Mountaineering: the Lure of the Peaks

THE MAGAZINE FOR THE SWISS ABROAD

juNE 2012 / NO .3

Mountaineering: The lure of the peaks

Spatial planning in Switzerland: Concrete replacing countryside

Analysis: Voting behaviour of the Swiss abroad Pre-Alps Express, Central Switzerland

The charm of the Pre-Alps. Wild fauna Stop off at the Animal Park The Pre-Alps Express (Voralpen-Express) will Goldau, where over 90 take you on a romantic journey along the species of animals from the water and the gentle slopes of the Pre-Alps. Alps and Europe live in a magnificent setting. In an area covering more than The Pre-Alps Express con- Green views 34 hectares, children and Tip 1 nects Lake Constance to As far as the eye can see in adults alike can admire Lucerne via St.Gallen in spring and summer, the bears, stags, lynx and birds MySwitzerland.com 2 hours 45 minutes. This entire route of the Pre-Alps of prey close-up in their Webcode: A36173 149-km pre-Alpine cross- Express is dominated by natural habitat. country link is not a journey green. The green of the pas- made up of superlatives, tures of Toggenburg, the Life in a castle more a pastoral route that vineyards at the tip of Lake Rapperswil, on the edge will let you admire the land- Zürich and the highland of Lake Zürich, invites you scapes of the Toggenburg, forests. Escape on an unfor- to discover the charming the shores of Lake Zürich gettable journey in the alleys of its old town and and the Rothenthurm summer season. the thousands of roses marshes. It will show you the decorating its gardens. charm of the Pre-Alps, of Register at The castle, with its Polish Tip 2 rocks hidden behind gentle MySwitzerland.com/aso by museum, gives you an hills and coniferous forests. 31 July 2012 and win 2 nights outstanding view of the MySwitzerland.com Along the route, make a stop for 2 people at Hotel Ein- Glarus Alps. Webcode: A41726 to stroll around Rapperswil steinÕ in St.Gallen. and breathe in the scent of its roses or admire the his- MySwitzerland.com 1400 years of history toric treasures of St.Gallen. Webcode: X42451 St.Gallen, part of the old town of which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, celebrates the 1400th anniversary of its foundation this year. A unique opportunity to take advantage Tip 3 A collaboration between Switzerland Tourism and the Organisation of the Swiss of a cultural programme Abroad (OSA) and exceptional holiday MySwitzerland.com offers. Webcode: A28406

126_12e_02_pulbi_schweizer_revue_3_12.indd 1 08.05.12 15:13 EDITORIAL c O n TEn T s 3

Sovereignty and cooperation 5 he issue of how switzerland should in future structure its relations Mailbag with other countries in general – tax agreements being one area of interest – and with the European Union in particular is currently causing controversy at home. 5 T Books: Pedro Lenz and his goalie During a visit to Brussels made by Swiss President Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf and For- eign Minister Didier Burkhalter at the end of March, José Manuel Barroso, the Presi- 7 dent of the European Commission, told the Swiss in no uncertain terms that Switzer- Images: The chaos of the “messies” – land was severely testing the EU’s patience. a film about obsessive collectors Barroso, who is very familiar with Switzerland and the Swiss having studied in Geneva, 8 must have known that his words would not go down well with many Swiss politicians or Switzerland, a vast building site – in the media. This indeed turned out to be the case. The demand from Brussels for Swit- is the countryside set to disappear? zerland to adopt new EU legislation automatically and to accept superordinate authorities for arbitration and supervision in the event of disputes if it wishes to participate in 12 The Rigi – a mountain with an illustrious the EU single market in future has met with huge opposition in Switzerland. This situa- past and an uncertain future tion is extremely unpleasant for the Swiss government. It is concerned not so much about the EU’s demands as about the unavoidable debate about participation and integration 14 in the EU. This will prove highly challenging for the Federal Council on the domestic The Swiss abroad and their front. The Swiss People’s Party (SVP) has been painting a gloomy picture for some time, voting behaviour suggesting that Switzerland will perish within the foreseeable fu- 16 ture if it loses its complete independence and sovereignty. The new foreign policy – an analysis However, fallacies are being proliferated and facts overlooked in this debate. Switzerland cannot decide its destiny independently, Regional news not in the world and certainly not in Europe. Our sovereignty has long been restricted as there are countless agreements – air traffic, Schengen/Dublin and public procurement, to name but a few – 17 where EU law is already adopted. These have given rise to very few Jean-Jacques Rousseau – celebrating problems and it would be no different if Switzerland adopted a philosopher applicable European Union law in the EU single market. If Switzerland refuses to accept 20 this, tremendous damage could be done to the economy. Switzerland and our relations Sapperlot – hearing, seeing and with other states would certainly benefit from a little less of the special case charade and understanding Swiss dialect a little more sovereign willingness to cooperate – sovereign here in the sense of wise and 22 well considered. Mountaineering – people have been The focal topic in this issue has something to do with our unique position in Europe conquering the summits for centuries and much to do with our prosperity. It concerns spatial planning, urban sprawl, mobility, conservation and the protection of our cultural heritage. It is also about the issue of 25 OSA news whether Switzerland will soon have a single agglomeration stretching from Geneva to Romanshorn and whether something of the original Swiss idyll can be preserved through 27 new ideas. Notes from Parliament Finally, dear readers, I would once again like to encourage you to sign the Organisa- 30 tion of the Swiss Abroad’s petition on e-voting, the right to participate in elections and Little gems referenda electronically. E-voting is extremely important for the Swiss abroad as it makes 31 their participation in Switzerland’s political decision-making much easier. The petition Echo can be signed at www.petition.aso.ch. The signatures will be presented to the Federal Council at the Congress of the Swiss Abroad in August. BARBARA ENgEL Cover photo: Mountaineers on the Eiger’s Mittellegi Ridge. Photo: Thomas Ulrich / Keystone

IMPRINT: “Swiss Review”, the magazine for the Swiss abroad, is in its 39th year of publication and is published in german, French, Italian, English and Spanish in 14 regional editions. It has a total circulation of 395 000, including 135 000 electronic copies. Regional news appears four times a year. The ordering parties are fully responsible for the content of advertisements and promotional inserts. These contents do not necessarily represent the opinion of either the editorial office or the publisher. n EDITORS: Barbara Engel (BE), Editor-in-Chief; René Lenzin (RL); Alain Wey (AW); Marc Lettau (MUL); Manuel gnos (MAg); Jean-François Lichtenstern (JFL), responsible for “Notes from June 2012 / No. 3 / No. June 2012 Parliament”, Service for the Swiss Abroad, FDFA, CH-3003 Berne Translation: CLS Communication Ag n LAYOUT: Herzog Design, Zurich n POSTAL ADDRESS: Publisher, editorial office,

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Behind bars was such a negative one. We as a child, he believed he was dutch footballer johan I am 20 years old and have can safely say that it is not the cruyff. His hero. But everyone calls him “the goalie”. A been in prison for just under uniform that makes role he takes on for want of anything better. In his village, 15 months. I am sitting in a the person, but the person who he is looked upon as an outsider, a loser. A lesson he young offenders’ institution for gives the uniform its lustre learns well. “Der goalie bin ig.” (“I’m the goalie.”) It is al- a transgression I committed through their behaviour. How- most his litany. in Bavaria. I received a prison ever, Switzerland is not a na- The “goalie” comes from the imagination of Berne-based sentence of three years and tion of “heartless” officials. poet Pedro Lenz. His novel, written in dialect, tells the nine months for grievous bod- This is my experience. story of a junkie returning to his village after being ily harm, and rightly so! I have On 25 November 2011, my released from prison. Attempting to rebuild his life, he made one huge mistake in my mother from Basel died unex- falls in love with Regi, finds a job and has to reconcile him- life, which unfortunately can- pectedly on a journey to Swit- self to ordinary life. “But nobody knows how long such a not be reversed. I have never zerland. I, who am her only start lasts and if it even is a start at all.” This is the mo rose- been to prison in Switzerland, child, live in Spain. When I ar- ness of small-town life, with its drop-outs and losers, set

my homeland, never been rived at the office of inherit- Pedro Lenz, juggler of dialects against the backdrop of vibrant sound. charged with anything before ance in Basel, I was immedi- The novel has had a tremendous impact in German-speaking in my life, nada! And then ately greeted with compassion Switzerland. It was nominated for the 2010 Swiss Book Prize and something like this happens. and received lots of support. won the Schiller Prize in 2011. It has already sold over 16,000 I have learned my lesson and The certificate of inheritance, copies. Pedro Lenz, accompanied by a musician, also holds regu- am looking positively to the the most important document lar, popular public readings. “I have the music of the dialect in future. The young offenders’ in such cases, arrived within my head when I write”, he says. institutions in Switzerland are two weeks. I was then able to Yet, to sum up this work as part of the wave of popularity en- not like those in Germany. As settle invoices that I would joyed by dialect would be reductive. At 46, Pedro Lenz certainly far as I know, there are only re- have struggled to pay with my cannot be accused of provincialism, embracing instead a reform centres – without barbed Spanish income. This was nec- gional lyricism reminiscent of the musicality of Hemingway. The wire and walls. You can do ap- essary as I had to collect my best parables tell a local story. In Lenz’s work, the power of the prenticeships. In this prison mother from the hospital in dialect, its oral character, is woven into a subtle irony. The nar- many of the inmates but also Thun and transfer her to Basel. rative of the junkie, his predilection for euphemism, reflects the the wardens and other people I found everyone to be com- candour he has inherited through his destiny as the “goalie”. are interested in me and, above passionate and respectful and “Der goalie bin ig” tells a story that goes way beyond the all, in Switzerland. They want everything was dealt with regional framework to which it could be confined as a result of to know what the wages are like swiftly. I felt well respected its use of dialect. Its anti-hero, an observer of a world moving and that sort of thing. and well supported at all times ahead without him, can be found on any street in any backwater I also finally managed to get as a Swiss citizen abroad. region. At the same time, the novel fosters a literary aesthetic a job a few months ago. I earn I am looking forward to the that is not bound by the constraints of standard, academic EUR 1.70 an hour. My cell day when I, as a dual citizen German in much the same way as the work of immigrant writers (8 m2) is covered with pictures of Switzerland and the UK, such as Melinda Nadj Abonji and Catalin Dorian Florescu. Free of of the Alps, Swiss crosses and return to my home country such constraints, the strength of the relation- photos of Toggenburg, my of Switzerland. ship with the language shines through. home. ANDREw SANDILANDS, Pedro Lenz says he dreams of helping I have not written my letter BARCELoNA, SPAIN “bärndütsch” escape from “intellectual reduc- because I am looking for sym- tionism”. Poet Raphaël Urweider produced a pathy. I would like to receive Summary translation into “standard German” in February letters, or even read readers’ of the Hildebrand case 2011. “Der Keeper bin ich” (Bilgerverlag) letters, from people who are The saying “a leopard never remains true to the narrator’s style. The care behind bars in Germany. changes its spots” is true of taken with rhythm underscores the oral charac- MARCo BöHI, the experienced hedge fund ter of the work. However, its success in terms of EBRACH, GERMANY manager Hildebrand. It seems copies sold does not match that of “Der Goalie bin ig”, due – per- to me that you are attributing haps – to the fact that some of the musicality has been lost. Fol- Not a nation of “heartless” too much importance to the lowing a translation into Italian (“In porta c’ero io”, Cappelli, officials Bernese schemers from the 2011), a French version is set to come out in 2013 (Editions d’en I read Esther Zuger’s letter in worlds of politics and the me- Bas). in a popular voice that will have to steer clear of kitsch if it the November issue of “Swiss dia in the Hildebrand case. is to reflect the talent of Pedro Lenz. Review” on security checks at Of course, the manner in ANNE FoURNIER

IE w 3 / No. June 2012 Zurich airport. I am really which the leaks occurred Ev sorry that this couple’s final should be investigated but the ANNE FoURNIER is an editor at the Geneva daily “Le Temps” ISS R

Sw memory of our lovely country complaints were certainly not 6 mailbag

unsubstantiated. The point is General Blatter People planning to travel to 10,000 Swiss francs. The costs that as the President of the Na- It is astonishing how long FIFA Switzerland can take out these were not borne on the grounds tional Bank, who determines has stood for Sepp Blatter’s health insurance policies, that I was already ill when I the Swiss franc-dollar exchange corruption. I have lived in the which are valid for up to three arrived in Switzerland! It may rate, you do not speculate with USA for 50 years and have al- months. have been the case that the dollars, not even using your ways followed football with However, you had better not illness already existed at the wife’s account. This sullied great interest. Blatter himself fall ill. I took out this kind of time of my journey. However, Hildebrand’s reputation in the should have seen how he is policy and promptly fell ill. I had no symptoms or com- world of international finance dragging FIFA’s name through The general practitioner re- plaints until the day I visited and made his position untena- the mud a long time ago. ferred me to the hospital in the doctor. ble. Nothing changes this sim- Rolf PfisteR, esteRo, usa Herisau. I made an enquiry The outcome was 400 francs ple truth even if attempts are about the assumption of costs spent on insurance and 10,000 subsequently made to take ac- Pay attention to health by the insurance company, Swiss francs owed to the hospi- tion against the SVP in relation insurance policies which was confirmed. A letter tal. Thanks a lot, Zürich Versi- to the matter. Take care with so-called “visi- from the insurance company cherung! Max NyffeleR, tor insurance policies”, which then arrived after a week of in- haNs walteR KueNzle, MuNich, GeRMaNy are provided by Swiss insurers. patient treatment and a bill for PedeRNales, doM. ReP.

