ZURICH In February Swiss economic expectations fell from near their highest level in more than three-and-a-half years, amid concerns by financial analysts that the vote to re-impose quotas on European Union workers could hurt growth. A survey by the ZEW Institute and Credit Suisse published last week shows the headline index of investor and analyst […]
Hijack farce
The Swiss Air Force didn’t respond to a hijacking over Swiss airspace on Monday because it happened outside the normal business hours of the nation’s air force, which only flies between 08h00 and 17h00. The Ethiopian Airlines 767 co-pilot hijacked his own flight while en route from Addis Ababa to Rome, and instead flew it […]
Avalanches: Still a danger
DAVOS With varying weather, skiers still need to remain vigilant about the avalanche risk over the next few weeks. By the end of January at least 25 people had died in avalanche-related deaths in the Swiss and French Alps since Christmas. A fatality in Nandaz this week brought the seasonal total for Switzerland alone stood […]
Swiss image suffers
GENEVA In 2012, Switzerland’s reputation ranked 8th among 50 countries on the Nation Brand Index largely due to its good governance and system of direct democracy. A study by Presence Switzerland then categorized its overall image abroad as ‘good’. For the current situation, however, Presence Switzerland’s director, Nicolas Bideau, gave a more cautious assessment in […]
Becoming Swiss
Geneva Faced with the unknown prospects of this month’s referendum aimed at curbing immigration, some long-term residents eligible for naturalization are putting a rush on their applications. So who can become Swiss, and how? Citizenship may be granted through three different channels: birth, marriage or naturalization. Contrary to the US, UK or Germany where naturalization […]
Swiss payments to French towns
Geneva’s compensation financière genevoise might seem altruistic, but it relies on a historical symbiosis unique to the Lake Geneva region. The bilateral agreement, introduced in the early 1970s, redistributes frontalier tax-money to Geneva’s bordering French departments, Haute-Savoie and Ain. The former receives 76.7% of the CHF 270 million dividend, the latter 23.3%. The funds are […]
Combatting cross-border crime
GENEVA The Geneva and Annemasse authorities signed an agreement on 17 January, to create a joint police task force to facilitate the crackdown on criminal gangs operating cross-border in the Priority Security Zone (ZSP) created in early 2013. The ZSP includes Annemasse, Gaillard, Ambilly and the Canton of Geneva. The Geneva government said the new […]
Anti-nuclear tablets, anyone?
LAUSANNE In tune with Switzerland’s prevention culture, people living within a 50 km radius of a nuclear plant will now receive iodide tablets to counter the possible effects of nuclear disaster. The majority of people inhabiting the Bern, Fribourg, Neuchâtel and Jura cantons will receive the pills. The measure will also concern a substantial proportion […]
Abortion: Only for the rich?
Switzerland’s 9 February national referendum will see the people decide on three initiatives, including whether abortion should be considered a private cost. Acceptance of the proposal would engender a redefinition of what constitutes legitimate health treatment. This is particularly relevant to the Geneva region, which had the country’s highest abortion rate in 2012. The line […]
