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Co-founder of Swiss assisted suicide organization Exit dies aged 100

Rolf Sigg, one of a group of people who founded the assisted suicide organization Exit in 1982, has died at the age of 100, according to reports.

Published: 10 November 2017 12:26 CET
Co-founder of Swiss assisted suicide organization Exit dies aged 100
Photo: tepic/Depositphotos
Swiss media said the former pastor and psychologist died in mid-September but his family only announced his death on Thursday. 
 
Sigg was one of 69 people who came together in 1982 to found Exit, becoming the director of the organization’s Swiss German arm. 
 
A member organization with currently 105,000 members in the German-speaking part of Switzerland alone, Exit helps those with incurable illnesses to end their lives. 
 
Under Sigg’s direction more than 500 people used its services.
 
His work earned him the nickname ‘angel of death’ and he frequently faced resistance from protestors, said news agency ATS. In 1986 he was stripped of his post as pastor in Granges, in the canton of Solothurn, because of his work. However in 2012 he was recognized with a bravery award.
 
 
Suicide assistance is legal in Switzerland as long as the assistant does not benefit financially from the person’s death, therefore all ‘end-of-life’ workers at Exit are unpaid volunteers. 
 
Exit only offers its services to members, who must be Swiss or have permanent residency in Switzerland.
 
A second Swiss organization, Dignitas, also provides assisted suicide services to non-Swiss who live outside the country. 
 

EXIT

Macron dilutes pledge to end ‘exit tax’ on high earners

France will keep a less restrictive version of its "exit tax" on wealthy people who take assets out of the country, and not completely scrap it as President Emmanuel Macron pledged earlier this year.

Published: 16 September 2018 16:06 CEST
Macron dilutes pledge to end 'exit tax' on high earners
President Emmanuel Macron meets visitors to the Elysée Palace during an open day on Saturday. Photo: Anne-Christine Poujoulat/Pool/AFP
The 30 percent levy was introduced by former president Nicolas Sarkozy to keep top earnings from leaving France for countries with lower tax rates.
 
But Macron said in May he would abolish the tax as part of a push to make the country more attractive to investors, which critics say has led to fiscal relief for the wealthiest along with other polices that make him the “president of the rich”.
   
“People are free to invest where they want. If you want to get married, you  should not explain to your partner, 'If you marry me, you will not be free to divorce,'” Macron told Forbes magazine.
   
A finance ministry spokesman confirmed to AFP on Saturday that the tax would be kept as part of the 2019 budget plan to be presented later this month, following a report by French financial daily Les Echos.
   
However the tax will now be levied only if assets are sold within two years of a person's leaving France, instead of 15 years currently.
   
It applies to people who have been in the country at least six years and have stocks or bonds worth more than 800,000 euros ($930,000), or who own at least 50 percent of a company that moved out of France.
   
The tax is “a bureaucratic headache for taxpayers” because they have to provide guarantees and file annual declarations for years after leaving the country, the ministry spokesman said.
 
Aiming to bolster growth
 
Macron, a former investment banker, has pledged a series of reforms aimed at bolstering economic growth and investment, including making it easier to dismiss workers.
   
He has also made no secret of his desire to see more people looking for work, at one point calling reform opponents “slackers” and criticising union protesters for “stirring up trouble” instead of finding new jobs.
   
Greeting people during an open-house visit at the Elysée Palace on France's national heritage weekend, Macron dismissed a young man's claim that he couldn't find work.
   
“I'm 25 years old, I send resumes and cover letters, they don't lead to anything,” said the aspiring gardener. “If you're willing and motivated, in hotels, cafes and restaurants, construction, there's not a single place I go where they don't say they're looking for people. Not one!” Macron replied. “If I crossed the street I'd find you one,” he said.
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