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Glorious chaos They are known locally as “messies” – people who succumb to a boundless passion for collecting things. They are regarded as having an illness, relatives find them difficult to put up with and their behaviour turns them into isolated loners. The media like to feature particularly obscure cases because in tidy Switzerland they fly in the face of normal perceptions of orderliness with their obsessions. The film “Messies, ein schönes Chaos” (Messies – glorious chaos) takes a different approach. Bernese filmmaker Ulrich Grossenbacher portrays four people with collection compulsions in a film just under two hours long: Thomas, Arthur, Elmira and Karl. They collect scrap, tractors, excavators, cars, newspapers, film magazines or simply anything that might be usable. He discusses with them their passion for collecting, their compulsions, their suppression strategies and explanations for their behaviour. Grossenbacher shows great respect for these people, revealing a comical side to the “messies” that will amuse audiences without ridiculing them. The film premiered in August 2011 at the Locarno Film Festival. It has since been on show at cinemas. The DVD can be ordered from: Fair & Ugly, Filmproduktion, Lorrainestrasse 15, CH-3013 Berne, [email protected] ss Re VIew 3 / No. June 2012 I Photos: Fair & Ugly Photos: Fair sw 8 focus

Passionate debate rages over Switzerland as a vast building site It came as a huge surprise to many that the Swiss people imposed clear limits on the construction of second homes on 11 March 2012. The decision was undoubtedly fuelled by a fundamental opposition to unrestricted and barely controlled building projects in Switzerland. Yet, there are also increasing signs of a complete rethink – an intensive debate is currently ongoing about a paradigm shift in spatial planning in Switzerland. At the same time, new storm clouds are gathering. By Marc Lettau

over Switzerland, in both the mountains and the valleys, continued for three decades without any obvious general strategy. “Ur- ban sprawl”, with its negative connotations, is the term used to describe the phenome- non. Developed land is expanding at a rate of around one square metre every second. This means that almost 30 km2 of land that can be cultivated is irretrievably lost each year.1 This developed area is increasing more rapidly than the population itself in 23 of the 26 cantons. People are demanding more residential and developed space per capita every year except in the cantons of Basel-Land, Schwyz and Zurich. The re- serves of land for building on are large enough to allow Switzerland’s populated areas to grow unrestrictedly almost everywhere at the same time. The think tank, Avenir Suisse, which has close ties with busi- Illustrations from the book “Alle Jahre wieder saust der Presslufthammer nieder” by Jörg Müller ness and is far from averse to growth, has been warning for some time that “Switzer- land’s Central Plateau is increasingly be- How would the average Swiss classroom hammer nieder” (The Pounding of the coming one continuous agglomeration”. have looked thirty or forty years ago? It Jackhammer Can Be Heard Every Year) are The classroom pictures of yesteryear are be- would have been a light, unostentatious a sequence of seven drawings by the illus- ing overtaken by the reality. space with large windows. The two-pupil trator Jörg Müller which feature the same desks would have been neatly arranged fac- section of a typically Swiss landscape be- A genuine shift ing the blackboard. Two dozen children coming increasingly modern and unfamiliar For several weeks now it has no longer been would have sat at the desks. If they hap- in seven stages. presumptuous to speak of obvious signs of pened to glance out of the window they All the teachers, who lived in the new change. The clearest indication of this is would have seen a few cows grazing along- rows of single-family homes, attempted to the Swiss people’s approval of the far- side the school building and behind them a make the pupils, who also lived in new reaching initiative against the excessive con- row of new single-family homes. On closer homes built on the green meadow, aware of struction of second homes on 11 March 2012 inspection, they would have been able to the transformation. It was a cause for con- (also see box on p. 11). The initiative put for- make out the long wooden posts outlining cern even then. ward by the adversarial 84-year-old envi- of a couple of new houses to be built in the ronmental campaigner Franz Weber, who meadow. “Urban sprawl” is the term coined is showing no sign of mellowing with age, This view from the classroom window “Alle Jahre wieder saust der Pressluftham- calls for radical restrictions to be placed on was one of a rapidly changing environment. mer nieder” was awarded the German the construction of holiday homes. Weber In those days almost every teacher at some Youth Literature Prize in 1974 and has been and his fellow campaigners see these prop- point displayed a series of images on the reprinted constantly ever since. It has been erties, which stand empty most of the time, classroom wall which for decades came to a success, but also an enduring failure – the as symbols of the futile destruction of the

epitomise this rapid change. The images en- jackhammer ultimately proved to be 1 This transformation of Switzerland was covered wiSS Review 3 / No. June 2012 wiSS Review 3 / No. June 2012

S Müller Jörg Pictures: titled “Alle Jahre wieder saust der Pressluft- stronger than the lesson. Building work all in figures in the 1/2010 issue of “Swiss Review”. S donated Foundation, Photos: Franz weber 9

Alpine region. Environmentalist Weber claims that the sprawling construction of second homes is general proof of the lack of a sustainable spatial planning policy in Swit- zerland. It was not just in the urban regions where a majority of people voted in favour of the radical initiative. Approval was also aston- ishingly high in several alpine tourist areas. A good example is the clear support for the initiative in Interlaken, which is heavily re- liant on the tourism industry. It is likely that many Swiss people cast their votes not just on the construction of second homes but also on the issue of unrestricted urban sprawl in general. This is also the conclusion drawn by many newspaper commentators. Zurich’s “Tages-Anzeiger” said it was easy to explain why the communes would now lose some of their planning freedom: “The track record that the communes have in spatial planning is simply not good enough.” The cantons and communes were “paying the price for decades of neglectful spatial planning”.

Building land equals prosperity The jackhammer that pounds away every day has begun to falter after the people’s decision. Observed at some distance, the decision means that the voting public is today willing to make spatial planning decisions that would have been unthinkable several years ago. The psychological distress caused by the “spatial planning problem” is clearly significant. But what are the root causes of Davos and Zermatt: These pictures clearly show why the second homes initiative was approved the problem? In Switzerland, the regulations governing when, where, how and how of their environment becomes something second popular initiative is already having much development can take place have in nostalgic that belongs to the past, this ulti- an impact, even though it has yet to be pre- the past largely been determined by the mately has a negative impact on their qual- sented to the people – the landscape initia- communes and cantons. To put it mildly, ity of life and sense of rootedness in the tive, which is supported by a broad coalition federal government’s influence over spatial country where they live. Biologist Raimund of environmental organisations. This seeks planning has been very low key over past Rodewald, director of the Swiss Foundation a general curbing of the expansion of settle- decades. However, if spatial planning is de- for Landscape Conservation and one of the ment areas and essentially calls for the re- termined from below rather than directed most highly regarded experts on landscape duction of excessive development zones. from above, it follows its own rules. Every conservation issues, tells “Swiss Review” Approval of this initiative would effectively commune wants to make as much building that the approach to development in the mean that no more new development zones land available as possible, as this provides past had been the opposite of typically would be allocated for twenty years. Parlia- new taxpayers and prosperity. Little consid- Swiss: “In this country where order, stabil- ment is taking the criticism of the failings in eration is given to changes to the landscape. ity, reliability and quality matter so much, spatial planning so seriously that it wants to As a result, this supposedly rural nation can building has never been structured well. take over the reins itself. Following on from no longer claim to be rural in many places. There has been a general lack of responsi- the Council of States, the National Coun- The gap between the purported idyll and the bility to society.” cil also resolved to tighten up spatial plan- actual landscape has become very wide. To ning law in March after months of hesita- use an untypically Swiss touch of pathos, Parliament wants to take control tion. According to its proposals, federal this is paining the soul of the people. One single popular initiative cannot repair government would have the power to force

swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 donated Foundation, Photos: Franz weber If people’s own fundamental impression all the spatial planning shortcomings. But a the cantons to reduce any development 10 focus

zones deemed too large. Secondly, land- cause the double garage that goes with it is owners would be required to make pay- evidence of the cost of this “dream”: far ments if their land became building land and greater mobility or, in other words, envi- consequently increased significantly in ronmental pollution. value. Some of this kind of overnight accu- The obvious migration to private homes mulation of wealth would be skimmed off. in the country since 1970, and the resultant Any new zones would therefore result in the depopulation of the cities, has more than transfer of significant sums to the state. The just been curbed. There has been an evident state would be able to use these to return “return to the cities”, with large and small building land to agricultural usage else- towns and cities growing significantly since where and to pay compensation where nec- 2005. The populations of many rural com- essary. This would undermine a mechanism munes have stagnated, though admittedly that has contributed massively to urban they may continue to grow in terms of area sprawl in Switzerland in recent decades: due to their sprawling development zones. farmers selling off acres because building In total, around 45% of the Swiss now again land is worth ten or even as much as a hun- live in cities and agglomerations close to ur- dred times more than agricultural land, and ban centres. The think tank Avenir Suisse the communes concerned approving the concludes that “Switzerland is becoming Near Buchs in the canton of St. Gallen – one single-family home after another transformation because they hope to bene- more urban”, and the more urban it be- fit significantly themselves through the comes, the fiercer the debate about how the farmers who become overnight millionaires, cities must change. The declared spatial through the vibrant building activity and by planning ethos is “internal growth”. “Dense attracting affluent taxpayers. The overrid- inner cities” are being considered in most ing consideration of geographical space is urban centres, partly for environmental rea- overshadowed by local interests. sons, as Ulrich Weidmann, a professor at The environmental associations are al- the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, ready celebrating. They plan to withdraw points out: “A high-density city is more en- their initiative if the spatial planning law is vironmentally friendly than a low-density actually tightened up in the way described. one. Energy consumption for mobility de- Rodewald talks of a “clear paradigm shift”. creases, journeys become shorter and the Parliament’s final vote on the amendments proportion of public transport increases. to the law has yet to take place. This is The alternative to a dense inner city is ur- scheduled for summer. The possibility that ban sprawl in the countryside. Concen- interest groups may then call a referendum trated urban settlements can be organised against so much “spatial planning from more energy-efficiently than individual above” cannot be ruled out either. homes in the countryside. There is the possibility of more creative ways of heating and Köniz in Switzerland’s Central Plateau – not always a har monious sight despite the Wakker Prize Social change energy recovery.” However, the “internal for “exemplary urban development” First the second homes initiative and now growth” of cities is anything but rapid. Dis- the landscape initiative. On the one hand, used industrial and service buildings often the anticipated change in spatial planning remain vacant for decades before being can be explained by psychological distress. transformed into new, vibrant districts. On the other, it is also a reflection of social Slow-paced urban renewal contributes to change. The reasons for protecting the land housing shortages, which are acute in some and countryside are changing. While in the places, driving up property and rental prices. past critics of spatial planning were driven by a desire to protect farmland, natural Clearing forests here and there landscapes and rural aesthetics, today there Environmentally friendly urbanisation is es- is increasing emphasis on energy policy ar- tablishing itself as the new benchmark. In guments in the spatial planning debate. If contrast, the previously dogged protection the change in energy policy and the rejec- of forests is increasingly being called into tion of the craving for non-renewable ener- question, although it was in this particular gies succeed, spatial planning guidelines will area that federal government’s spatial plan- also be required. This reasoning is already ning was most effective. The basic principle evident in everyday life. A young Swiss fam- that forests can only be cleared if reforest- ily no longer necessarily dreams of a single- ation takes place elsewhere has meant that Bern-Brünnen – the development of a leisure and shopping centre with 11 cinema halls, 10 restaurants, a hotel and an adventure pool swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: Adrian Moser (2) / Keystone (1) family home in the idyllic countryside be- forestry land has been preserved even in the 11

