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2009 will no doubt be known in the annals of Swiss
history, as the “horrible year”. The deterioration of
its image caused by external and internal conflicts,
which began with reckless business from its main bank,
UBS, in the United States.
Confronted in the mirror, the Confederation discovers a
face of a country that is “frowned upon”. This feeling
has been reinforced by the outbreak of diplomatic
conflicts with Libya and the recent arrest of filmmaker
Roman Polanski.
The setbacks suffered by the Confederation this year are
numerous. Firstly, Switzerland was forced to compromise
over its banking secrecy, revealing to the tax
authorities the names of 4,450 U.S. bank customers. Not
to mention that its European neighbours, especially
Germany, also attacked Switzerland for what seems like
favouring tax evasion.
Then there was the episode of Libyan leader Muammar
Gaddafi, who, furious at the arrest in Geneva of his son
Hannibal, (for attacking his domestic workers), decided
to withdraw his funds deposited in Swiss banks and
continued his retaliation by the arresting two Swiss
citizens in Libya, still held hostage.
The lack of diplomatic boldness of its chairman, Hans
Rudolf Merz, has made him suffer the worst humiliation
suffered by a European government in the hands of an
authoritarian and feudal regime. Qadhafi forced
Switzerland to submit the case to an international court
and apologize, but only before apologizing to the people
of Libya.
From one case to another
Then came the arrest in Zurich the Franco-Polish film
director Roman Polanski, just as he was about to receive
an award for his film career. This is seen as an act of
allegiance to the U.S., whose orders gave Switzerland a
mandate for his arrest.
This has resulted in the breakdown of cultural and
political relations with France and Poland, increasing
the feeling of isolation.
And as if that were not enough, on the domestic front,
the main far right party, United Democratic Centre (UDC)
has launched in an attack on French workers in the
region of Geneva, which he described as "rabble" and
"foreign criminals", provoking angry reactions in
France.
The political party has also directed its anger towards
Islamic countries by its rejection that Muslims can
build mosques minarets, this subject will be put to
popular vote next month.
Isolation is not new
But according to Professor Pascal Sciarini of the
University of Geneva, the problem is not new. “Only now
Switzerland is going through a difficult phase that
lasts”, because in his opinion it all started in the 90s
by the case of funds without heirs of Holocaust victims
deposited in Swiss banks.
According to the Genevan political scientist, “one of
the major problems of the Swiss Confederation is its
neutrality, in whose name such undesirable practices
have been credited as the funds without heirs and bank
secrecy”.
Switzerland is also suffering from “a lack of culture of
crisis" that makes it unable to settle their own
international disputes. "With the end of the Cold War,
she has lost her privileged place of contact between
East and West”, said Pierre Hazan, Professor of the,
Institute for International Studies and Development in
Geneva.
Switzerland “is now trying to redefine its role,
pledging more on global issues, while maintaining its
traditional role as mediator”, he said, estimating that
a “more active neutrality is one of the solutions to the
problem of image”.
Anyway, with the unemployment crisis to help promote
xenophobia against foreigners, isolated, circumstantial
Switzerland is a reality, a feeling reinforced by her
refusal to join the European Union.
Swisslatin / adapted by Stephen Hinch
(12.10.2009) |
