more than 5,000 people have…

Swiss Politics

Swiss abroad prefer not to stay put

This content was published on Feb 26, 2012 But even if they are only staying away for a short time, they are still interested in exercising their political rights, making the introduction of e-voting a necessity for the Swiss abroad. The Swiss abroad statistics supplied by the foreign ministry detail exactly how many citizens live abroad and where. But these numbers provide little…

Swiss Politics

Switzerland hosts counterterrorism powwow

This content was published on Feb 24, 2012 Switzerland is one of 28 countries that joined the Global Counterterrorism Forum in September. The conference on Thursday and Friday was attended by around 100 representatives of the member states, the United Nations, and the European Union. Opening the conference, Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga said that in order to eliminate breeding grounds of radicalism and…

Swiss Politics

Federalism could be key to Somalia’s future

This content was published on Feb 24, 2012 Burkhalter told an international conference in London on Thursday that the next six months would be crucial “to bring governance and a functioning state back to the country and emerge from over 20 years of state collapse”. The foreign minister pointed out that Switzerland had given its support to peace building in Somalia and contributed…

Swiss Politics

“Atomic Anne” turns spotlight on Swiss sleuths

This content was published on Feb 23, 2012 Switzerland’s small but discreet world of competitive intelligence and security firms centres mainly on Geneva. Unlike neighbouring France, it is said to enjoy a margin of manoeuvre thanks to its legal framework and a less formal approach. Geneva-based intelligence agency Alp Services and its director Mario Brero have been at the centre of a business…

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Bid to make people’s initiatives stricter

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Vote issues fail to ignite emotions

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Parliament snubs national language rule

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War materiel exports reach new peak

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Financial policy tops parliament agenda

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Burkhalter condemns Syrian rights violations

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Swiss abroad prefer not to stay put

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Switzerland hosts counterterrorism powwow

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Federalism could be key to Somalia’s future

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“Atomic Anne” turns spotlight on Swiss sleuths

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