Central Plateau in recent decades. But pres- lines are not set. He says: “We are facing a sure is now growing on forests close to ur- wave of around one hundred power plant ban centres. A highly charged debate is cur- projects. I am concerned that the landscape rently taking place in Berne over whether will be destroyed and without making any parts of the Bremgartenwald forest should significant contribution to the withdrawal be cleared to create an urban settlement for from nuclear power.” The WWF in turn is 8,000 people. The main argument is that arguing that the power plant developers clearing forests near to cities results in less currently have their sights set on some of urban sprawl than converting green mead- the most valuable biotopes. A dam project ows into building zones on the outskirts of in the canton of Fribourg is threatening to the city. destroy the ecological qualities of the The same environmentalists currently ap- Warme Sense river. From an ecological per- plauding the change in spatial planning be- spective, the “Warme Sense” is one of the ing implemented by federal parliament are, “most valuable waters” among the unspoilt of course, entering the fray. They are com- alpine rivers. It provides a habitat for many plaining that the relaxation of forestry pro- species of animals and plants. tection constitutes the breaking of a taboo. Protect the countryside – and clear more near Buchs in the canton of St. gallen – one single-family home after another If the first forestry land close to the city is forests? Protect alpine panoramas – and call cleared, this will set a precedent to start up for new dams? The spatial planning debate the chainsaws in all urban centres. Lukas is in vogue. But the areas of conflict are mas- Bühlmann, Director of the Swiss Spatial sive. Despite the signs of a paradigm shift, Planning Association, shares these concerns. the issue of spatial planning in Switzerland If there is a shortage of building land, this still remains something of a work in progress. will inevitably result in calls for deforestation to be made easier: “If the forest town MARC LETTAU is an editor at “Swiss Review” on the Bremgartenwald site is approved, it will be impossible to prevent forestry clear- ance on the Üetliberg in Zurich, in the All- schwilerwald in Basel and in the Bois de la Bâtie in Geneva.” The list may grow as plans Challenging implementation are being considered in Neuchâtel to create It remains unclear how the second space for 8,000 new inhabitants in the for- homes initiative approved by the ested areas on the outskirts of the city. Swiss people on 11 March 2012 is to be implemented in many respects. There Why not build a few more dams? is even disagreement on what consti- The impact of the Fukushima disaster, tutes a second home. What is not in Köniz in Switzerland’s Central plateau – not always a har monious sight despite the Wakker prize which has shaken western confidence in nu- dispute is the fact that the large num- for “exemplary urban development” clear technology, is also putting new strain ber of often unoccupied holiday on Switzerland’s countryside. As well as the homes cannot be allowed to increase call for a relaxation of deforestation regula- unchecked. The initiative calls for the tions, the targeted change in energy policy proportion of second homes to be re- is also seeing new battle lines emerge. Ow- stricted to 20%. In some Swiss tourist ing to Switzerland’s effectively rubber- regions, 70% of properties are cur- stamped withdrawal from nuclear power, rently second homes. What is clear is energy companies are seeking to exploit re- that the initiative does not jeopardise newable energies – wind and hydropower – any existing holiday homes. But it is to a much greater extent than ever before also evident that the purchase and in the alpine region. They are calling for construction of new second homes more wind turbines, higher dam walls and will become much more difficult from new small-scale hydropower plants. Envi- now on. This applies to interested par- ronmentalists are dismayed at how the en- ties residing in Switzerland as much ergy generation projects are again challeng- as it does to the Swiss abroad. Supply ing the increased protection of the will stagnate – not least owing to the mountain environment. Raimund Rode- as yet undefined approval criteria for wald from the Swiss Foundation for Land- future second homes – and can no Bern-Brünnen – the development of a leisure and shopping centre with 11 cinema halls, scape Conservation fears that a new form longer be increased at will in future in 10 restaurants, a hotel and an adventure pool of urban sprawl will emerge if clear guide- the event of increased demand. 12 REPORT

Rigi – Switzerland under the magnifying glass A public baths designed by the famous architect Mario Botta will open on the Rigi at the start of July. The Rigi, renowned for its spectacular location, was once an exclusive spa resort, but the mountain has been little more than a fine-weather destination for sightseers over the past 50 years. This is now set to change. A report by Hanspeter Spörri

“You’ve never been up the Rigi? Not even on ween sobriety and cheeriness, between pro- structural problems are clearly in evidence a school trip? That can’t be true!” – friends fessionalism and nepotism and between today. But, an identity is now being sought and acquaintances react with disbelief to my functional aesthetics and kitsch. and longstanding confrontation is slowly giv- confession. Everyone has visited the Rigi; it’s ing way to cordial cooperation.” ◆ one of Switzerland’s most famous mountains. This confrontation may also explain why It is neither its height (1,797 metres) nor its Angelo Zoppet is a journalist and civil engi- two railway lines climb the Rigi. While this shape that makes it spectacular. It looks like neer. I meet him at Arth-Goldau station and is great for tourists, it costs much more than other lower alpine peaks and consists mainly he immediately explains that only the station it brings in. The two rival companies with of pudding stone, the sedimentary rock that bears this name, the place we are in is actu- Rigi lines running from Vitznau in the can- is also found, for example, in Appenzell, ally Goldau. Arth and Oberarth are neigh- ton of Lucerne and Goldau in the canton of Toggenburg and the Napf region. What bouring towns. I have asked Zoppet to ac- Schwyz merged in 1992. makes the Rigi a famous travel destination is company me because he is an expert on the ◆ its location between Lake Lucerne, Lake Rigi and a born fighter. He campaigns against Zug and Lake Lauerz as well as its unique the destruction of the landscape and poorly Having absorbed some advice from Zoppet, panoramic views. This massif is also like a designed construction, sometimes making I finally board the blue train, which was built

View from the Rigi looking towards Küssnacht

theatre backdrop; it is the setting of Schill- himself unpopular in the process. After just in 1953. I immediately feel as though I’m on er’s drama about William Tell, which un- a few yards, he points out an example of ill- a school trip with the thrill of anticipation at folds between the Gesslerburg, Hohle Gasse, considered speculative architecture. Zoppet the unknown which has long been imagined. Tellsplatte and Rütli. The Rigi is within easy explains with some annoyance that various During the journey, I get an ever clearer view reach for day-trippers from all the major regulations were circumvented to get the of the Kleiner Mythen and the Grosser My- Swiss cities by train, boat and the two cog property built. then, the impressive massif looming over the railways that run from Vitznau and Goldau He then tells me of his love for the Rigi. cantonal capital of Schwyz. The cog railway to Rigi-Kulm. He says: “For me it represents home, unre- then goes through a romantic ravine, passing ◆ stricted panoramas and my local recreational waterfalls and precipices. There are lots of And what awaits visitors on the Rigi apart area for sporting activities. I also associate day-trippers among the passengers, some from the somewhat obtrusive touristic inf- unforgettable memories of my youth with it, Asians and a group attending a yoga and me- rastructure at the summit and the smell of but it is a place of painful experiences too.” ditation class here. Suddenly, something fries from the self-service restaurant? What does that mean exactly? Zoppet says comes into view that resembles a stranded Perceptions are perhaps heightened when that the Rigi also signifies ideas and action UFO. It is the event tent at Rigi Staffel. Zop- visiting this place for the first time: in the on a small scale. People here have long pet had mentioned it. “It’s absolutely hide- course of a single day, I find a Switzerland worked against one another rather than with ous”, were his words. “How could anyone under the magnifying glass here – a country one another. The two Rigi cantons, Schwyz permit and construct such an ugly gigantic with all its qualities and contradictions, with and Lucerne, have not pulled in the same di- tent on this wonderful mountain ridge in the self-belief and self-doubt, swaying between rection. This may also explain why tourism middle of a protected landscape?” He is quite

swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: donated a fear of crisis and a mood of optimism, bet- has waned at the Rigi. Zoppet remarks: “The right. This thing that advertises itself as a swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photos: donated 13

“unique event location” for 100 to 750 people has been there since 2007. ◆ Nevertheless, I enjoy taking in the landscape. Arriving at the summit, I feel as Mark Twain and his travel companion, Harris, did: “We could not speak. We could hardly breathe. We could only gaze in drunken ecstasy and drink it in”, he wrote in his book, “A Tramp Abroad”, published in 1880. This must have been a busy spot even in Mark Twain’s day. He called the Rigi summit an exhibition ground and did what tourists love doing – he poked fun at other tourists: “They had their red guide-books open at the diagram of the view, and were painfully picking out the se- View of the Rigi from the “Mythen” veral mountains and trying to impress their names and positions on their memories. It the Kessiboden hut, then a bratwurst stand baths will meet the great need for a slower was one of the saddest sights I ever saw.” and kiosk, was available to rent. She had no pace of life. People will be able to enjoy the hesitation in saying, “I’ll do it”. Since last facilities and recuperate even in poor wea- ◆ year it has been a proper little inn rather than ther. This form of civilisation soon disappears a kiosk. The baths is still a building site, but typi- when you leave behind the summit region. I The produce served comes from the local cal Botta features are already recognisable – begin to descend in the direction of Rigi- region – deer sausage from Moutathal and a round tower and a natural stone façade Kaltbad. After just a few minutes, a pleasant cheese from the canton of Uri; the cakes are made of granite, which does not come from aromatic smell reaches my nostrils. Is it homemade, and the wild garlic for the soup the Rigi. The scheme will cost 28 million soup? Could it be cheese? Is it cake? It is the is handpicked. Swiss francs. Guests will soon be able to ◆ Kessiboden hut, and there is still room on its “bathe in an environment steeped in legend tiny terrace. I soon get caught up in a discus- I would love to have stayed for longer. But with a vista of the mountains”. This is what sion with guests about the approval of the se- we have to set off for Rigi-Kaltbad to be on the online publicity tells us anyway. It is due cond homes initiative. While no consensus time to catch the train. The route across the to open on 1 July. ◆ is reached about its impact, it is clear to the Chänzeli is spectacular. And I also want to group why the initiative was approved; take a look at the new Botta baths. It is set Just a few minutes away by foot is a small cha- someone remarks: “Too much development to open soon after years of wrangling, failed pel in an historical location. Total silence has taken place, a lot of it is unattractive and projects and an unfinished building blight- reigns, and clear water flows from a moun- just for the sake of making a quick buck. Peo- ing the landscape for ten years. There are tain crevice. This spring once gave the “Kalte ple have simply had enough of seeing the great hopes attached to it. Zurich’s “Tages- Bad” its name. People seeking cures came landscape blighted.” (See also pages 8–11) anzeiger” recently described the Rigi as a here on pilgrimages as early as the 16th cen- There are highly experienced hikers “crisis summit”. The Botta baths is now ex- tury. They plunged into the cold water, ran among the group who are familiar with the pected to herald a recovery. Roger Bernet is around the chapel, prayed and rid them- inns on many of the mountains: “This is a the director of Aqua Spa Resorts, which selves of their ailments. There were four ho- wonderful place – it’s magical”, one remarks. owns the Botta baths. He believes the new tels on the Rigi at the beginning of the 20th “It’s down to Sylvia, the landlady”, he century. Some were extremely luxu- adds. Sylvia is sitting with guests at rious and they could accommodate a table, leaving her husband Toni to 2,000 visitors. Guests came from all serve customers. He has helped out over the world and included the here since taking early retirement aristocracy, the snobbishly wealthy from his position as a customer ser- and artists. Tourism and contemp- vice advisor in the automotive trade lation are closely entwined as the but looks as though he has spent his need for recovery, spiritual recupe- entire life in catering. But the boss is ration and physical reinvigoration Sylvia Planzer, who, at the age of 49, has always brought people here. The completed a business school course journey is well worth it. after a serious skiing accident and eview 3 / no. June 2012 r Hanspeter spörri is a freelance journalist then worked in an office for two based in teufen. swiss photos: donated years. In 2005, she discovered that The world-famous painting “The blue Rigi” by William Turner 14 POLITCS

The political profile of the Swiss abroad Michael Hermann, head of the “sotomo” research unit at the University of Zurich, has carefully analysed the data available on the voting behaviour of the Swiss abroad. He explains the results of his research in the following article.

More and more cantons are revealing the lustrates that the Swiss abroad who vote file for the Swiss abroad who actively voting behaviour of their Swiss citizens clearly have an impact. participate in political life in Switzerland. abroad who are eligible to vote in elections The Greens surpassed the two traditional and referenda. By the 2011 national elections parties, the FDP.The Liberals and the Swiss abroad less conservative the figure had reached nine – nine cantons Christian Democratic People’s Party What does this mean exactly? The best way in which almost half of all Swiss abroad reg- (CVP). However, it was the Social Demo- to understand the political profile of the istered on the electoral roll live. This is suf- cratic Party (SP) that won the most votes Swiss abroad in context is to use a compari- ficient to provide an accurate overall projec- from the Swiss abroad. With a 21 % share of son. If one takes all Switzerland’s communes tion of the voting behaviour of the Swiss the vote, it only just exceeded its national as a point of reference, it is the town of abroad at elections and referenda. Our pro- share of the vote, but this was nevertheless Baden that most closely resembles their po- jection model for the share of the vote at the sufficient for first place owing to the amaz- litical profile. The community of Swiss National Council elections reveals a party- ingly poor performance of the Swiss Peo- abroad dispersed around the world who ac- political profile that does not differ greatly ple’s Party (SVP) among the Swiss elector- tively participate in politics is typically re- from that of the Swiss at home, but does ate abroad (20 %). flected in the population of Baden. The po- however possess some distinctive character- The electoral profile of the Swiss abroad litical profile in both cases reveals a rather istics. What stands out is the exceptional is clearly lopsided: the red-green camp is urbane, well educated population stratum performance of the Greens, who obtained overrepresented, while the national con- with an open outlook. Just like Baden’s elec- 15 % of the vote from the Swiss abroad, al- servatives are underrepresented. The com- torate, the Swiss abroad are not too far away most doubling their national total. Without paratively poor performance of the centre from the Swiss middle ground. The major the votes of the Swiss abroad, the Greens’ parties, the CVP and the Conservative cities in German-speaking Switzerland and national share of the vote would have stood Democratic Party (BDP), which are well es- many of the communes in the French-speak- at 8.2 % instead of 8.4 %. While this does not tablished in rural areas, is also very notice- ing region have a profile that is much further represent a vast difference, it nevertheless il- able. This suggests a rather left-liberal pro- to the left than that of the Swiss abroad.

