Federal Politics ‘We don’t want the government restricting our freedom of dress’
With Swiss voters set to decide on a contentious “burka ban” on March 7, Anila Noor and Maria Khoshy explain why they – as Muslim feminists and refugees – oppose […]
Burka ban campaigners lose ground ahead of vote
woman wearing blue burka and sunglasses Supporters and opponents of a burka ban in Switzerland are running neck-and-neck, a new opinion poll has found. Keystone/Niels Wenstedt Support for a proposed […]
‘Golden visas’: How multi-millionaires are ‘buying’ Swiss residency permits
The Local news@thelocal.ch @thelocalswitzer 16 February 2021 ‘Golden visas’: How multi-millionaires are ‘buying’ Swiss residency permits Wealthy Chinese like to move to Switzerland. Photo by AFP A little-known article of […]
Trade in the time of pandemics
With borders closed and global travel constrained, trade will help us find a way out of the pandemic argues new WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. https://www.swissinfo.ch/resource/image/46377092/portrait_ratio1x1/240/240/a8fb3cfa8a3496bf22d553305326794e/F1776A675C39C47B00C861E11B8017EF/op_ngozi_okonjo.png This content was published on […]
Burka ban vote appeals to Islamophobia and feminists
Woman in black burka sitting in public transport https://www.swissinfo.ch/resource/image/46338292/landscape_ratio3x2/880/587/55b03ac3ee8ac909ecce6f6f6d699407/0885F69542ECB5FC8DCC4283EACD8417/356529125_highres.jpg The number of women in Switzerland wearing a burka or a niqab in public is estimated at 30, but supporters of […]
Can Novartis really make its medicines available to everyone?
Novartis launched a new strategy in sub-Saharan Africa in 2019. Sales people will no longer be incentivised by sales targets but rather by patients reached. Reuters / Baz Ratner https://www.swissinfo.ch/resource/image/46345234/landscape_ratio3x2/880/587/c2567bb2f642bbc1c9304da60e706aa7/0B5FDF0C5B53C5008B3D62C92BC2D76A/rtrmadp_3_kenya-oil.jpg Swiss pharma firm Novartis has said it wants everyone in the world to be able to access its products, even […]
Switzerland’s four languages
Play Video The Swiss are known for their multilingualism. The proportion of polyglots has increased slightly since 2014, according to a new report from the Federal Statistical Office. https://play.swissinfo.ch/play/tv/redirect/detail/46318274 This […]
‘The burka initiative defends the dignity of women’
Jean-Luc Addor Keystone / Valentin Flauraud Switzerland could follow in the footsteps of France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Bulgaria by banning women from wearing the burka or niqab in public […]
Swiss religious leaders: Ban on burqas would violate religious freedom
Jonathan Luxmoore | Catholic News Service Jan 28, 2021 • Switzerland’s Catholic Church has joined other religious groups in opposing a proposed ban on Muslim head coverings, arguing it would […]
UN envoy on stalled Syria talks in Geneva: ‘we can’t continue like this’
https://www.swissinfo.ch/resource/image/46331312/landscape_ratio3x2/880/587/b3e66fcd842ab377e62d4e328b299f1d/C6F0C789FDF86B8028F5FD324F4859AF/syria.jpg The Norwegian diplomat has been tasked with bringing all parties together to draft a new Syrian charter that could pave the way for UN-sponsored elections. Keystone / Martial Trezzini […]
Switzerland and its colonists
Switzerland had no colonies – yet some Swiss worked hand in hand with the colonial powers and profited from their seizure of land and resources on other continents. This content was published on August 14, 2020 – David Eugster (Text), Corinna Staffe (Illustration) Around 1800, learned European men were likely […]
‘We are all the same when we get round a fondue’
Source: Swiss Info https://www.swissinfo.ch/resource/image/46285942/landscape_ratio3x2/880/587/1515f53db56526141c3a7a5852444240/84E7CC88C1E8597370679F9CF445EE28/160734445_highres.jpg Swiss-Turkish comedian Semih Yavsaner talks to SWI swissinfo.ch about his best-known satirical character Müslüm, “ethnic humour” and its limits. Yavsaner is a Bern-based artist whose cabaret act includes elements of stand-up, song, dance and improvisation. He is not the only Swiss comedian who uses immigration as […]
Indonesia’s palm oil angers Swiss anti-globalisation activists
Palm oil plantation https://www.swissinfo.ch/resource/image/46315522/landscape_ratio3x2/880/587/57409a201e48a29f528482f02c7c6eb0/2C0AA130DCD2C9F8E5E64E7DBF6B3DF2/292993165_highres.jpg Indonesia is the world’s leading palm oil producer and the south-east Asian country is considered also a lucrative market for imports and investors from Europe. Rony […]
Swiss government urges voters to vote AGAINST burqa ban in referendum because it would ‘be bad for tourism and unhelpful for certain groups of women’
Referendum on writing a burqa ban into the constitution is planned for March 7 Swiss government said ban would be pointless because few wear a full covering France and Denmark […]
Switzerland: Proposed burka ban has solid support, poll finds
Source: Swiss Info A proposed ban on burkas and other face covering in Switzerland is supported mainly by the political right but also partly by liberal feminists on the left. […]
The Aga Khan selects Her Excellency Shaikha Mai as an award member at its 15th session
Aga Khan Award The Aga Khan selects Her Excellency Shaikha Mai as an award member at its 15th session January 19, 2021 The Aga Khan Award for Architecture announced the […]
Will the United Nations soon be obsolete?
Is the international order capable of meeting the enormous challenges facing states and societies around the world? We look at the four main challenges facing International Geneva. This content was […]
WEF founder Klaus Schwab complains about Great Reset ‘conspiracy theory’
The founder of the World Economic Forum (WEF), Klaus Schwab, has complained about a “conspiracy theory” surrounding his book “Covid-19: The Great Reset”. Published: January 22, 2021, 8:08 am “Anyone […]
Asylum seekers in Switzerland need more protection experts say
Federal asylum centres must do more to protect asylum seekers from violence and improve training for security personnel, says a government advisory group. During monitoring visits in 2019 and 2020, the National Commission for the Prevention of Torture (NCPT) repeatedly found that conflict was part of everyday life in eight […]
Artificial intelligence helps bring about record-fast vaccines
The function of a protein is determined by its 3D shape. Laguna Design/Science Photo Library The rapid development of two highly effective Covid-19 vaccines was made possible through AI technology […]