20 Minutes. The Swiss government recently released a report on the forced repatriation of foreigners. The document sets out problems with the process, in particular the use of balaclavas and guns by the police, the way deportees are restrained, and the separation of families. The national commission for the prevention of torture, the commission behind the report focused […]
Archives for July 2017
Swiss cheese fraudster gets 3 year prison sentence
20 Minutes. A court in the canton of St. Gallen sentenced a cheese vendor to three years in prison, half of it behind bars. The man was judged guilty of fraudulently using Switzerland’s world-famous Emmental cheese brand and other crimes. In addition to prison, the cheese seller was ordered to pay CHF 1 million in relation to […]
FILM: Urban photography goes on tour in France
7 July 2017. Two fine French films this week – the AC’d cinemas will cool you down! VISAGE, VILLAGE **** (vo French) This is a magical film that is based on reality. Magical, because it is engined by the amazing photo van of JR, who is an urban photographer; and realistic, because it’s Agnès Varda’s […]
Minister criticises Swiss vote against international courts
20 Minutes. On Wednesday Simonetta Sommaraga, federal councillor and head of the federal department of justice and police, publicly denounced the referendum launched by the Swiss People’s Party (UDC/SVP) to put Swiss law ahead of international law. The plan dubbed the initiative for self-determination passed the 100,000 signature threshold last year. It was officially submitted […]
Over two thirds of Swiss would like to change jobs
A survey shows that 71% of those working in German-speaking Switzerland would change jobs if they could. Dream jobs vary significantly by gender. The survey, conducted by Marketagent.com on behalf of XING Switzerland, questioned around 1,000 employees in German-speaking Switzerland between the ages of 18 and 65. If age and and education could be ignored, 71% of the […]
Swiss franc outstrips other currencies over last 117 years
Recent analysis by Credit Suisse, London Business School and Cambridge Judge Business School shows the Swiss franc’s enduring strength. The reports says that for a small country with just 0.1% of the world’s population and less than 0.01% of its land mass, Switzerland punches well above its weight financially. The country has had the world’s […]
Volkswagen to recall 22,000 of its cars in Switzerland
20 Minutes. The newspaper 20 Minutes reported that around 22,000 Volkswagen cars in Switzerland are to be recalled because their ABS brake system does not function correctly. On Wednesday, blick.ch published a statement made by Dino Graf, a spokesperson for Amag, a Swiss car importer, that confirms the manufacturer’s recall plan. Swiss VW owners will be […]
Switzerland’s most beautiful villages
By Bill Harby Congratulations Moudon. This enchanting hamlet is the newest official member of a coterie of beautiful historic Swiss villages. Generally, the Swiss don’t like to brag. Even when it comes to cheeses, chocolate and direct democracy, they’re more likely to just offer you a taste and let you decide for yourself. But when […]
Man struck by lightning while taking water from fountain
Tribune de Genève. According to the newspaper, a man was struck by lightning in Switzerland while taking water from a public fountain last week. Last Wednesday an ambulance was called to Chemin de Saule in Bernex, outside Geneva. At around 5pm on 28 June 2017, a man was struck by lightning while taking water from […]
Swiss towns with the most jihadists
Tribune de Genève. The results of an investigation by the newspaper Tages-Anzeiger show where those identified as jihadists are based. Statistics published in May 2017 by Switzerland’s Federal Intelligence Service (FIS), show an estimated 88 individuals motivated by jihad had travelled from Switzerland since 2001. 74 are thought to have gone to Syria and Iraq, 13 to Somalia and 1 […]