Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

POLITICS

Swiss hard right crowns farmer as new leader

The hard-right Swiss People's Party, Switzerland's biggest political party, on Saturday anointed as its new leader hill farmer Marcel Dettling, a hardliner on asylum and immigration.

Published: 24 March 2024 10:19 CET
A picture taken on October 17, 2023, shows a cyclist pushing her bike past an electoral poster of candidates of the Swiss People's Party (SVP UDC) in Aarberg ahead of the 2023 Swiss federal elections.
A picture taken on October 17, 2023, shows a cyclist pushing her bike past an electoral poster of candidates of the Swiss People's Party (SVP UDC) in Aarberg ahead of the 2023 Swiss federal elections. Marcel Dettling was appointed the new leader of the hard-right party on Saturday.(Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

The lawmaker was unanimously elected at a party conference in Langenthal, northern Switzerland. He was the only candidate to stand for the leadership of the SVP, which comfortably topped the Swiss general election in October.

Dettling, 43, had been the election campaign manager and a party vice president.

Dettling is a member of the National Council lower house of parliament, representing the central Schwyz canton, and has served as party vice president.

“We will continue to defend our freedom and independence in the future and will not allow ourselves to be bullied by foreign rulers,” he said.

On the question of closer ties with the neighbouring European Union, he added: “In Switzerland, it is the people who govern, and not bureaucrats in Brussels.”

The SVP has come a long way from its roots as a farmers’ party in the German-speaking part of Switzerland.

It became a national force focused on opposition to mass immigration, to closer ties with the EU, and to the abandonment of Swiss neutrality.

Dettling is considered on the harder wing of the party on immigration. His parliamentary interventions typically concern asylum and agriculture.

Outgoing leader Marco Chiesa had decided not to stand again at the end of his term.

Chiesa has led the SVP since August 2020 and in October 2023 took the party to the third-best result in its history, winning 28 percent of the vote and nine more seats in the National Council.

The SVP’s election campaign had focused on the fight against “mass immigration” and the prospect of the Swiss population –currently 8.8. million — reaching 10 million.

It also launched a war on “cancel culture” and what it called “gender terror and woke madness”.

Delegates gave Chiesa a standing ovation on Saturday.

The seven seats in the Swiss government are shared out 2-2-2-1 among the four largest parties. The government, or Federal Council, takes its decisions by consensus and collective responsibility.

The SVP’s two government members are Economy Minister Guy Parmelin and Environment Minister Albert Rosti.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

POLITICS

Swiss earmark 10 million francs for UNRWA in Gaza

Switzerland is proposing to give $11 million to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, specifically for tackling the humanitarian crisis in Gaza triggered by the war between Israel and Hamas.

Published: 8 May 2024 14:18 CEST
Swiss earmark 10 million francs for UNRWA in Gaza

The government’s proposal, announced Wednesday after weeks of procrastination, represents half of the amount which was initially set to be paid to the UNRWA (The United Nations Relief and Works Agency) in 2024.

“Switzerland’s 10 million Swiss francs contribution to UNRWA will be restricted to Gaza and will cover the most pressing basic needs, such as food, water, shelter, basic healthcare and logistics,” a government statement said.

Switzerland “is fully aware of the critical nature of this situation and recognises the urgent need for action”.

UNRWA, which coordinates nearly all aid to Gaza, has been in crisis since January when Israel accused about a dozen of its 13,000 Gaza employees of being involved in the October 7th Hamas attack on Israel.

This led many donor nations, including the United States and Switzerland, to abruptly suspend funding to the agency, threatening its efforts to deliver desperately-needed aid in Gaza, where the UN has warned of an impending famine.

An independent review group of UNRWA, led by French former foreign minister Catherine Colonna, found some “neutrality-related issues” but said Israel had yet to provide evidence for its chief allegations.

In making its decision, the Swiss government said it “drew on the analysis of the Colonna report and coordination with other donors”.

The government’s decision must still be submitted to parliament’s foreign affairs committees for consultation.

On April 30th, the Swiss head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, said that of the $450 million in funding that had been frozen by donors, $267 million was still suspended, the bulk of it by Washington.

Gaza’s bloodiest-ever war began following Hamas’s unprecedented October 7th attack on Israel that resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel has conducted a retaliatory offensive that has killed more than 34,800 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.

Switzerland “reiterates its call for a humanitarian ceasefire, unhindered access for emergency aid to Gaza, compliance with international humanitarian law, and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages,” the government said.

SHOW COMMENTS