Open foreign policy 26.6 100% E l l c 25% Performance of the parties at the 2011 National Council elections a on ib on ci ti e o o a ra m Swiss abroad (projection) S is l l is ic ra 75% a e ti b o li n 21 20 20% 50% 18.7

25% f i n

R a e e t n

a 15.1 c 15 g t t

14.5 a 15% n s

i i

c S

l e

o i

12.3 c s y 11 10% 8.4

E 7 n v 6.1 i 5.4 5.5 p ro & 5.4 r n o m y e 5% t e rm c ec n A n 3.5 ti ta fe on l de 22 Restrictive imm olicy 0% Swiss at home igration p SVP SP FDP CVP GPS BDP GLP EVP Other Swiss abroad (projection)

Fig. 1: Performance of the parties at the 2011 National Council elections. Fig. 2: A comparison of the political profile of the Swiss abroad and at home. Official results and projection of the voting behaviour of the Swiss abroad Basis: 42 federal referenda from 2004 to 2011. Projection of the figures for the swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Figures: sotomo, Michael Hermann (error margin: +/–2 percentage points) Swiss abroad (error margin: +/–3 percentage points) swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Figure: sotomo, Michael Hermann 15

Even better almost than election results similarities are too. The profile of the Swiss cies of openness and reform and therefore less are referenda for determining the political at home and abroad is practically identical in conservative than their counterparts at home. profile in Switzerland. Specific attitudes to the areas of social, financial, security and, fi- This in itself is not particularly surprising given key issues only become apparent at referenda. nally also, environmental policy. Given the that the most significant common characteris- In the same way as with the electoral projec- strong backing that the Green Party enjoys tic of this population group is their decision to tion, we have used the disclosed cantonal ref- among the Swiss abroad, their restraint when emigrate. A degree of cosmopolitanism is erendum results to provide a projection for it comes to environmental policy is particu- therefore inherent in them. However, the de- the entire politically active Swiss community larly interesting to note. cisive factor seems to be the social profile and abroad and thus reveal the political profile of educational background of the Swiss abroad. the Swiss abroad (see fig. 2). This profile is Neither left nor right As the major survey of the Swiss abroad con- based on 42 referenda between 2004 and In overall terms, it is clear that the Swiss abroad ducted in 2003 showed, they include a dispro- 2012 and shows the issues and controversies support the red-green faction more and the portionately high number of well educated where the position of the electorate abroad SVP less than the population on average, but people in managerial positions, at least among differs from that of the electorate at home. they cannot be deemed “left-wing” in the true those registered on the electoral roll. If a group All in all, the greatest divide between the sense. In the area of tension between labour with the same educational and social structure Swiss at home and abroad appears in refer- and capital and the conflict of interests be- was randomly put together from among the enda on immigration policy. These include tween employers and employees, the Swiss Swiss living at home, their political profile issues such as the SVP’s extradition initia- abroad do not diverge from the conservative would not differ greatly from that of the Swiss tive and the bill on facilitating naturalisation. consensus of the Swiss at home. There is only abroad. On average, support from the Swiss abroad a difference on issues of economic policy. As Attempts are sometimes made to explain for a “restrictive immigration policy” is 19 the political profile shows, the Swiss abroad are the voting behaviour of the Swiss abroad at percentage points lower than that from the more in favour of liberalisation and deregula- referenda by their interests (for example, overall electorate. The difference in attitude tion than the average person. would they vote for an increase in VAT be- is almost as great on foreign policy propos- Generally speaking, the Swiss abroad lean cause they would not be affected by it?). How- als, such as the Schengen agreement and bi- neither to the left nor to the right on the tradi- ever, it is actually the selective composition of ometric passports. Bills aimed at open for- tional socioeconomic left-right axis. The dis- this population group that is much more sig- eign policy receive just short of 18 percentage tinctive characteristics of the profile of the nificant. In other words, it is the many well points more support from the Swiss abroad Swiss abroad emerge in political debates along educated, ambitious and cosmopolitan emi- than from all voters in general. But it is not the so-called modernisation axis. On average, grants who typify the community of the Swiss just the differences that are of interest, the the Swiss abroad are more supportive of poli- abroad politically. Michael herMann

Modernisation / openness SWISS ABROAD AND THEIR CAN- however, the canton of Geneva TONS: The political profile of the stands out. its population of swiss abroad reflects the profile of swiss abroad differs far less from their canton of origin, at least to the local population than in the +15 a certain extent. however, the other cantons. The obvious expla- differences between the swiss nation would seem to be the BS Swiss abroad

abroad from the various cantons overheated property market and +10 Swiss at home VD are less prominent than those be- Geneva’s location near to the bor- GE tween the cantons themselves. der, as a result of which many citi- This is shown by the political map zens of Geneva live on the other +5 LU with the five cantons that have side of the border. This makes revealed the voting behaviour of them swiss abroad though they AI the swiss abroad since the start are still in effect part of the local Equality / Order / of the survey period in 2004 (see population. prosperity - 10 - 5 +10 property fig. 3 to the right). at least in the interestingly, no such pattern Swiss electorate case of these five, the variance emerges in Basel-stadt despite

between the cantons is greater the fact that the half-canton is -5 than that between their swiss cit- also situated on the border of the

izens abroad. country. however, the property Preservation / separation The registered swiss abroad market here is not overheated are much more receptive to mod- like it is in Geneva. emigration to ernisation and a policy of open- neighbouring countries therefore eview 3 / no. June 2012 r ness than the local cantonal plays a less significant role in the Fig. 3: Political map of the five cantons that have revealed the results for the swiss Figure: sotomo, Michael hermann population in all five cantons. make-up of the political profile. Swiss abroad for many years. Basis: 42 federal referenda from 2004 to 2011 16 PolitiCS

“A clear statement has been made” Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter set out the priorities in foreign policy for the next four years at the beginning of March. Laurent Goetschel, Professor of Political Science at the University of Basel and Director of the peace research institute swisspeace in Berne, believes the new strategy has logic but lacks vision. Interview by Barbara Engel

“swiss review”: After the presentation of Swiss abroad in terms of federal govern- the foreign policy objectives, the Swiss media ment services is another matter. This cov- talked of a fundamental change in foreign ers many very different areas, including the policy. Do you see it that way too? consular service, social insurance, tax is- laurent goetschel: It hardly consti- sues and electoral participation. The De- tutes a fundamental change in terms of partment of Foreign Affairs is not solely substance. The priorities remain Europe, responsible for these. development cooperation, peace-building, the environment, international law, neu- Are there objectives missing from the trality, the financial centre and trade. foreign policy priorities that should have What has changed is the order of priority. been included in your view? Neighbouring countries are now the main I don’t think anything major was left focus, followed by Europe and then the out. But for years now these reports have rest of the world. There is a definite em- Laurent Goetschel been drafted in such a way that nobody phasis on areas closer to home. could object to them. That’s also the case were unable to implement under Federal here. It is more about listing all sorts of What do you believe is the reason for this Councillor Calmy-Rey? endeavours rather than setting out clear shift of emphasis? There are many diplomats working at objectives. However, the government There are currently several key issues to the FDFA who also have many different ought to and really needs to develop new be resolved with our immediate neigh- leanings and viewpoints. From what I have visions again, particularly in the field of bours. These include the bilateral tax seen, many of them were pleased with the EU relations, which really are a priority agreements with individual states as well commitment shown by Federal Councillor right now. This is actually part of the ex- as institutional problems with the Euro- Calmy-Rey, even if she sometimes tended ecutive mandate. The constant pledge to pean Union. And we also have issues such towards activism. I regard the new set of ‘focus on the bilateral approach’ is inade- as Zurich airport and the debate about the priorities more as the consequence of crit- quate. But perhaps it was simply too early free movement of persons. icism from outside the department, from for that. politicians and the business world. So, you see the priorities as logical? You have been observing Swiss foreign policy There are no surprises? One of Federal Councillor Burkhalter’s for many years. Has Switzerland’s position Let’s put it like this, I can understand why main foreign policy objectives is apparently in the world become more difficult? Has our these priorities have been set. Reading the to support the Swiss abroad. Do you have image been tarnished? report you also sense that a clear statement any idea what this might mean? I would say our image has become more has been made. This may have been a per- That’s not an easy question to answer. It multi-layered. Whereas we were primarily sonal message from Federal Councillor is obviously important to the 700,000 or seen in the past as a pretty, likeable nation, Burkhalter to his predecessor Micheline so Swiss abroad that they are not forgot- we now have more facets. To give you an Calmy-Rey. Issues that were very impor- ten in Berne. Or better still that they are example, people were aware twenty years tant to her, such as international coopera- actively taken into consideration. Numer- ago that Swiss banks were a sanctuary for tion and peace-building, are still among the ically, they are Switzerland’s most impor- money from dubious sources. This is sim- priorities but they have fallen down the tant representatives and are only too read- ply viewed and judged differently today. pecking order. ily called ‘ambassadors’. Although I am not So, pressure is now being exerted to make a Swiss abroad, I constantly find that the Switzerland adhere to certain rules. I don’t Federal Councillor Burkhalter has pre- perception of Switzerland abroad is shaped believe Switzerland’s image has really been sented his priorities after just two months primarily by people and individuals. The damaged. It is still regarded as an upright in office. Can we therefore conclude that Swiss abroad are therefore very much an state and a country where people would the priorities contained in the report are advertisement for Switzerland and impor- like to live. primarily those that the diplomats at the tant to the image of the country. It’s com- rEvi Ew 3 / no. June 2012 FDFA consider appropriate and impor- mendable that the Foreign Minister is

wiSS BarBara EngEl is Editor-in-Chief at “Swiss review” S Photo: donated tant? Could they be objectives that they aware of that. What this means for the CULTURE 17

All or nothing with no in-between “Rousseau for everyone?” Before we get too comfortable with the founder of ecology, the pioneer of the Occupy movement and the forefather of hiking, let us attempt to take a proper look at him in this anniversary year. By Daniel Di Falco

During their lifetime we keep them small, new poplars. A new house of literature has revolutionary terror in France. The row was but in death we make them larger than life been named after him, and the Rousseau So- still raging in 1878, the year of the centenary and bask in their glory – this tends to be the ciety, which publishes his complete works, of his death, but it had subsided completely fate of illustrious figures. It is no different is now well subsidised. Rousseau’s estate is by the time of the celebrations of 1912 – his with Geneva and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, part of UNESCO’s world heritage, and his 200th birthday was a public festival. The the philosopher, pedagogue, author, com- name represents a touristic asset for Geneva: people of Geneva had reconciled themselves poser and botanist, just somewhat more along with Dunant and Calvin, he makes the with the past and come to accept the less dramatic. city famous the world over, embodying the controversial sides to Rousseau. “Rousseau On 9 June 1762, Rousseau fled pour tous” (Rousseau for every- from Paris in a carriage with an one) is this year’s anniversary arrest warrant hanging over him slogan. Really? Rousseau for because of his novel “Emile”, everyone? Rousseau for every- which besides his reform teach- one, and Rousseau for every- ings also contained the profes- thing. In March, a podium sion of a religion without a debate was held in his honour in church. The police seized the New York. Sitting there along- books fresh off the press. They side politicians, academics and a were torn to pieces and burnt un- representative of “Occupy Wall der a parliamentary decree in the Street” was Pascal Couchepin, courtyard of the Palace of Jus- who had no difficulty giving an tice. Rousseau reached Geneva answer to the question as to what and hoped to be welcomed in the Rousseau would have said about city where he was born on the current state of democracies. 28 June 1712. He had always He would have been concerned, proudly declared himself a and the issues causing anxiety “Citoyen de Genève” (citizen of would have been those which Geneva), and hailed Geneva as a trouble the former Federal “model for all other peoples”. Councillor – growing social Geneva received him as a per- inequality, dwindling public sona non grata. The city fathers spirit and the power of money in also immediately banned Rous- politics. Rousseau would have seau’s “Contrat social” (Social Jean-Jacques Rousseau painted by Maurice Quentin de la Tour (1753) condemned the financial Contract) as well as “Emile”. in dustry’s “confiscation of such They issued a warrant for his a large share of value creation”, arrest, and this time his books were burnt in “esprit de Genève” (spirit of Geneva). The as Couchepin put it, as “feudalism”. And front of the city hall. He fled again and ob- fact that he was ostracised during his life- everything somehow fitted together nicely. tained temporary asylum in Neuchâtel, time and his books burned “for fear of the Rousseau – the voice of the statesman from which was under Prussian rule at the time, revolutionary wind that he created” is the Federal Palace, the anti-capitalist after being turned away by the Bernese as acknowledged in the official guidebooks activist on the street and the philosopher well. Now in exile, Rousseau took revenge with remarkable candour. from the 18th century. on Geneva in a war of words. He renounced Admittedly, it took some time to get to his citizenship in a letter to the mayor. this stage. The memorial on the small island Thousands of answers And in 2012? Geneva is honouring him in the Rhone was created by the revolution- But didn’t the great man say that the finan- with a magnificent celebration to mark his aries of 1846. They honoured Rousseau as a cial system was a threat to any republic and 300th birthday – there is hardly a day with- pioneer of democracy and, in so doing, pro- that even the term finance was a “slave’s out a planned event. The city has also re- voked Geneva’s establishment, the patri- word”? He did, it was in the “Contrat social”, vamped the Île Rousseau, including the cians and the Church, who regarded him as and he said much more besides – enough in

swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: donated Rousseau memorial, and adorned it with a godless figure and an instigator of the fact for thousands of answers to the question 18 CULTURE

