Switzerland Today

Hello from Bern,

Here are the latest news and stories doing the rounds in Switzerland on Wednesday, January 5.

Keystone / Peter Klaunzer

In the News: no more WhatsApp for the army, and worries about the fallout of widespread quarantines.

• The Swiss army has banned the use of WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram and other major messaging apps for official communications. In future, a spokesman confirmed today, the forces will use the Swiss service Threema. Better coordination of comms was a factor in the shift, as well as concerns about data security; in the US, for example, the Cloud Act means authorities can legally request American-based companies to allow access to data stored domestically or abroad.
• With a record 31,109 cases of Covid-19 recorded on Wednesday in Switzerland, the Swiss Business Federation has called for an easing of quarantine rulesto prevent a shortage of staff in companies. Cutting quarantine to five days “could help to keep the right balance between the economic and social life and the burden for intensive care units”, said the group’s Roger Wehrli. Yesterday, health experts warned that hospitalisations will rise after the festive season, and that shortage of personnel in hospitals due to sickness could also cause problems.

Keystone / Peter Klaunzer

Fourth estate debates: links between media and government under scrutiny ahead of February vote.

The “Ringier case” made the news again today, after Tuesday’s claim that the publishing group had taken a wilfully cosy line on the government’s pandemic measures. This morning, the chairman of the group was unapologetic, calling for “a sense of proportion” in a front-page editorialExternal link in the publisher’s Blick newspaper. While “sniping” by other papers on such an issue is normal, Michael Ringier said, accusations that employees had been “instructed” to take a certain line were a “malicious defamation of the daily work of [Ringier journalists]”. Speaking directly to his “dear” staff, he urged them to simply continue as usual.

At a press conference in Bern however, the “no” camp for the upcoming vote (February 13) on a CHF151 million package of state aid for media were not letting the issue lie. Philippe Gut, the head of the campaign committee (and incidentally the author of the article which sparked the Ringier debate) called it a case of “brazen complicity between state and media”, which “threatens the democratic separation of powers” – something which the planned subsidies will not help. His group also says many media are doing just fine, and that the package is a “waste of money” that will just bring more profits to big groups like CH Media, the NZZ and… Ringier.

It’s too early to say if the current affair will have a big impact on the vote; the first public opinion survey by the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation, swissinfo.ch’s parent company, will be published this Friday. The campaign in favour of the package, meanwhile, which also kicked off today in Bern, is arguing that the subsidies will help stop the decline of local papers and media throughout the country, under pressure from international giants like Google and Facebook. They say the financial support guarantees editorial independence, and that – literally the opposite of what the “no” side claims – it is “indispensable for the survival of direct democracy”.

Keystone / Anthony Anex

Poll shows largely stable political landscape, and scant Covid-effect, ahead of 2023 elections.

Next year is election year in Switzerland: after gains by greens and women in 2019, what impact will covid have? Not an “earth-shattering” one, according to a poll of almost 20,000 peopleExternal link published by Tamedia newspapers today. Had elections been held in December 2020, the big winner would have been the Liberal Greens, with a boost of 2.4% to take them just above the 10% mark overall. The Social Democrats, Radical Liberals, and Centre would have been only slightly changed (at 16.2%, 15.4%, 13.3% respectively), while the People’s Party would have climbed slightly to 27% – by far the biggest party in the country. The Greens, finally, would be down 1.5%, to 11.7%.

For even more proof that the pandemic has had a minimal effect on political colours, the survey also finds that out of all government ministers, the man in charge of health (Alain Berset of course) is clearly the most popular. Current president Ignazio Cassis, who as foreign minister hasn’t had a starring role in the covid show (despite being a doctor) is least loved among voters. And finally, just to make sure the world, i.e. Swiss stability, is still nicely in order, what’s the biggest “worry” reported by the poll respondents? Covid? Geopolitical tensions? Of course not: it’s that perennial fixation, the old age pension system. As you were…

Keystone / Michael Buholzer

Teenagers: just let them sleep

The use of alcohol as a “mood booster” has increased among young teenagers, said the Bern-Solothurn-Freiburg chapter of the Blue Cross today. According to a yearly surveyExternal link, the numbers of lower-secondary-age students (up to around age 15) drinking to cheer themselves up more than doubled in 2021 to 7.3%. What’s the solution? Well, while the Blue Cross suggests wholesome activities such as sport, a separate studyExternal link published today offers another idea. According to the University of Zurich, school closures in March 2020 (as result of the pandemic) led to a “significant increase in quality of life” for Zurich high-schoolers: notably, the extra time in bed each morning (75 minutes on average!) led to better sleep patterns, less depression, less anxiety and… less alcohol! More sleep, less school – the answer to teenage woes is staring us in the face…