Switzerland today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
Sunny regards from Bern!
Depending where in the world you are living, it seems that you have different priorities in terms of what is discussed at Swiss Abroad annual congresses. Our SWI swissinfo.ch reporter checks in at two congresses, in Italy and Northern Germany to see what is on the agenda.
Also, you might be seeing the Jura cantonal flag in some strange places. We will tell you why.
All this in today’s briefing. But first let’s take a look at the news.
The usual suspects in the news today: UBS, Eurovision and Swiss tourism make headlines.
- Large viewership tuned into controversial 2024 Eurovision Song Contest: Switzerland representative, Nemo, won the contest this year which drew many more viewers than in previous years – the overall viewer rating for the grand final was 46.7% – the highest figure since 2006.
- Two sisters with Tunisian roots who left Switzerland twice to join Islamic State have been given suspended prison sentence: the younger sister had also taken her minor son to join IS in November 2014, but returned to Switzerland after having failed to cross the border between Turkey and Syria.
- Switzerland Tourism takes stock of three years of pandemic recovery: a total of CHF49 million ($53.5 million) over three years has been allocated to the recovery programme, including CHF9.2 million in 2023.
- UBS mostly in agreement with tighter regulations: “We would say we agree with 80% to 90% of these 22 measures,” said UBS Group CEO Sergio Ermotti at the SwissMediaForum event in Lucerne.
- One of Lake Lucerne’s oldest boats now running on electricity: the oldest active motorised boat on Lake Lucerne, launched in 1929, is now powered by an electric motor.
- Swiss employment trends positive in 2024: The number of jobs rose by 1.8% compared to the previous year. In total, the Federal Statistical Office counted 5.48 million people in employment in Switzerland in the first quarter. The number of job vacancies fell by 9.7% to 114,300.
- Swiss federal court case clarifies C02 penalties for car imports: A Swiss federal court has rejected the appeal of a car importer against a fine of CHF4.2 million ($4.6 million) imposed on him by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy for abusive practices.
Leadership shifts and sweet connections: Swiss Abroad Congress highlights
Around one hundred Swiss Abroad took part in the Congress of Swiss Clubs in Germany, which took place in Lübeck. For the past year, there had been some discontent within the club, leading the chairman at the time, Albert Küng, to resigned from his post two weeks before the 2023 Congress, and Sonja Lengning stepped in at short notice.
Included in the participants, were 19 presidents of various Swiss clubs with voting rights. In total there are 38 member associations. According to SWI swissinfo.ch reporter, Emilie Ridard, a lengthy discussion took place on a potential amendment to the Articles of Association. This amendment would allow all Swiss citizens with voting rights registered in Germany the possibility to stand for election as a delegate to the Council of the Swiss Abroad (CSA), the “parliament” of the Swiss Abroad. Currently, to be eligible, a person must be a member of a Swiss club.
This potential change to the amendment caused a lot of concern in Lübeck and ultimately no decision was taken. However, this does mean the amendment has been taken off the table entirely- the text of the amendment to the articles of association has been sent to the various Swiss clubs for a second review.
Down south in Perugia, Italy, around 130 Swiss nationals living in Italy gathered for the 85th congress of the Union of Swiss Associations.
There are currently 52,000 Swiss nationals living in Italy, reports Ridard. Over the last 20 years, their numbers have increased by 16%. To cope with the growth of the Swiss in Italy and of the Swiss Abroad in general, the consular office is developing new strategies to better serve them.
One of these new strategies could include using more AI, for example in the online help desk of the Swiss Foreign Ministry.
Perugia has a unique Swiss connection. It is the “city of chocolate”, and is home to a famous chocolate factory, which has belonged to the Swiss Nestlé group since 1988.
Rosa Maria Leggio, a former employee of the Aeschbach chocolate factory near Lucerne, revealed some of the secrets behind the success of Swiss chocolate. One reason is that the big chocolate families – Suchard, Cailler, Lindt – have never been in competition with each other, opting instead for fruitful collaboration.
A Swiss flag abroad
In celebration of the 50th anniversary since voters decided to create a new canton, Jura launched a photo competition, “Il flotte notre Drapeau” (Our flag is flying). Individuals from the canton can send in pictures of the Jura flag waving around the world.
From the mountains of Everest and Kilimanjaro, to the Maldives, Cameroon and Iceland – the Jura flag has seen more places around the world than most people, with 450 people taking part in the competition.
Jura is the youngest Swiss canton, joining the Swiss Confederation in 1979. However, the red and white flag was created in 1947, 32 years before the canton became sovereign from canton Bern. This may explain the attachment to the cantonal emblem.
First prize includes a weekend hotel stay for two people at the Le Paysan Horloger hotel in canton Jura (of course), a complete food and wine pairing menu, mountain e-bike rental, a visit to the Fromagerie des Franches-Montagnes with cheese tasting and an original Jura knife.
Before you dust off your camera lens – the competition is now closed. The jury will select a panel of images to be exhibited from June 23 to August 11, 2024, on the promenade of the Theatre du Jura.
If you have a picture of your canton flag abroad – send it our way!
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