Swiss Politics

Government wants a two-year presidency

This content was published on Mar 25, 2010 It also came out in favour of increasing the number of state secretaries, according to a statement by the Federal Chancellery on Thursday. Extending the presidency, which rotates among cabinet members according to a principle of seniority, would help boost the leading role of the office and represent the country better abroad, the statement said.…

Swiss Politics

UN council targets Swiss anti-minaret vote

This content was published on Mar 25, 2010 The Geneva-based Human Rights Council on Thursday approved a resolution, sponsored by Pakistan, to denounce the vote as Islamophobic. Twenty countries voted in favour of the resolution, 17 against, while eight abstained. Nearly 58 per cent of Swiss voters approved an initiative in November banning the construction of minarets. Earlier this year Switzerland was criticised…

Swiss Politics

EU faces tough test on Greek rescue

This content was published on Mar 25, 2010 It’s an unprecedented situation, Nicolas Levrat, director of the European Institute at Geneva University, told swissinfo.ch in an interview. After the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, Europe faces the challenge of redefining its economic landscape. Greece’s financial difficulties have put Europe to the test, and the topic is set to eclipse other…

Swiss Politics

Public puzzled over concession to Libya

This content was published on Mar 25, 2010 The move is the latest in an ongoing dispute with the regime of Moammar Gaddafi over a Swiss businessman imprisoned in Tripoli and the temporary arrest of a son of the Libyan leader in Geneva in 2008. Christa Markwalder, speaker of the foreign affairs committee of the House of Representatives, said she could not make…

Swiss Politics

Rape is still used as a weapon of war in Congo

This content was published on Mar 24, 2010 Swiss senator Dick Marty and mime artist Dimitri recently returned from a visit to eastern DRC organized by the Geneva-based World Organisation against Torture (OMCT). “We were all very shocked by what we saw and heard,” Dimitri told Infosud/swissinfo.ch by telephone. “Devastated young women. One of them – the only survivor of a gang rape…

Swiss Politics

Swiss ready to drop Libya travel ban

This content was published on Mar 24, 2010 Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey called the offer a gesture of “goodwill” and said the country’s ultimate goal was the release of Max Göldi, a businessman serving a prison sentence in Libya. “The government is prepared, within the framework of the European Union mediation, to lift the ban on certain categories of Libyan citizens,” the government…

Swiss Politics

More holidays no priority for cabinet

This content was published on Mar 24, 2010 “The cabinet does not deny an increase in labour productivity. But vacations are not the most important way to benefit employees,“ the justice ministry said. Under current law, holiday entitlements vary from sector to sector and can differ from one canton to another. Last year the Travail Suisse trade union umbrella organisation handed in the…

Swiss Politics

Finma urges approval of UBS data deal with US

This content was published on Mar 23, 2010 “Should no agreement be reached, there is a risk of further proceedings being instigated against not only UBS but other financial institutions as well,” said Urs Zulauf, Finma’s deputy chief executive. Last August the Swiss government and the US authorities signed an accord aimed at handing over files on up to 4,450 clients of bank…

Swiss Politics

EU calls for progress in Swiss-Libya talks

This content was published on Mar 22, 2010 Ashton said on Monday that talks were currently underway between the two countries, led by Germany and Spain, and the EU would be watching their progress. She urged both sides to come up with an “immediate” step forward. A spokesman for Ashton said: “It is in the interest of the EU to find a solution…

Swiss Politics

Dreifuss welcomes “historic” US healthcare bill

This content was published on Mar 22, 2010 On Sunday the US House of Representatives gave its final approval to a sweeping healthcare overhaul, expanding insurance coverage to an estimated 95 per cent of Americans. The bitterly-fought health reform bill, which will cost an estimated $940 billion (SFr996 billion) over ten years, was passed by 219 votes to 212. The overhaul will extend…

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