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Lake Geneva’s higher education card

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Le News EPFL English SwitzerlandA recent article in Le Temps suggests that Patrick Aebischer, president of Lausanne’s prestigious École Polytechnique Fédérale (EPFL), has gone too far with his ambitious plans to expand what is now referred to as the “MIT of Europe”. The 9 February referendum on immigration threatens not only EPFL’s European Union funding, but also access to some of the world’s most qualified teaching talent. Critics also question the development of an EPFL campus at Ras al-Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates.

Aebischer’s American-style approach of roping in diverse funding, ranging from federal and cantonal support to corporate and foundation sponsorship, clearly bothers the purists. For some Swiss, who fail to grasp that their country can simply no longer function in a parochial vacuum of closed boundaries, EPFL has become too big for its boots.

According to Aebischer, who took over EPFL in 2000 placing it placing firmly on the global map in less than a decade, the university relies on 25% of its competitive funding from the EU. This includes support for the highly controversial Human Brain Project in Geneva. As with other institutes, such backing is now threatened by the February vote. What Switzerland needs to realize, he said, is that “the future of research and of Swiss universities lies within Europe”. While EPFL used to receive 80% of its funding from the Swiss government, it now only receives 60%.

The EPFL debate underlines the competitive importance of one of Switzerland’s key strengths: its academic institutions. EPFL’s free Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) programme for more than half a million Africans is a clear investment in this fast-rising continent of opportunity. So is its support for more than 120 high-tech start-ups operating within its Innovation Park. For economic reasons alone, such initiatives are sufficient argument for Switzerland to continue with this cutting-edge research and development approach.

Geneva’s Graduate Institute, for example, has emerged as an incisive global issues trailblazer, particularly since it moved to its shiny new headquarters at the Maison de la Paix. It is deliberately pushing for greater collaboration with outside partners, notably in the private, humanitarian, media and academic sectors. And in Lausanne, IMD business school is a dominant force among the planet’s top schools. These are the cards that Switzerland needs to be playing; not a limited vision that cannot see beyond the Alps.

rp_Girardet-Portrait-2-217x300.jpgLe News Managing Editor, Edward Girardet.  editor@staging.lenews.ch

Health insurance, restaurant taxes and crossing Lake Geneva

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Takeaway Le News English SwitzerlandThe concept of a referendum appears to be viewed increasingly by Europeans as a quick way to impose change on politicians (first Scotland, then Catalonia). The question, however, is whether the referendum really constitutes an effective form of democracy. Is decision-making not supposed to be the role of elected parliamentarians? And if a referendum affecting the entire nation is to be held, who should have the right to vote?

The Swiss go to the polls every three months to decide on one key issue or another, or more, depending on whether citizens were able to gather enough signatures to place it on the ballot. Sometimes, the outcome is to the liking of the Bern or cantonal governments, other times not.

Regardless, the referendum remains a firm and very Swiss institution. Critics often argue that the country holds too many such votes, demanding citizens to make decisions on matters they do not understand. Furthermore, they point out, participation is not usually high ensuring that political activists are the ones to sway the outcome. Last Sunday’s national referendum involved barely 47% participation, less than half the country eligible voters.

Others maintain that even if referendum initiatives are sometimes obscure, they at least put the issue on the table for public debate. And that’s the point of democracy. Clearly, this is what the Scottish vote achieved. But it also has had its reverberations, notably with regard to Wales and England, and earlier this week, Catalonia.

And maybe Flanders, the Basque country, Brittany and Corsica next? Years ago, there was even back mountain and café talk of an independent Jura incorporating some of the French side. And today, some Suisse-romandes are talking (jokingly, but still not without some thought) about the possibility of the French-speaking “Greater Geneva” region seceding from German-speaking Swiss dominance on the other side of the “Röstigraben”.

Last Sunday, the Swiss pronounced on two sore subjects: the first, the creation of a single public health insurance as proposed by the country’s leftwing parties; the second, on whether restaurants should benefit from a special VAT status. As for the citizens of Geneva, they voted on whether to grant the go-ahead for a planned tunnel, known as the ‘rade’, linking the two sides of the Rhone River at the far western end of the lake.

