Re-visiting a refugee centre

Tama Vakeesan was born in Switzerland – to Tamil parents from Sri Lanka. The family fled war-torn Colombo, and started life in Switzerland at the Roggwil refugee centre in Oberaargau, canton Bern. Tama and her older brother, Yathu, visit a similar centre for asylum-seekers, also in Oberaargau, and relive their own childhood. (SRF Kulturplatz/swissinfo.ch)

This content was published on June 22, 2017 - 17:00

1 minute

Socar has around 200 Socar petrol stations dotted throughout Switzerland.

Multinational companies

Azeri fossil-fuel cash cow brings controversy to Switzerland

Swiss Politics

Why cars still reign supreme in ‘rail-nation’ Switzerland

Multinational companies

Is Switzerland as innovative as it ranks?

Swiss Abroad

Heard the one about the Swiss company installing laugh detectors?

There are currently over 3,800 daycare centres across Switzerland. That's almost 700 more than four years ago.

Life & Aging

Why Switzerland’s daycare numbers are rising amid regional divides

How can we avoid AI being monopolised by powerful countries and companies?

AI has the potential to solve many of the world's problems. But the wealthiest countries and tech firms may seek to hoard these benefits.

Join the discussion

Nov 7, 2024

14 Likes

14 Comments

View the discussion

What could Switzerland and the United States learn from each other today?

What could the two democracies learn from each other?

Join the discussion

Sep 5, 2024

106 Likes

82 Comments

View the discussion

Have you ever heard anything peculiar about Switzerland that you found interesting?

Is there anything peculiar related to Switzerland that has caught your interest? Share it with us, and we might feature it in an article!

Join the discussion

Nov 13, 2024

1 Likes

4 Comments

View the discussion

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

Me and my mum

This content was published on Jun 15, 2017 Tama Vakeesan was born in Switzerland to parents from Sri Lanka. She speaks with her mother who explains what it was like to leave her home country.

Let the beat go on!

This content was published on Jun 8, 2017 Tama's friend Priya Ragu, a Swiss-born ethnic Tamil, explains how hard it is making her way in the music world without her parents' support.

Under suspicion

This content was published on Jun 1, 2017 Tama meets her friend Mondher, who is Swiss with Tunisian roots. He tells how not looking Swiss has got him into trouble.

Tama and the #Pussyhats

This content was published on May 25, 2017 Tama Vakeesan was born in Switzerland – to Tamil parents from Sri Lanka. In this episode, she takes part in the Zurich Women’s March and finds out why demonstrators are wearing pink “Pussyhats”, and how their four-legged allies are protesting too. (SRF Kulturplatz/swissinfo.ch)

What our food says about us

This content was published on May 18, 2017 Tama Vakeesan meets up with her friend Zoe, born in Switzerland to Greek parents, to find out whose mum is the best cook.

So what if I wear a headscarf?

This content was published on May 11, 2017 Tama Vakeesan finds out how wearing a headscarf affects the lives of some of her friends. (SRF Kulturplatz/swissinfo.ch)

My town – ordinary but extraordinary

This content was published on May 4, 2017 Tama Vakeesan was born in Switzerland to Tamil parents from Sri Lanka. She shows us her favourite places in her home town.

My big fat Tamil wedding

This content was published on Apr 27, 2017 Tama Vakeesan was born in Switzerland – to Tamil parents from Sri Lanka. Tama and her best friends have a clear vision of their dream man.

Swiss or Tamil? Caught in the middle

This content was published on Apr 18, 2017 Tama Vakeesan was born in Switzerland – to Tamil parents from Sri Lanka. Sometimes she doesn’t know where she belongs.

Re-visiting a refugee centre

Popular Stories

More

Azeri fossil-fuel cash cow brings controversy to Switzerland

More

Why cars still reign supreme in ‘rail-nation’ Switzerland

More

Is Switzerland as innovative as it ranks?

More

Heard the one about the Swiss company installing laugh detectors?

More

Why Switzerland’s daycare numbers are rising amid regional divides

Most Discussed

More

How can we avoid AI being monopolised by powerful countries and companies?

More

What could Switzerland and the United States learn from each other today?

More

Have you ever heard anything peculiar about Switzerland that you found interesting?