as to what is currently relevant about his everything? If that were the case, we could It sounds like a statement that we could thinking. Rousseau was the first to describe practically forget about him again. So, what all endorse – of course we are all free the people as sovereign and is therefore the does he have to teach us that we have not democrats, of course we do not obey people patron saint of the “indignant” and the already internalised? If Rousseau has signif- but laws. However, it did not take Rous- “outraged” in their struggle against the arro- icance for us today, it is to cause us concern seau long to show that this is just theory gance of the ruling classes. He was also the not offer us comfort. He did not want to and must always remain so. Even a simple first person to take such a radical stance confirm the certainties of his contemporar- parliamentarian, though elected, rises against the power of science and technology, ies but instead to challenge them. above other citizens. And above the laws on behalf of nature and morality. Even Let us return to 1750. Did the boom of the since he makes them. “The moment a peo- though the terms did not exist back then, sciences help to “improve morality” – this ple gives itself representatives, it is no today he would have been an environmen- was the key question in the competition that longer free”, wrote Rousseau. What he talist, a Green and a critic of growth. He the Academy of Dijon held for academics. called for was a state without politicians, dismantled the myth of the adulation of pro- The answer Rousseau provided in his essay government or officials – inconceivable un- gress and discovered another truth – the tri- “Discours sur les Sciences et les Arts” der the conditions of modern life. umph of reason drives the humanity out of (Discourse on the Arts and Sciences) Furthermore, an absolute common good man. shocked Europe and instantly made him fa- So much for reason! Instead, Rousseau re- mous. He won the competition with the dis- leased emotion from its shackles. “I am my turbing notion that the development of heart”, he said, and probably no philosopher civilisation was in truth a story of decline has done as much for the good reputation of and decay: in his “natural state” man lives in- emotion and conscience. He drew a contrast dependently and freely, but in society he is between society, with its restrictive conven- like a slave in increasingly tight chains – the tions and formalities, and “natural man”, evil lies in the essence of society. This pro- who is honest and genuine, primal and voked a scandal in this age of Enlightenment intuitive. Awareness of social justice, the that celebrated the continuous, indeed in- fight for human rights and humanitarian ef- evitable, improvement of life by science and forts are today based on these convictions. technology. Rousseau opened up a chasm around Timelessness and current relevance which he would build his entire philosophy What more does it take to prove the moder- – nature is good, society is bad. His main nity of this three-hundred-year-old thinker? works were then published almost simulta- He could also be lauded as the forefather of neously twelve years later, the two titles that escapists after his Robinson Crusoe-like ex- made him a political refugee in 1762, and ile on St. Peter’s Island in Lake Biel in 1765 even though it seems the “Contrat social” or the pioneer of hiking on account of his and “Emile” were attempts to overcome the love of walking and nature. He can also be chasm, they made it even greater. seen as the mastermind behind living in the countryside because of his loathing of cities Theory and practice in democracy The Rousseau memorial on St. Peter’s Island in Lake Biel and his enthusiasm for rural life. And some- Assuming there was a state but a judicious one also claimed this year that without one and not one where the Church and king exists in his absolute republic, a state-like in- Rousseau there would be no organic food. could mask their tyranny as the work of God, terest, so to speak, that everyone has in Rousseau for everyone? Rousseau in how should such a republic be conceived and equality and freedom which must never be everyone. This raises the question of what established? This is the issue the “Contrat ignored, not even in a referendum. He is left of him. It would appear that Rousseau social” addresses. Various philosophers be- wrote: “This presupposes, indeed, that all has influenced western thinking so compre- fore him had set out the idea that a state was the qualities of the general will still reside in hensively that we encounter him today in only legitimate if it was conceptually based the majority: when they cease to do so, every part of our self-perception. In fact, he on a “contract”, an agreement between free liberty is no longer possible.” This also con- has continued to have a sustained and fun- and equal people. However, Rousseau re- flicts with the modern perception of democ- damental impact. Ideas once resulting in ar- jected all their proposals and put greater em- racy, according to which there is competi- rest warrants have become common sense. phasis than his predecessors on freedom and tion of interests and the majority decides. Hats off to Rousseau – we could spend an equality in the solution to the problem of entire anniversary year thanking him for how to reconcile human nature with politi- Man or citizen making us everything we are. cal rule. He wrote: “The problem is to find This, however, is not negotiable for Rous- However, that would not be particularly a form of association in which each, while seau: freedom and equality either exist com- interesting. It would be confusing two things, uniting himself with all, may still obey him- pletely or do not exist at all. His “Contrat timelessness and current relevance. self alone, and remain as free as before.” social” is not a draft for an ideal republic but

swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: Adrian Moser Rousseau – the progenitor of everyone and Only the law should be above the individual. rather evidence that even in his age the swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 19

judicious state is an impossibility and the and can, paradoxically, only succeed in an wanted “Emile” to have been understood. original kingdom of freedom and equality is artificial sphere that protects the child from “This so frequently read, so little understood lost to man as a citizen. And what about to- society. Here is Rousseau’s great chasm and so sinisterly interpreted book is nothing day? Rousseau is like a thorn in the side of again – natural education on one side, pub- more than a tract on the original goodness real democracy. What about the outvoted? lic on the other; the interests of the individ- of man which aims to show how vice and fal- What about referenda that ignore the im- ual on one side, his integration into society lacy, which are unfamiliar to man’s basic na- perative of freedom and equality? Can on the other. ture, pervade him from outside and trans- authorities exist that use unlawful means to The hero of the novel also grows up in ru- form him unnoticed.” apply laws? Rousseau’s current relevance is ral seclusion under the guardianship of an In principle at least. But Rousseau is a a healthy uncertainty about what we actually educator called Jean-Jacques (Rousseau, of man of principle, and you will search in vain mean when we call ourselves democrats. course). The aim is for Emile to discover his for a sense of reality in his work. Perhaps With the “Contrat social”, Rousseau bur- innate freedom, which will later help him to that represents a provocation in an age like ied the republic, and that had consequences. survive in life outside. The teacher dedicates ours that values “solutions” above all else – His work “Emile”, a tract on pedagogy dis- all his efforts to this every day for two dec- Rousseau does not play the game. He pre- guised as a novel in which public education ades. And then everything goes wrong. At sents us with principles that are valid, with the end, we meet an unhappy loner who has democracy or education aimed at children, been dealt many blows by destiny. “Every- and his books are the blackboards on which thing vanished like a dream”, Emile writes he shows what remains of them at the end to his teacher. “Still young I lost everything of the day. – wife, children, friends, in sum everything - His arch-enemy Voltaire, the great mind even commerce with my fellows. My heart of the Enlightenment, provided us with a has been torn apart by all its attachments.” marginal note that he wrote in one of Rous- The young man has fallen into that ep- seau’s books: “You always exaggerate every- ochal abyss that Rousseau once again pre- thing.” But Rousseau’s demonstrations on sents to his readers – man is “good by nature” the blackboard remain difficult to refute but there can be no approximation between even today precisely because he was so ab- him and society. The vision of a successful solute and inexorable. And what about the life also fails because it would require total principles? Less remains of them than one control over the pupil. In the same way as a might have hoped. For Rousseau this would republic that reconciles man and citizen is not detract from the ideals that he held high. impossible, so is an education that sustains It is more a case of reality being unsuccess- the contradiction of individual and society. ful. We continuously fail to meet our own Rousseau’s diagnosis is once again crushing expectations – this is the reminder with and completely at odds with the image of the which Rousseau burdens and unsettles us. great human benefactor we encounter eve- He still gets us up off the sofa. Even now. rywhere in this anniversary year. Daniel Di Falco is a historian and editor for The Rousseau memorial on st. Peter’s Island in Lake Biel Principle and reality cultural and social issues at the “Bund” in Berne Jean-Jacques Rousseau would have been does not feature, was published in the same three hundred years old on 28 June. His year. Pedagogy could no longer be about main works will celebrate their 250th anni- Rousseau 2012 public spirit or civic virtue: “You must make versary and, despite the fact that he fought exhibitions, presentations, operas, your choice between the man and the citizen, against this on many occasions, both pro- plays, readings, concerts, films, you cannot train both.” vided the script and served as bibles for rev- discussions and city tours – Rous- Rousseau decided – without question – in olution – the “Contrat social” for a political seau is everywhere. Geneva is the favour of the man. He argued for “natural one and “Emile” for an educational one. One epicentre of the anniversary year. education”, but that is not what made the thing that was clear to Rousseau is that the The highlights are a “Republican book so controversial. Even back then re- development of civilisation is irreversible. Banquet” and a spectacular multi- form teachings existed that referred to “Retour à la nature?”(Return to nature?) is media event in the la Grange park spontaneity and learning through play and the slogan that defines the image of the phi- to mark Rousseau’s 300th birthday to a child’s nature, which differs completely losopher, yet it does not come from him. on 28 June. The entire programme from that of an adult in terms of thinking Rousseau strictly ruled out any such return. can be found at: www.rous- and feeling. Rousseau is much more He did not proclaim any utopia and certainly seau2012.ch. anniversary events Rousseau when he gives up hope on the idea not a return to one. All he had to offer was will also be held in the canton of of education healing the world in “Emile”. an exhaustive look at disaster and the con- neuchâtel (www.rousseau300.ch, Pedagogy based on nature is nothing more tradictions in which modern life engulfs www.neuchateltourisme.ch) and

swiss Review 3 / no. June 2012 than an experiment on the fringes of society mankind. This is also how he would have on lake Biel (www.biel-seeland.ch). 20 culture

Sapperlot! Swiss Dialects Switzerland is not just a nation with four official languages, it is also one of countless dialects. The National Library has dedicated an exhibition to these dialects - some have died out while others are very much alive. Tales from French-speaking Switzerland can be heard there along with folk songs from Grisons, satire poems from Basel and anecdotes from Malcantone. Below are a few examples; we recommend you read them out loud. By Miriam Hutter

Sägid was iär wend. Nus esitain E vi altri se la nova sassofoníšta e la nova Ich ha es Rächd uf my Sprach sco’l vent bassíšta? uf my Redensart ed il nvel Sí sí… hé… mi a sum la Daafne e questa uf mys Word – tranter gnir l’è la… hé… la Jósefine! won ich bruich wiä nä Hegel e partir He! Vegni deenta deenta, mi ma ciami oder wie ne Zärtlichkäit Spetgain «Zücar candí». won ich verwennä ch’il tschiel Salve! «Zücar candíí»? wiä nes Mäitli. ans regalia Ho cambia nom, a ma ciamávi «Zúcchero Ich ha Sorg zuänerä ses blau engulà Kandinski». wi zu me ne Bätti (Clo Duri Bezzola, Gedichte, 2002. Text: Gertrud Polacca? Bezzola-Müller, Stäfa) vo der Muätter sälig. Sí! Sum nassüda in una famiglia da sonadò. Sägid was iär wend. La me mam l’eva pianišta e l’me pa il diri- Ora, mè, m’in vé prèlyi… Mè rèkemando ou Ich ha es Rächd uf my Sprach geeva. Bon Diu, a Nouthra Dona, a Chin Dsojé, a uf my Redensart Ah sì? Chell’urcheštra? me n’andze agrdyin.. dè mè touâdè le krou- uf mys Word. No il dirigeeva il tráfic! lyo… è indremidè mè... dè vouthra man. (Julian Dillier, Ds Rächt uf d Sprach, 1992. Text: (Teatro popolare della Svizzera Italiana, 2011. Emma Dillier, Basel) (Joseph Yerly, Der gutmütige Arme, Gruyère, 1964. Dubbing in dialect of the movie “Some Like It Hot”. Text: University of Zurich’s phonogram archive) Text: University of Zurich’s phonogram archive)

Dialects are part of the Swiss identity. In form of the language is naturally used in area is primarily explained by the fact that French-speaking Switzerland, where the school, at work and in public life. movement was extremely restricted in the patois romands have practically died out, alpine region until 100 years ago, which is they have been consigned to history whereas Local dialects why no larger linguistic communities were they are a living part of cultural heritage in Communication is not always easy in tiny formed. Growing mobility has since brought other parts of the country. They are also a Switzerland with its four national languages gradual harmonisation. cause of dispute in some places. In Grisons, and three cultural regions. This issue is ex- Hardly anyone now speaks dialects in for example, 40 years after its introduction acerbated by the diglossia of the German- French-speaking Switzerland but that does as a common written language for the five speaking Swiss, their special form of bilin- not mean that the French-speaking Swiss do Romansh dialects, Rumantsch Grischun is gualism. High German is recognised as the not have anything to contribute to the de- still not accepted as such by everyone. Dia- single valid written language but dialect is bate on dialects. Many of them find it disap- lects attempt to outdo one another in used almost exclusively in conversation. The pointing and frustrating that their know- German-speaking Switzerland. The most dialects are in fact so different within ledge of German acquired at school can beautiful, popular or attractive Mundart is German-speaking Switzerland that people barely be used in conversation with their chosen using surveys that are not always can sometimes hardly understand one compatriots in German-speaking Switzer- very well-founded. another. This great diversity in such a small land. The calls by politicians from French- The question as to whether small children at kindergarten should be expected to use LaNGuaGeS iN SwiTzerLaND The same survey also asked participants High German has increasingly caused a stir about the language “they have the best com- in recent times. And, if so, how much should The results of the 2000 census also reveal in mand of and in which they think”. The main be used? Many German-speaking Swiss which parts of the country and how often languages break down as follows: clearly do not like speaking High German, the Swiss still use a dialect as their family German: 63.7 % the standard form of the language. There is language today: French: 20.4 %