The Swiss voted with a significant majority (61.9%) among its 26 cantons against the idea of a public health insurance. Only seven cantons, four of them French-speaking (Jura, Neuchâtel, Geneva and Vaud), favoured the idea. The Bern government was delighted acknowledging that a majority of Swiss supported its proposal to focus more on insurance innovation and quality based on competitive diversity of choice. At the same time, the vote indicated – yet again – another cultural and political “röstigraben” divide between largely Romand western Switzerland and the German-speaking Swiss north.

In a similar vein, people voted overwhelmingly (71.5%) against reducing the 8% VAT for restaurants, which is less for supermarkets and fast-food outlets, or at least an across-the-board tax for all commerce. Restaurant and café owners maintain a higher VAT for them is “discrimination” and only persuading potential customers to eat more at home. One reason perhaps for citizens denying them a reduction is that too many Swiss restaurants offer poor quality for high prices. Maybe the vote will provide sufficient food-for-thought persuading restaurants to focus more on good value for money rather than high priced menus for not particularly great cuisine.

And finally in a Geneva only cantonal initiative, 63% of voters opted against a proposed project by the right-wing UDC party to build an over four kilometre tunnel costing at least CHF 1.2 billion linking the two sides of the Rhone River at the western end of Lake Geneva. This is the third time that Genevans have voiced their opinion on this subject, the last times in 1988 and 1996. The Geneva government breathed a sigh of relief given that city planners did not consider the ‘rade’ a viable option.

The over one century-old debate, however, is not over. Up for discussion is another tunnel (or bridge) that will be longer (14.2 km) and costlier – anywhere from CHF 2.9 to 3.7 billion – but further up the lake from Geneva’s city centre. This appears to be favoured by both the Swiss and Geneva governments, but, in the event of a later “Yes” vote, funding is unlikely to be made available until 2030.

Jihadists, FIFA and the “new” old age

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Swiss JihadistsHow should we deal with Swiss Jihadists joining ISIS?  Berne may not consider it a problem, yet, but all it takes is one or two to return as terrorists,  While European Muslims are finally speaking out against the beheadings, crucifixions  and Mosque burnings, influential figures such as Tariq Ramadan in Geneva need to condemn ISIS – loudly and publicly – as being un-Islamic and uncivilized.  FIFA’s refusal to publicize the findings of its 350-page corruption inquiry over Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 World Cup is another concern. Zurich’s foundation oversight body should not tolerate the actions of an organization, even one as powerful as FIFA, that is caught up in one scandal or cover-up after another. The International Olympic Committee in Lausanne had similar abuses, but opted for change under new leadership.  And finally, UBS’s “80 is the new 60” report on how Swiss are living longer, feeling younger. Sadly, it’s not the same for everyone. On 1 October, International Day for Older Persons, a “Leave No One Behind” discussion at the United Nations will explore how the need to recognize the achievements of older people, while ensuring their rights and well-being.

Girardet Portrait 2 croppedEdward Girardet, Managing editor

editor@staging.lenews.ch

FIFA accused of cover-up: Qatar to lose cup?

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The refusal by the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) to release the findings of its 350-page report can only lead to further speculation regarding allegations of corruption over the granting of the World Cup to Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022. It also suggests that nothing has changed within the powerful Zurich-based organization, which represents 209 member football associations worldwide.

According to the London Sunday Times, German judge Hans Joachim Eckert, who chairs the adjudicatory chamber of FIFA’s ethics committee, plans to keep the report “under lock and key forever”. The Munich-based jurist noted that the findings, which are based on 200,000 pages of evidence, would not even be shared with FIFA’s Swiss President Sepp Blatter, or any of its 27 executive members. Michael Garcia, a former US attorney for New York, who was appointed FIFA ethics investigator, is apparently furious.

FIFA’s damning cover-up Officially, FIFA maintains that it had always argued that the report would be kept confidential as this was part of the guarantee given to all executive council members interviewed. At the same time, FIFA had assured journalists that the results of this self-commissioned report to investigate itself would be made public.

The main question now is whether Qatar used illegal means to sway the FIFA decision in its favour. There are already signs that the report’s content is damning. According to German paper Sport Bild, Theo Zwanziger, a German FIFA Executive Committee member, said that the World Cup will not be held in Qatar because of “scorching temperatures”. For its part, Qatar has denied Zwanziger’s claim – as has FIFA, which argues that this is a “personal opinion”.

