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Glance around Switzerland: Bodybuilding politicians and towing tanks

Our round up of stories that you might have missed this week includes a Panzer breaking down in the middle of a street, the revelation that buying first class tickets can be financially-savvy and a hunter-led initiative being "shot in the knee".

Published: 26 October 2018 18:41 CEST
Glance around Switzerland: Bodybuilding politicians and towing tanks
The Local

Tow-a-tank: Army calls for back up

<img alt="" src="https://www.thelocal.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/1540549339_Screen Shot 2018-10-26 at 11.14.22.png" style="width: 500px; height: 269px;" title="A screenshot of a video sent to 20 Minutes by an eyewitness ” />

Above: A screenshot of a video sent to 20 Minutes, video available here.

A Swiss army panzer tank was brought to a dramatic standstill right in the middle of a Schäntis street for over two hours on Tuesday 23 October.

The incident, which took place in canton St Gallen, prompted soldiers to take on new responsibilities as makeshift traffic controllers in a bid to avoid traffic issues.

An eyewitness said the soldiers told that her the multi-ton tank needed a tow truck to remove it. In the end, however, the problem was resolved and the tank was able to drive away.

You can watch a video and read more on this story here.

 

First class tickets without the (usual) price tag

The mother of a Swiss social media personality has discovered that, contrary to popular belief, first class tickets on SBB trains can occasionally be cheaper than second class – thanks to discounted tickets. 

A spokesman from SBB confirmed the findings, saying prices were based on demand. If second class tickets for a specific journey are in high-demand and first class tickets on the same train are not, then it could be that first class tickets purchased at short notice would cost less than second class ticket. 

Arina Bertényi, who revealed her mother’s findings on Instagram, told 20 Minutes: “It is well hidden. The price preview shows the cost of a second class ticket – even if the first class one is cheaper.”

“But discounted tickets are often quickly sold out,” she warned. Read more here.

 

A political move you never saw coming

<img alt="" src="https://www.thelocal.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/1540549516_Screen Shot 2018-10-26 at 11.51.08.png" style="width: 454px; height: 292px;" title="A photo of Martignetti at the US bodybuilding world championships. ” />

Above: Martignetti in a body building competition, from his Instagram account.

The Conservative Democratic Party of Switzerland in Lucerne has announced that body-builder and 'Ninja Warrior Switzerland' contestant Valentino Martignetti, 25, will be the party’s new campaign manager for upcoming cantonal elections in 2019.

Martignetti, a fitness instructor and primary school teacher in training, competed in 2017 version of the US body building championships, finishing in third place.

Speaking about his appointment, he told 20 Minutes, “I’m always looking for new challenges, so I just applied with a video and I was invited to a casting call.

“I never had anything to do with politics and rarely went to vote,” he added. “But now my political fire has been ignited and I want to know how the political system is structured.”

You can read more on this story here.

 

Nacho stuff: cop dog rumbles robbers

An Aargau police dog called Nacho brought three alleged burglars to justice this week. The suspects tried to evade police searchers after breaking into a garden centre in Bremgarten.

But they hadn’t taken Nacho’s impressive sniffer into consideration and were foiled (or should that be soiled?) and apprehended. More on this story here.

 

Swiss hunters fire back at roadkill study

There are 20,000-annual animal related road accidents in Switzerland. According to statistics from the Federal Officer for the Environment, this costs 40-50 million CHF.

Hoping to reduce this number, authorities in Bern, Aargau, Schaffhausen, Valais and Vaud started introducing roadside blue reflectors in 2016 as a warning, saying animals are more responsive to blue light.

However, German researchers and the University of Zurich have looked through more than 10,000 hours of footage from 150 different roads as part of a study that has dubbed the blue lights useless, saying that animals do not respond to blue light.

Hunters in Switzerland have refuted the findings saying that, on most routes, the reflectors are working; citing figures from Schaffhausen which show fewer deer were injured last year.

“This study has completely shot us in the knee – unfairly so,” they told Blick. Read more here.

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POLITICS

Could Geneva be first Swiss canton to grant foreign residents more voting rights?

Voters in the country’s most "international" canton Geneva will soon have their say on whether non-Swiss citizens living in their midst should have more political rights.

Published: 29 April 2024 12:19 CEST
Could Geneva be first Swiss canton to grant foreign residents more voting rights?

Foreigners are not allowed to vote on national level anywhere in Switzerland.

Though there had been attempts in the past to change this rule, the latest such move was turned down by legislators in 2022.

However, five cantons are permitting foreign residents to cast their votes in local referendums and elections: Geneva, Vaud, Fribourg, Neuchâtel, and Jura. Conditions vary from one canton to another, but in all cases a certain length of stay and a residence permit are required.

(In Zurich, a similar move was rejected in 2023).

Of the five cantons, only Neuchâtel and Jura authorise foreign residents to vote on cantonal level in addition to communal one; in the others, they can cast municipal ballots only. 

Additionally, three other cantons have similar laws on their books, but they this legislation remains mostly inactive.

Basel-City, Graubünden, and Appenzell-Ausserrhoden have authorised their communes to introduce the right to vote, the right to elect, and the right to be elected for their non-Swiss residents. 

However, only few of the communes in these cantons have actually introduced these measures.

Wait…Geneva’s foreigners already have the right to vote?

Yes, they have had this right since 2005, but only on municipal level.

However, this could change on June 9th, when Geneva residents will go to the polls to weigh in on an initiative launched by the trade unions and political left, calling for foreigners who have lived in the canton for at least eight years, to be able to vote and stand as candidates for political offices at the cantonal level.

This ‘upgrade’ to the cantonal voting rights is important, supporters argue, because it would enable foreigners to have more political impact.

“Municipal votes are quite rare, and the issues at stake are relatively limited,” the initiative committee said.

Therefore, “access to the cantonal vote will allow these same people to express their views on wider subjects that affect them on a daily basis.”

Is this  measure likely to be accepted?

No reliable forecasts exist at this point.

And while foreigners constitute nearly 40 percent of Geneva’s population — the highest proportion in Switzerland —  it will be up to Swiss citizens to decide on the outcome.

However, some members of the Geneva parliament are urging the ‘no’ vote on June 9th.

“No canton, no country, provides such generous rights to their foreigners,” the MPs from the centre parties pointed out in an interview with Tribune de Genève over the weekend.

(Neuchâtel and Jura allow voting, but not standing for election, at cantonal level).

“The only path for foreigners to obtain full political rights is through naturalisation,” the MPs added.

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