IE w 3 / No. June 2012 a much more relaxed approach to standard German-speaking Switzerland: 96.2 % Italian: 6.5 % IE w 3 / No. June 2012 Ev Ev Italian in Ticino. The dialetti are spoken at French-speaking Switzerland: 1.3 % Romansh: 0.5 % ISS R ISS R Sw Sw home and among friends, while the standard Ticino and Grisons: 44.6 % Non-national languages: 9 % Photo: Adrian Moser 21

speaking Switzerland for the use of more della Svizzera italiana”. They all date back standard language in public life and in par- to between 1860 and 1910, and none has yet The reflections of a ticular in German-language national televi- been completed. The “Idiotikon” (from the “Romand” sion and radio programmes were buried Greek ídios: idiosyncratic) is set to be I’m unwinding on the terrace of a pub without a trace this spring - by the mainly completed in 2022 with its 17th volume. All in Brienz. At the table opposite, the German-speaking parliament. published articles can already be accessed at guests are discussing their respective www.idiotikon.ch. This work also reveals weeks on this Friday evening in com- Listening to old and new the meaning of the title of the exhibition, plete tranquillity. As a “Romand”, a Dialects can be heard and experienced at the French-speaking Swiss, straddling the National Library’s “Sapperlot! Swiss divide between the two linguistic re- Dialects” exhibition. Visitors are put in the gions, I have difficulty understanding mood with old and new quotations from the the distinctive dialect of the Bernese realms of media and culture, which cover the Oberland. I recall my school days when wall opposite the entrance. Visitors can walk we were taught High German. The lan- over a giant map of Switzerland above which guage of Goethe. What an extraordi- audio units dangle from the ceiling. The 20 nary act of altruism on the part of the historical and 20 current recordings that are played from them are explained in the exhi- education system in French-speaking bition guides handed out at the entrance – Switzerland. But what is the point of in all the national languages, of course. The force-feeding these poor pupils with more recent sound recordings show that the grammar destined to be forgotten? intention is “not just to bathe in nostalgia”, Dative, genitive and accusative – now as the curator Peter Erismann put it. There I’m the one pointing the finger of accu- are also examples of current ethnolects and sation. Sleep-inducing declinations. sociolects. For example, a discussion among And not for one moment amid this mass young people from Zurich on the 2009 of German grammar did a teacher draw “youth word of the year”: “sbeschtwosje- parallels with Swiss German. That’s, the hetsgits” (the best there’s ever been). Sound recordings were made on wax discs with height of absurdity for the Swiss. It’s so Recordings of songs and literature in dia- the “Vienna Phonograph” from 1909 simple. Abend – Abig, zusammen – lect as well as spoken word art show that di- zäme, ich habe – i ha. Or “i bi z’Brienz alect is more relevant culturally than ever “Sapperlot”. This euphemistic form of the gsi!”: I’ve been to Brienz. I left this in- before. While dialect in music and literature religious term “Sakramänt” is an “expression oculation with written German behind was restricted to folk and the rural idyll of affirmation, annoyance, astonishment or at the school desk at the age of 18. I’m until a few decades ago, it is today also used admiration”. It is quite possibly a word that now twice that age and nothing has in pop, rock and rap, and verse is composed might slip out when confronted with the be- changed. There seems to be a lethargy on topics such as politics, sport and society wildering diversity of Swiss dialects. hanging over cantonal education – at poetry slams. MIRIAM HUTTER is a volunteer at “Swiss Review” “Why change? We’ve always done it this The “Voices of Switzerland 2012” project way!” Young French-speaking and Ger- is also an important part of the exhibition. man-speaking Swiss converse in Eng- Visitors to the exhibition can record their AboUt the exhibition When: from now until 25 August 2012, Mon-Fri 9:00 lish. That’s globalisation for you. But own voices in two small sound studios and a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Sat 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. the solution seems so simple, oral and listen to the recordings of previous visitors. Where: Swiss national library, Hallwylstrasse 15, progressive. I often hear critics of The University of Zurich’s phonogram 3003 Berne; Entry: free; www.nb.admin.ch/sapperlot participation teaching Swiss German at school say archive is collecting this new material for re- It is also possible to take part in the “voices of Switzer- they would not know which cantonal search. This project goes beyond the exhi- land 2012” project remotely. You can record your own dialect online and listen to recordings that have dialect to use. That’s just an good ex- bition itself. Anyone can participate online already been collected. cuse. The canton of Zurich has a popu- (see box). The phonogram archive, which is www.stimmen.uzh.ch (German) heavily involved in the production of the ex- www.voix.uzh.ch (French) lation of over 1.2 million. The answer www.voci.uzh.ch (Italian) appears very obvious. A real linguistic hibition, is also exhibiting historical and www.vuschs.uzh.ch (Romansh) modern recording devices in the main hall. research injustice is essentially being done as At http://dialects.from.ch, 10 terms, which have to be my neighbours in the Oberland have translated from High German into dialect, are used to Unusual lexicons determine the region from which speakers come. learned French at school – the lan- The exhibition also presents the four publication guage currently spoken in the The panorama of Swiss dialects that was published

June 2012 / no. 3 / no. June 2012 Romandie region – while the French- national dictionaries “Schweizerisches at the national exhibition in Zurich in 1939 under the

IEW Idiotikon”, “Glossaire des patois de la Suisse title “Stimmen der Heimat” is now available in a new speaking Swiss have not learned the Ev edition: “Stimmen der Schweiz”, verlag Huber, Frauen- language used east of the Sarine river. Romande”, “Dicziunari Rumantsch feld 2012. Two audio CDs + phonetic transcription.

SWISS R Photo: Adrian Moser Grischun” and “Vocabolario dei dialetti ISBn 978-3-280-1559-5 And whose fault is that? AlAIn WEY 22 SPORT

Ever higher, ever faster When did mountaineering begin? And why did it begin in Switzerland? In the company of Ueli Steck, the world’s fastest mountaineer, and author Daniel Anker, a man with encyclopaedic knowledge of mountains, we explore the history of the conquest of Switzerland’s summits. By Alain Wey

The conquest of the mountains bears com- age of mountaineering in fact began in the climbed was the Jungfrau (4,158 metres) in parison with man’s most incredible journeys, 18th century, as Daniel Anker, an author and 1811 followed by the epic ascent of the such as the crossing of the oceans and his journalist specialising in mountains, Finsteraarhorn (4,274 metres, Berne), of first steps in outer space. It encapsulates the explains. which this year is the 200th anniversary. quintessence of the human spirit – always However, these feats cannot be discussed aiming higher and relentlessly pushing back The beginnings without mentioning Horace Bénédict de the boundaries. Even when all the peaks had “Before the ascent of the summits was re- Saussure, who is regarded as the father of al- been ascended, mountaineers continued to corded, mountain dwellers and chamois pine mountaineering. A naturalist and geol- brave the unknown and find new ways of hunters had already scaled some peaks, but ogist from Geneva, he sponsored the first as- reaching the summits. Ueli Steck from had left no trace”, Daniel Anker explains. cent of Mont Blanc in 1786 and himself Berne is one of the finest examples (inter- The ascent of Titlis (3,238 metres, Uri) in climbed Europe’s highest peak a year later. view on page 23). Known as “The Swiss Ma- July 1744 by four monks from Engelberg chine” outside Switzerland, he has smashed monastery marked the birth of mountain- From science to sport the ascent records for the toughest north eering in Switzerland as a leisure pursuit. The history of Swiss mountaineering has faces in the Alps. He took just 2 hours 47 The first summit conquered that has perma- also been shaped by geologists like Louis minutes to free-climb the north face of the nent snow cover was Schelsaplana (2,965 Agassiz (1807–1873), who climbed to take Eiger solo. This 21st-century alpine hero has metres, Grisons), which was reached in measurements to prove the existence of the revived public interest in his exploits. But around the 1740s. Monks from the Grand- Ice Ages and to gain a better understanding when did mountaineering actually begin? Saint-Bernard monastery then scaled Mont of the formation of the Alps. Topographers Man has not been endeavouring to scale the Vélan (3,727 metres, Valais) in 1779. The also had to reach the summits to undertake summits since the beginning of time. The first 4,000-metre peak in Switzerland to be the triangulation of Switzerland. The most Continued on page 24

Above the clouds – mountaineers on the summit of the Eiger , with the Mittelhorn (left) and the Rosenhorn in the background. The first ascent was made in 1858 via Wengernalp and the west flank. The British mountaineer Lucy Walker became the first woman to climb the Eiger in 1864. She was also the first woman to ascend various other alpine peaks, including the Matterhorn

swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: Keystone in 1871 swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: donated 23

Do you sometimes get frightened? “When I’m climbing, Not on the mountain. Before- the only thing hand, yes, I do. But not during the ascent. I train to the point where that matters is the I’m able to control the situation. ascent” What do you think about when climbing? When I’m climbing, the only thing that matters is the ascent. Ueli Steck has become a legendary I’m fully focussed on the grips and figure in global mountaineering my hands and feet. I’m completely over the course of a decade, in par- immersed in the moment. That’s ticular for his rapid ascents of well- my main source of satisfaction known faces, known as “speed when I’m climbing. climbing”, solo and without a rope. The star from Ringgenberg Where does your passion for speed (Berne) has built his reputation on climbing come from? major feats that have attracted Speed climbing originated in the great media attention. Having 1980s with the French climbers and smashed the speed record for the their incredible enchainment north face of the Eiger in 2007, he climbs. But it’s also part of the his- repeated the feat a year later in 2 tory of mountaineering - the aim hours and 47 minutes, improving Ueli Steck has always been to reach the sum- his time by more than an hour. He mit as quickly as possible. I’m al- then undertook record ascents of the north faces of the Grandes Jo- ways looking for new challenges and one day I gave it a go. rasses in 2 hours 21 minutes and the Matterhorn in 1 hour 56 minutes. He is nicknamed “The Swiss Machine” because of his physi- You’re now 35 years of age. Do you plan to continue speed climbing? cal preparation and extraordinary training. In 2009, he received the Speed climbing solo is very dangerous. You can push back the “Piolet d’or” – the Oscar of mountaineering – with Simon Anthamat- boundaries but sooner or later you have to accept that you can’t go ten for the first ascent of the north face of Tengkampoche (6,500 any faster or higher. You have to do other things. My days of speed metres) in Nepal. In 2011, he reached the summit of Shishapangma climbing in the Alps are over. Time for the next challenge! (8,027 metres) in a record time of ten and a half hours. One of his partners in the Himalayas, the American Freddie Wilkinson, said Who inspires you? of him: “Climbing with Ueli is like shooting hoops with Michael Jor- My idol is Walter Bonatti (Italian mountaineer, explorer and re- dan.” Ueli Steck is renowned for his versatility, technique, physical porter). Not just for mountaineering but for everything he did. condition and extraordinary mental strength. What does your plan to climb Everest involve exactly? How would you describe Ueli Steck? We’ll have to wait and see but it essentially involves reaching the A Swiss mountaineer from Interlaken who attempts to climb summit without oxygen. However, it depends on whether the moun- mountains. I have a very German Swiss temperament – I like to have tain affords us the opportunity or not (he had to turn back at 8,700 things under control and to do them properly. Am I reckless? I don’t metres in May 2011). I’m setting off for the Himalayas on 5 April believe I take excessive risks. I’ve always said that I don’t do extreme and plan to return in June. mountaineering. The challenges I undertake are always controlled. Have you already made plans for after the Himalayas? You are one of the few mountaineers to climb above 8,000 metres with- I’ve got plenty of ideas but when I get back the first thing I’ll be out oxygen. How do you prepare your body to endure such altitudes? doing is building a house in Ringgenberg with my wife. It’s a question of acclimatisation. The body has to become accus- tomed to the altitude. It’s the same for everyone. It’s more a mat- Which are your favourite mountains? ter of patience than training. The Eiger, obviously. In the Himalayas, Cholatse is another mountain that remains close to my heart (6,444 metres, first solo When you climb with a partner, is there a reason for not going solo? ascent of the north face in 37 hours in 2005). That’s something completely different. When climbing solo, it’s just you and the mountain. When I climb with a partner, we take What’s your philosophy? ew 3 / No. June 2012 decisions together. Ultimately, it’s the team that matters. It’s not a Everyone has to choose their path in life and decide what they question of safety. With 8,000-metre-plus climbs, you ascend more want to do. You then have to stick to that path. ISS Rev I Sw Photo: donated quickly solo and speed is a safety factor. Information on Steck’s projects at www.uelisteck.ch 24 SPORT