For years, FIFA has been accused of corruption in the form of “brown envelopes” and other incentives. As claimed earlier this year by the Sunday Times, Mohammed Bin Hammam, an ex-FIFA executive member for Qatar, had allegedly paid USD 5 million in bribes to secure the 2022 World Cup bid. It also asserted that Bin Hamman had made “dozens” of payments to top football bosses as a means of creating a “groundswell” for Qatar’s campaign, and lavished African officials with junkets and cash. Bin Hammam was ousted from the world of football at the end of 2012.

FIFA has suffered from other embarrassing blows, notably revelations that the Brazilians at the last World Cup had distributed 65 gift bags each containing a Parmigiani watch worth CHF 25,000 to FIFA executive committee members and other officials.

According to UEFA president Michel Platini, the former French footballer who now heads the Nyon-based Union of European Football Associations, it is a “mistake” for FIFA not to go public. As the governing body of 56 European football associations, UEFA is considered far more transparent than FIFA, primarily because of higher European governance standards.

One international football insider added that FIFA is seeking to continue with “business as usual and that nothing has changed”. Given that 75% of FIFA’s revenues come from TV rights and sponsorship, a lot has to do with money. But the real issue, he added, is about governance and transparency. This cannot happen with FIFA, a despotic organization, pretending to support two self-proclaimed “independent” investigative and adjudicating ethics commissions, which, in the end, it controls.

“I doubt this will affect grassroots football, but eventually there will be a tipping point,” he said. At the same time, he noted, it is possible to turn an organisation around successfully as happened with the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne which had been riddled with scandal.

Contacted by telephone, FIFA officials were reluctant to comment other than to refer to an online link on their website to the ethics committee. When asked to elaborate on concerns that without appropriate transparency, FIFA – as a Swiss foundation – could lose its tax-exempt status, a press spokesman said that he would have to check with the legal team, but they never comment in public anyway.

Edward Girardet

More than just highways

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The "bétonisation" or concreting over of Switzerland is a fast growing problem for transport policy-makers.

The “bétonisation” or concreting over of Switzerland is a fast growing problem for transport policy-makers.

Switzerland’s worsening commuter nightmare may find some relief with the Federal Council’s decision to grant CHF 2.7 billion this year to improve highways, part of it to be channelled toward the Lake Geneva region’s own heavily populated zones, notably Lausanne and Geneva. While some Swiss are not particularly happy about this emphasis on the “Arc Lemanique”, a further CHF 1 billion will be made available annually to the region over the next 20 years.

Some of these funds will be used toward broadening the highway between Perly and Geneva airport, massively congested during rush hour, while additional monies will be directed toward Vaud, particularly the blocked Crissier and Morges areas. But is simply expanding Switzerland’s road system the way to resolve traffic?

The Canton of Geneva has included a vote on whether to build a tunnel across the lake as a means of alleviating city traffic as part of 28 September referendum. Its construction would enable motorists to avoid driving through town or to take the much longer autoroute bypass in order to reach the other side. To build – or not to build – a tunnel or bridge (there have been various proposals over the years) has been up for discussion for well over a century, so, according to some Genevois, to get this far is quite astounding.

Quite a few Genevans oppose the tunnel project, but the main opposition seems to be coming from the wealthy NIMBY (not in my back yard) communes of Collonges, Cologny and Corsier. With the tunnel exiting in their part of the canton, they fear aggravated traffic. The World Economic Forum is based in Cologny, while many of Switzerland’s discreet rich – some of them famous – have villas or estates on the south side.

Touring Club Suisse had another proposal, namely to expand various road portions within Geneva to make traffic more fluid, but it will not be voted on because somehow it got left out of the initiative mix. But this proposal, once again, seems only to focus on making it easier for cars to operate in town. Despite the enormous cost, the tunnel probably makes sense given that it will alleviate city jams plus cut down on fuel costs and carbon pollution.

To really make a difference, particularly in the long term, the traffic issue should be about developing a broader and more imaginative transport vision for the region. Several Swiss urban and rural development specialists have recently spoken out for the need to encourage greater collaboration between town and country. As one pointed out, the cities want development to happen outside their boundaries, while the villages don’t want to have their rural landscapes turned into built-up suburbs. But this means thinking about joint solutions on all levels, and not just for cars.

