The grotesque assassination of the American journalist James Foley has publicly raised the complex question of whether or not governments, companies or individuals should pay a ransom to free hostages. There are supportable arguments on both sides of the issue and, not surprisingly, there are differences on to how to deal with the problem. There […]
Americans abroad – Pushed to vote
Democrats and Republications Abroad, two non-profit organizations representing US citizens, are pushing hard over the next few weeks for expat Americans to register for the next presidential election. While some states retain permanent overseas registration, most require their citizens to re-register every time. Democrats Abroad Switzerland is holding informal events in Geneva and Zurich to […]
Swiss observers to go to Western Sahara
The government announced on 20 August that Switzerland is to send half a dozen military observers to Western Sahara. Stressing that the observers will be unarmed, the government has announced that they will join the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Western Sahara to reinforce peace-keepers supervising the 1988 ceasefire agreement between Morocco and the […]
Shop till the staff drop – Federal Council moves to liberalise shopping hours
The Federal Council decided on Wednesday to continue its efforts to liberalise retail opening hours across the country. The proposed law allows retailers to open from at least 6.00 to 20.00 during the week and from 06: 00 to 19.00 on Saturdays. This contentious decision is taken in the face of direct opposition from the […]
Didier Burkhalter’s way with words
As President of the Swiss confederation, as Foreign Minister, as Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE, Didier Burkhalter is required to give many speeches. He probably has at least one person helping him prepare the texts. Be that as it may, the introduction to his national day 1 August address, although little commented upon, bears particular attention. […]
Cheaper restaurants – not on the menu
Don’t uncork the champagne just yet. Finance minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf this week outlined the Federal Council’s response to the popular initiative “Stop discriminatory VAT in the restaurant business”, to be put to the vote on 28 September. For several reasons, she rejected the proposal of GastroSuisse, the hotel and restaurateurs association, to bring the standard […]
More right-wing curbs on foreigners
Despite a formal refusal of the European Union to make any special concessions on last February’s migration vote, Switzerland’s right-wing UDC party seems determined to push for even more curbs on foreigners. Catherine Ashton, the EU’s chief diplomat, has transmitted a letter to Bern agreed by the European Union’s 28 member countries that it cannot […]
Cross-border car fines: lousy information
Last week’s front page story by Pamela Taylor on the risk of massive fines for cross-border driving with Swiss or EU-licensed vehicles has produced more vehement reader interest than any Le News story so far. It also appears that such problems are nothing new, but have been a relatively unknown fact of life for years. Furthermore, […]
Swiss army has more support than it has had in 20 years
ZURICH Despite Swiss voters refusing to back the purchase of 22 Gripen fighter planes from Sweden in a national referendum on 18 May, a new study finds that the army has more support than it has had in 20 years. The concept of neutrality was also favoured by a record 96% of respondents, rising to […]
Drivers beware of hefty fines when crossing Swiss borders
BERN A bizarre case has Swiss and foreigners alike scratching their heads. A hapless German pensioner recently visiting his daughter in Switzerland drove his son-in-law’s Swiss-registered car across the border to go to his daughter’s holiday home in Austria. Stopped at customs, and unable to provide appropriate documentation, Dieter Johann von der Heide was hit […]