famous of them was Johann Coaz from were conquered in 1931, 1935 and 1938, res- the world’s seventh-highest peak, in 1960 – Grisons. In 1850, his rope team was the first pectively, by European rope parties. The are especially worthy of mention. His wife, to reach Piz Bernina (4,048 metres, Grisons), challengers included a legendary figure in Yvette, also became a major figure in female the highest peak in the eastern Alps. women’s mountaineering, Loulou Boulaz mountaineering. We should also mention “But it was the British who introduced (1908–1991) from Geneva. Erhard Loretan (1959–2011), who became mountaineering as a sport”, Daniel Anker ex- the third mountaineer to climb all 14 peaks plains. “They started climbing in Switzer- Swiss mountaineers take on the world over 8,000 metres. land in the 1840s.” Switzerland’s highest Swiss climbers soon took an interest in the peak, the Dufourspitze (4,633 metres), was highest peaks on every continent. Everest The glory of the Eiger conquered in 1855. Anker adds: “This was the (8,848 metres), for example, conquered by The great names in Swiss mountaineering start of the golden age of mountaineering, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in today include Ueli Steck and Stephan which came to an end in 1865 with the first 1953, was almost reached six months earlier Siegrist from Berne, the three Anthamatten ascent of the Matterhorn. Most of by two rope teams from Geneva who were brothers from Zermatt, Denis Burdet from Switzerland’s highest summits were reached forced to turn back just 250 metres from the Neuchâtel and Nina Cabrez from Grisons. during this ten-year period.” The British re- summit. Hillary did not set out on his jour- Daniel Anker explains: “These young climb- ceived all the accolades but it was Swiss ney without first obtaining vital information ers take on extremely difficult new routes. guides who paved the way for them. “This is gathered by the Swiss. In 1956, Ernst Reiss We can talk about mountaineering and Swiss explained by the fact that the first histories and Fritz Luchsinger became the first men alpine tourism in terms of four main peaks - were written by the British. The name of the to climb Lhotse (8,516 metres), the fourth- the Rigi or Titlis in central Switzerland, the client came first. In the case of the Matter- highest peak in the world. The first ascent Jungfrau (where tourism began and the first horn, the name of Edward Whymper is en- of Aconcagua (6,962 metres), the highest difficult ascents were made), the Matter- tered first, then the guides are mentioned”, peak in the Andes, was made by the guide horn and, of course, the Eiger, which is an Anker explains. When all the summits had Matthias Zurbriggen in 1896. Countless extremely challenging peak. In the case of been conquered, new, ever more challenging Swiss climbers have scaled mountains world- the Eiger, new routes are still being opened routes were sought. Ascents were then also wide, and it would take a book to chronicle up for two reasons - the size of its face (1,800 undertaken in winter. Women’s tours and all their achievements. However, Lorenz metres) and the regard mountaineers have ascents on skis were later introduced. Last Saladin (1896–1936) and his expeditions in for it. To say you have climbed the north came solo ascents. The “final three Alpine the Caucasus Mountains, Michel Piola and face of the Eiger carries more gravitas than challenges”, the north faces of the Matter- the new routes on the Mont Blanc massif, climbing any other face.” horn (4,478 metres), the Grandes Jorasses and Michel Vaucher and his many first (4,208 metres) and the Eiger (3,975 metres), ascents - including Dhaulagiri (8,172 metres), alain wEy is an editor at “Swiss Review”

On the steep face, vi Ew 3 / no. June 2012 E every step and every grip require careful wiSS R S Photo: donated consideration ORGANISATION OF THE SWISS ABROAD 25

great generosity whenever young Swiss Thank you! abroad visit their region. OSA advice Is it possible to have more than one Over 300 young Swiss abroad visit their n The volunteers who work on behalf of domicile? second homeland each year to take advan- OSA also deserve a special mention. The tage of one of the offers for young people youth officers of the Swiss associations Under Swiss law, nobody can have more that are provided by the Organisation of abroad carry out unpaid mediation work. than one domicile simultaneously. Swiss law the Swiss Abroad (OSA). This is only possi- Most young people find out about our pro- defines domicile as the place where a per- ble thanks to the support of the benefac- jects through their publicity. In Switzerland, son resides with the intention of settling. tors, sponsors and volunteers. the Youth Service receives generous dis- The intention to settle has to be based on counts and special offers from many service circumstances recognisable to third parties OSA’s Youth Service relies on the help it re- providers, such as sports teachers, mountain (for example, the presence of family mem- ceives from numerous very varied organisa- guides, ski schools, tourism companies, bers or a position of employment). To tions. mountain railways and transport firms. determine a person’s domicile, all their life circumstances are taken into account – the n The offers for young people could not be n And we must not forget the untiring efforts centre of their existence being in the place funded without the support of federal gov- of the qualified camp leaders, cooks, super- or country where most aspects of their ernment. OSA has concluded a service visors at the language courses and workshops personal, social and professional life are agreement with the Federal Department of and the many other friends of the Swiss found. The strength of the links with this Foreign Affairs (FDFA) that puts our fund- abroad who receive only modest remunera- centre will prevail over links with other ing on a secure footing. The Federal Social tion for their commitment to the projects. places or countries. This means that only Insurance Office also provides money for the place with which a person has the select projects that relate to OSA’s extra- n Finally, the Youth Service also relies on a strongest links can constitute a domicile. curricular youth work. The sport camps network of over 300 host families in Swit- The place where documentation is sub- also receive support from the “Youth and zerland, who provide young Swiss abroad mitted is not the sole determining factor. It Sport” service at the Federal Department with food and accommodation free of only constitutes an indicator and is not rel- of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport charge. This saves OSA over 40,000 Swiss evant by comparison with personal relation- (DDPS). francs a year in board and lodging costs. So, ships and interests. This is an assumption on our own behalf and on behalf of the that can be overturned by evidence to the n The support of its long-term sponsors is young people, we at OSA would like to say contrary. invaluable to OSA. And, of course, new a big thank-you to all the individuals, organ- The notion of domicile is important be- ones are being added all the time through isations and companies concerned. The of- cause it determines which authorities and targeted fundraising. Our youth projects fers for young people would not be possible courts are competent and which legislation are an attractive platform for companies, without them. is applicable to a person, for example with organisations and foundations because their regard to liability for social insurance meaningful commitment is well received by Information on forthcoming offers for payments. the public. Cantons and communes show young people can be found at www.aso.ch.

NOTe ON OSA'S LeGAL DePARTMeNT The Organisation of the Swiss Abroad’s Legal De- partment provides general legal information on Swiss law and specifically in areas that concern the Swiss abroad. It does not provide information on foreign law and does not intervene in disputes between pri- ew 3 / no. June 2012 vate parties. ev I SArAh MASTAnTuOnI, ISS r Sw Photo: donated head of the Legal Department 26 ORGANISATION OF THE SWISS ABROAD

Speakers at the Congress of the Swiss Abroad: Creator of “Swatch”: Nobel Prize winner: Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter Elmar Mock Kurt Wüthrich

tion policy are vital to overcoming the major challenges of the Mobility and Innovation: future. Switzerland in Times At the congress in Lausanne, you will have the opportunity to meet Elmar Mock, creator of “Swatch”, and Kurt Wüthrich, of International Challenges Nobel Prize winner for chemistry. Swiss researchers and politicians will discuss the challenges outlined above at a round-table The 90th Congress of the Swiss Abroad will address Switzerland’s event. Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter, who, as head of qualities in the areas of research and innovation and its position the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), is an ex- on the international stage - not a Swiss cliché in sight. tremely important figure for the Swiss abroad, will also attend The congress to be held in Lausanne between 17 and 19 August the congress. 2012 will be attended by renowned experts. Registration is There will be no shortage of social and cultural activities now open. either: select delicacies from the canton of Vaud will be served on the final evening at the Le Chalet Suisse restaurant, and Switzerland needs to face up to two major challenges – interna- culture enthusiasts will be able to explore Lausanne and the tional mobility and the globalisation of knowledge, as knowledge local region on a guided tour of the city or a trip to Rochers- represents a major growth factor for our nation. In addition to de-Naye. Detailed information and registration forms can be economic issues, the Congress of the Swiss Abroad will also look found on our website in German and French: at streamlining and the use of synergies. Modern Switzerland with its research engenders goodwill and trust – an important asset in German: light of the international criticism levelled at our country’s financial www.aso.ch/de/angebote/auslandschweizer-kongress/kongress-2012 conduct. French: The high quality of Swiss science also promotes growth in www.aso.ch/fr/offres/congres-des-suisses-de-letranger/congres-2012 our economy and helps the country to forge global links and play an active role on the international stage. The free circula- The registration deadline for the 90th Congress of the Swiss tion of knowledge and the implementation of a coherent migra- Abroad in Lausanne is 4 July 2012.

Advertisement swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photos: donated NOTES FROM PARLIAMENT 27

The House of Switzerland continues the the UK and the Bernese Oberland-Jungfrau House of Switzerland tradition of the Swiss hospitality centre at region, which is represented in the House of United Kingdom 2012 the Olympic Games, which started with the Switzerland as the Destination Partner. Vis- 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano (Japan). itors will have the opportunity to discover Initially no more than a restaurant for ath- the idyllic mountain landscapes of this sce- Switzerland at the London Olympics letes and their fans, this time around the nic holiday region, traditional Bernese crafts House of Switzerland United Kingdom 2012 such as woodcarving, local innovations like The London 2012 Olympic Games are just will offer visitors, for the first time, a free and the “Flyer” electric bicycle, and regional spe- a few weeks away, and millions of people varied programme organised with the help cialities such as Kambly biscuits and the around the world will be getting together to of partners such as Bernese Oberland-Jung- world-famous Emmental cheese. watch this spectacular sporting event. Swit- frau, Swiss Olympic, the Swiss Broadcasting At the House of Switzerland, visitors will zerland will be making its own creative, in- Corporation (SRG SSR), Pro Helvetia - also join in with two very traditional Swiss novative and surprising appearance at Lon- Swiss Arts Council, Switzerland Tourism, celebrations. One of these is the Bernese don 2012, stage-managed by Presence the city and canton of Zurich, and others. Games, a scaled-down version of the famous Switzerland – a division of the Federal De- With world-famous Swiss mountain peaks Unspunnen Festival, where visitors will be partment of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) – and outside, freshly prepared chocolate creations invited to try out a variety of traditional a host of renowned partners and sponsors. from “Lindt Maître Chocolatier” and Swit- Bernese sports such as Schwingen (a form of Called the “House of Switzerland”, the of- zerland’s rich cultural heritage, visitors to the wrestling) and Steinstossen (stone put). An- ficial Swiss hospitality centre will provide a House of Switzerland will be confronted other highlight will be the Swiss National superb platform for athletes, artists, cul- with a concentrated dose of Swissness! The Day, which falls during the Olympic Games. tural ambassadors, journalists, and repre- Qualification Park hosted by Switzerland The celebration on 1 August, organised sentatives of the worlds of politics, business Tourism will take them back in time to an era jointly with the Swiss Embassy in London, and science, as well as a lively meeting place when British mountaineers began to discover will be combined with a commemoration for for the general public. Situated in the heart Switzerland and popularise it as a tourist des- the 100th anniversary of the Jungfrau moun- of the city, beside London Bridge on the tination. Brave visitors will be able to try tain railway. The official Jungfraujoch cele- banks of the River Thames, the House of their skills and luck to win a trip through brations will be streamed live to the House Switzerland will be open from 20 July to 12 Switzerland with historical transport and of Switzerland. August 2012 and will be the sporting, cul- equipment, following in the footsteps of Catering at the House of Switzerland will tural and gastronomic “place to be” package tour pioneer Thomas Cook. Today be provided by the establishment of one of throughout the Olympic Games. there is still a special relationship between the most famous Swiss chefs abroad, Anton

swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: switzerland, Presence FDFA Switzerland turns London red. A creative interpretation of “Swissness” 28 NOTES FROM PARLIAMENT

Mosimann. “Mosimann’s” will be serving cu- UK will give visitors an insight into Switzer- for the first time, Swiss Olympic is providing linary specialities from different regions of land’s up-and-coming creative industries. an Athletes’ Lounge. Switzerland in three restaurants. Invitingly The House of Switzerland will also serve As the sun sets behind the mountains at the rustic, the Bernese Chalet will offer the cosy as a forum for debate with decision-makers House of Switzerland, Swiss musicians will feel of a “caveau” and a menu featuring the from other nations, especially the UK as the bring the outdoor stage to life. Young rising traditional classics of Swiss comfort food, host country. The Swiss Embassy in London stars representing a variety of musical styles with a particular focus on dishes from the and other partners of the House of Switzer- will showcase Switzerland’s creative and am- Bernese Oberland. The Rösticceria will offer land are organising a series of symposia on bitious music scene, setting the mood and the ultimate “grab-and-go” convenience in Innovation and Education, Life Science and creating a festival atmosphere. On Mondays Borough Market style, serving appetising Game Design, thus promoting current and there will be an open-air cinema showing Swiss favourites such as Bratwurst & Buerli, future partnerships between the UK and short films and cartoons to present Roesti To Go and Raclette Takeaway. At La Switzerland. The École Polytechnique Fé- Switzerland’s diverse cultural and linguistic Brasserie in Glaziers Hall, the presentation dérale de Lausanne (EPFL) is also hosting an heritage. A radio bus will play host to the In- of Swiss culinary art will be a blend of sur- interactive “Café Scientifique”, where scien- ternational Radio Festival – The Acoustic prises and creativity. Dishes and farm pro- tists and journalists will debate the latest sci- Flame of Switzerland – with guest spots by duce from various regions of Switzerland will entific developments related to sport. various British radio presenters. Another figure on the bill of fare. British guest at the House of Switzerland will It’s all happening in the Red Zone be the author Diccon Bewes, who lives in Innovative Switzerland The House of Switzerland will offer visitors Switzerland and writes about the Swiss way “We’re delighted to present Switzerland an extremely varied and busy programme of of life with a healthy dose of British humour. with a tongue-in-cheek look at the clichés sports-themed events. The official medal cel- For children there will be a special kids’ pro- while at the same time revealing lesser ebrations organised by the Swiss Olympic gramme designed to help them discover Swit- known, but no less characteristic, sides of our Association and produced by SRG SSR have zerland while having fun. country”, says Ambassador Nicolas Bideau, always been one of the highlights at the Swiss The London neighbourhood hosting the head of Presence Switzerland. For example, hospitality centre. With a TV studio on site House of Switzerland will be transformed visitors will be able to explore the Swiss game and live broadcasts from the Games, SRG into a “Red Zone” with a buzzing atmos- design scene in the Swiss Game Lounge and SSR will be contributing to the Olympic phere all of its own. Be part of this diverse with a smartphone app. A poster exhibition spirit. The House of Switzerland is also the and vibrant event at the London 2012 Olym- by graphic designers from Zurich and the official meeting place for the Swiss athletes: pic Games! See you there.

Presence Switzerland, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

Presence Switzerland, as a part of the Federal Department of Foreign Address and contact Affairs (FDFA), is responsible for promoting Switzerland’s interests Glaziers Hall Ltd, FAO House of Switzerland 2012 abroad using the tools of international communication. These include 9 Montague Close, London, SE1 9DD, United Kingdom information and promotional material, projects about Switzerland abroad, delegates’ trips to Switzerland, a uniform image for “Brand [email protected] Switzerland” and Switzerland’s presence at world exhibitions (Swiss www.houseofswitzerland.org Pavilions) and the Olympic Games. The communication strategy is www.facebook.com/houseofswitzerland reviewed and defined regularly by the Federal Council based on an www.twitter.com/HoSLondon2012 analysis of Switzerland’s image abroad. The House of Switzerland is not just a platform for national com- Free entrance munication but also a forum for leading business, politics, tourism, 21 July – 12 August 2012, daily from 9am to 11pm science and sports stakeholders, and the venue for the official medal Official opening on 20 July at 6pm at Glaziers Hall, London Bridge, celebrations of the Swiss athletes. The House of Switzerland United Kingdom 2012 is being supported How to get there by numerous Swiss partners and companies from the public and pri- _From London City Airport take the DLR to Canning Town, change vate sectors: Bernese Oberland-Jungfrau, the Federal Department of to the Jubilee Line to London Bridge (25 minutes). Justice and Police (FDJP), SRG SSR, Swiss Olympic Association, _From London Heathrow Airport take the Piccadilly Line to Green Switzerland Tourism, Mosimann’s, Lindt & Sprüngli, Zurich, Habeg- Park, change to the Jubilee Line to London Bridge (60 minutes). ger, Swiss International Air Lines, Victorinox, Mövenpick Ice Cream, _From the Olympic Park take the Jubilee Line to London Bridge Swiss Securitas Group, Switcher, Uniplan, International Radio Fes- (20 minutes).

swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 tival, Montreux Jazz Festival and Pro Helvetia - Swiss Arts Council. No parking available; we recommend visitors use public transport. swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 29

ture of Switzerland’s political institutions plies specifically to the sustainable develop- important and executive authorities while also high- ment of forests and their enormous impor- Please do not forget to provide the embassy lighting the structure of and role played by tance to humanity. International mobility or consulate general responsible for you with the State. It can be ordered from the Federal has increased dramatically, and with it the your valid e-mail address and your mobile Chancellery or downloaded as a printable need for a basis on which to compare profes- phone number. PDF document from the link below: sions and qualifications across different Register at www.swissabroad.ch to ensure www.bk.admin.ch/dokumentation/02070/ countries. you do not miss out on any information from The FOEN produced its first report on your representation (“Swiss Review”, news- forestry jobs in Europe back in 1996 in part- letters and so on). The current edition of nership with a group of international organ- “Swiss Review” and previous issues can be isations. Since then, training opportunities read or printed out at any time at www.re- and the general framework have changed vue.ch or via the “Review” link on the web- greatly, prompting a re-examination of the sites of Swiss embassies and consulates. international situation. The 83-page publication is not available in Helpline number printed form but can be downloaded as a from Switzerland: printable PDF document, in English or Ger- 0800 24-7-365 man, from the link below: Helpline number Professions and training in Forestry www.bafu.admin.ch/publikationen/publika- from abroad: In March 2012, the Federal Office for the tion/01651/ +41 800 24-7-365 Environment (FOEN), in partnership with three UN organisations, published a study new development cooperation newsletter into training opportunities for forestry oc- For the past year, the Swiss Agency for De- over to you cupations based on an international survey velopment and Cooperation (SDC), part of carried out in 2010/2011. A total of 23 coun- the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs Help to paint a picture tries in Europe and North America took part (FDFA), has been publishing a newsletter, of switzerland in the study. which appears every two months and contains Education systems all over the world are the most important information about Swit- Who exactly are the Swiss? How do they going through a period of upheaval. Educa- zerland’s global development cooperation ac- live? Where do they live? And what are they tion is one of the main tools at our disposal tivities. The newsletter can be ordered at: like? to face up to the challenges of the future. As www.deza.admin.ch > Documentation > Publi- Presence Switzerland has launched “Swiss- well as being true in a general sense, this ap- cations >SDC’s Newsletter world – Life in Switzerland”, a portal designed to answer these questions. The Swiss identity is shaped by its people living, for in- PoPular initiatives: stance, in Berne, Moutier or Flims, but also By the time of going to press, the following new popular initiative had been launched since abroad. This is why Presence Switzerland the last edition of “Swiss Review”: wishes to invite the Swiss abroad to contribute to the portrait gallery as well. n “Pro Service public” (In favour of public service). Deadline for the collection of signatures: Adding your contribution to the gallery 28.08.2013 couldn’t be easier. To document your piece of Switzerland abroad, simply go to www. The complete list can be found on the Federal Chancellery’s website at www.bk.admin.ch, swissworld.org/en/your_switzerland. You in German under “Aktuell > Wahlen und Abstimmungen > Hängige Volksinitiativen” (also can upload text, photos and videos, which available in French and Italian). can then be viewed at www.swissworld.org/ en/know/life_in_switzerland, painting a pic- FDFA OFFICIAL COMMUNICATIONS OFFICeR: JeAN-FRANÇOIS LICHTeNSTeRN, ReLATIONS WITH THe ture of a fascinating, colourful and diverse SWISS ABROAD, BUNDeSGASSe 32, CH-3003 BeRNe, TeLePHONe: +41 800 24 7 365 country. WWW.eDA.ADMIN.CH, MAIL: [email protected] Join in and show the world the makers of Switzerland as we know it! Advertisement Publications

June 2012 / No. 3 / No. June 2012 the swiss Confederation: W a Brief Guide 2012 This richly illustrated brochure is published

SWISS Re VI e each year and gives you a broad yet clear pic- 30 ECHO

Little gems

A special place to stay in Berne south-facing side of the building with fantastic Wonderful sketches A new bed and breakfast opened in Berne at the be- views of the Alps – cost between 75 and 130 They are in a class of their ginning of April. The small guest house is situated Swiss francs per night (single and double rooms, own. Few Swiss performers very close to the world-famous “Zentrum Paul discounts apply for longer stays). Two rooms have mastered the art of par- Klee” and is therefore called “Bed & Breakfast have running water, while showers and bath- ody and satire as well as Birgit Im Klee”. The property built in the 1940s, which rooms are located on the landings. Parking Steinegger and Walter An- has a large garden and swimming pool, has been spaces are available in front of the building, and dreas Müller. Their “Zweier- stylishly furnished with great attention to detail. public transport and the well-known “Schön- leier” programme could be The five rooms – all of which are located on the grün” restaurant are nearby. Be heard on Swiss radio every Saturday afternoon for 28 im Klee, Bed & Breakfast, Melchenbühl- years. Absolutely nobody was weg 8, 3013 Berne +41 31 931 35 35 www.imklee.ch, [email protected] spared. Steinegger and Mül- ler parodied politicians, business leaders, sportspeople and even the Pope.

Their show was dropped at the end of last year as a cost- cutting measure. A selection of their sketches is now available on CD. This includes a eulogy for banking confiden- Roger Federer – 1994 to 2010 rate everything – a detailed ers, unforgettable matches, tiality, which had “been sick Neuchâtel-born Jean-Denis list of honours including a defeats as number 1, quota- for some time”, for example, Sauser is a fan who has writ- set-by-set breakdown, char- tions from opponents and along with a parody of ten a book about his idol. The acteristics of his game, train- tennis greats, his life off-court Federal Councillor Micheline research work he has done on and almost a hundred pages Calmy-Rey and the Axis of Roger Federer is monumen- on all of Federer’s matches. Evil, as well as a conversation Jean-Denis Sauser tal. While the biography is Some of the proceeds from between Signora Schruppa- rather concise, the informa- ROGER FEDERER the book will go to the Roger telli, a cleaner at the Federal tion provided on matches, re- 1994-2010 Federer Foundation, which Palace, and Federal Council- cords and opponents is ency- Les 17 premières années de sa carrière works to help disadvantaged lor Kurt Furgler on the wine clopaedic. The book even children in South Africa. This glut in Valais. These humor- contains some revealing anec- book provides a highly enjoy- ous, probing recordings can dotes about the champion’s able insight into the career of still be enjoyed years after ambitions when he was still a the greatest player of all time. their production. Be teenager. When asked at the Aw age of 15 what his goals in ten- Zweierleier live! Birgit steinegger nis were, he replied: “To be- “Roger Federer 1994–2010 – und walter Andreas Müller; Christoph Les 17 premières années de sa Merian verlag, Basel; audio book come world number 1.” The carrière”, Jean-Denis sauser, 80 mins; price around CHF 20; Editions Attinger - Hauterive swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: donated author manages to incorpo- www.merianverlag.ch swiss Review 3 / No. June 2012 Photo: Keystone 31

Bulletins Quotations

Promoting Italian whether Christoph Blocher’s “When consumed by anger, people usually act stupidly rather than The status enjoyed by Italian parliamentary immunity cleverly.” Jeremias Gotthelf, pastor and novelist in Swiss schools is too low. would be lifted. This would be This is the conclusion reached necessary for any criminal “Constantly reacting too late is a genetic disorder within Swiss politics.” by the Swiss Commission for prosecution. Dick Marty, former FDP member of the Council of States and Council of Europe the Federal School-Leaving Certificate (SMK). A survey Mani Matter now in Schwyz “You need to hit the ground running and then accelerate.” in the cantons revealed that on The exhibition on the Bernese Federal Councillor Alain Berset average only 13 % of school singer-songwriter, “Mani Mat- pupils at Swiss grammar ter (1936–1972)”, at the Swiss “Where freedom reigns, ev’n labour is repose”. schools choose Italian as a ba- National Museum in Zurich in Albrecht von Haller (1708-1777), Swiss doctor and botanist sic, main or optional subject. 2011 was a huge success. Conse- The cantons of Geneva and quently, the exhibition has now “People usually only learn during wars and personal crises – and rarely Grisons came out on top with gone on display again, this time of their own free will.” an average of 30 %. A working at the Forum of Swiss History David Bosshart, futurologist and head of the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute group is now to propose meas- in Schwyz. ures to promote the appeal of It will run from 31 March to “Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and Italian. 16 September 2012. I’m not sure about the former.” Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Right to vote for Swiss abroad Fewer employees, “Are Swiss banks now supposed to collect taxes for other states?” Oswald Grübel, former CEO of Credit Suisse and UBS The Great Council of Basel- higher salaries Stadt is supporting the right of 35,618 people were employed the Swiss abroad to vote at by the federal administration at “We are living in a dangerous age. Man has controlled nature before Federal Councillor Doris Leuthard Council of States elections. It the end of 2011. This is 162 learning to control himself.” has submitted a motion setting fewer than at the end of 2010. “I felt dreadful when the BDP was formed.” out this demand to the Execu- They are divided among 32,179 Hans Grunder, outgoing President of the Conservative Democratic Party (BDP) tive Council after approving it full-time positions. Salaries by a large majority. The Execu- have increased – the average tive had previously opposed gross annual salary stood at the right to vote for the Swiss 117,755 Swiss francs last year, abroad. 2,163 francs or 1.9 % more than in the previous year. This is in- Criminal investigation dicated by the federal govern- against former Federal ment report on personnel man- Councillor Blocher agement for 2011. The federal Zurich’s public prosecutor’s administration still employs office has opened a criminal fewer women than the Swiss investigation against former average. The Federal Council Federal Councillor and Minis- has set corresponding objec- ter of Justice Christoph tives. It expects the proportion Blocher on account of his role of women to reach 29 to 34 % in the affair concerning in the middle salary bands and Philipp Hildebrand, the for- 16 to 20 % in the higher bands. mer President of the National 5 % of federal government em- Bank. The public prosecutor’s ployees are trainees. office is investigating whether Daniela W. and David O. returned to Switzerland on 15 March after being held hostage for Blocher committed a criminal Almost a million per day nine months in Pakistan. Speculation has since been rife regarding the circumstances of offence in passing on confi- The SBB transported 977,000 their escape, which is how the couple describe it. Experts on the situation in Pakistan dential bank data. A house rail customers a day last year. say that an escape would have been almost impossible and that it is extremely likely that search was carried out at This represents an increase of Switzerland and Pakistan made concessions to the Taliban. This may have involved the payment of a ransom or the release of prisoners. The incident has triggered a debate in June 2012 / No. 3 / No. June 2012 Blocher’s villa in Herrliberg 26,000 people compared with Switzerland about how much a state should do for its citizens abroad who negligently

IEW on 20 March. At the time of the previous year. Passengers place themselves in danger. Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter said that it was imper- Ev going to press, the committee travelled a total of over 17.5 bil- ative that we “reflect on individual responsibility for personal safety and the limitations SWISS R Photo: Keystone concerned had not yet decided lion kilometres. of state intervention”, though he, of course, condemned “the kidnapping industry”. ORGANISATION OF THE SWISS ABROAD

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