The Lake Geneva cantons, but also “la France voisine,” need to work more closely together on improving public transport, bike lanes and even footpaths. Or to build more accessible Park & Ride areas, but with efficient shuttles into the towns, whether by tram, bus or getting on one’s bike. The main objective is to make it easier for commuters – and shoppers – to leave their cars at home, or at least to consider other options with regard to time wasted in jammed traffic.

There also needs to be more innovative thinking when it comes to shopping malls and commercial strips. The last thing Switzerland wants is make the same mistakes as the United States, which has managed to turn so many of its towns into ghost venues. Anyone who wants to go shopping needs to drive into the suburbs or get onto a highway. Etoy and Villeneuve already boast such strips.

The same thing is happening across the border. The French town of Ferney-Voltaire is turning into an empty shell with shops closing because the rents are too high. The town council should have bought up city property and offer incentives for businesses to set up locally.

Other towns, such as Cessy, St Genis, Annecy and Annemasse, now have their main entry roads lined with unsightly pre-fab furniture, automobile, DIY and clothing outlets rather than seeking to integrate such commercial enterprises as part of the town fabric. Once again, if you want to go shopping, you have to get into a car.

So rather than seeking to turn the outskirts of our towns into a Los Angeles-style matrix of highways, let’s consider some other, more environmentally friendly – and aesthetic – options. And there’s an economically compelling argument to do so – tourism. If the region’s suburbs follow the downward aesthetic spiral exemplified by Etoy and Villeneuve, will tourists really want to continue to visit in large numbers?

Girardet Portrait 2 croppedEdward Girardet, Managing editor

editor@staging.lenews.ch

The referendum: How representative?

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http://www.dreamstime.com/stock-images-buying-health-insurance-concept-shopping-care-image37180864On 28 September, Switzerland will hold yet another referendum on crucial federal and cantonal decisions. The Swiss do this every three months, often on technical issues, such as solar energy or parking garages, about which they are not particularly knowledgeable. Or they pass judgement on passionate themes, such as last February’s initiative on curbing mass migration, which can make or break the country economically.

This month’s federal vote will decide whether to introduce a public health insurance, as Pamela Taylor writes, and whether restaurants should continue paying VAT. Local initiatives vary. Geneva will be voting on a proposal to build a tunnel across the Rhone, while Vaud has no changes on the table.

Another key referendum is next week’s Scottish independence vote, notably, the right to break away from the United Kingdom with which they have been associated for more than 300 years. The most recent polls suggest a very close “yes” win for the nationalists.

French-dominant Quebec has tried twice to vote on independence from Canada. The first was in 1980, when it lost significantly, and the second in 1995 where the initiative was defeated. Barely. Now, nearly 20 years later, the Quebec nationalists are on the out. Many Québécois, particularly young people, are coming to realize that independence would only be shooting themselves in the foot economically and that union is preferable.

How democratic are these referenda? Do they really represent the public will? In Switzerland, participation is usually high, but a referendum can be decided by a 50.3% majority as happened with the migration vote. This means that nearly half the voting population does not agree. But at least every Swiss citizen is allowed to vote, regardless whether in Lausanne, Los Angeles or Lagos.

The Scottish referendum only allows current residents to participate. Scots living elsewhere in the UK or abroad cannot, even if they pay taxes for properties they own in Scotland. Some UK citizens argue that they, too, should be able to vote as the decision will affect them.

Both Scotland and Quebec can have their futures decided by a 50.1% local vote. US citizens, who can vote from abroad, can propose change, but both Houses need a two-thirds majority. So at least, that’s arguably more democratic. But what happens when people realize – only much later – that devolution with union is perhaps better than independence with borders?

Girardet Portrait 3Edward Girardet, Editor@staging.lenews.ch

Explaining Switzerland’s issues

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4 September 2014 Newsletter Christophe_Darbellay_740-400

Christophe Darbellay

Earlier this week, I had lunch with an expat friend from Vaud at one of Geneva’s leading hotels overlooking the Rhone River. He has been living in Switzerland for nearly 30 years, including a nearly decade-long stint in the German-speaking north. So he is very much aware of the divides that exist within Switzerland itself, and how many ordinary Swiss do not understand their own country.

He is also acutely aware of the role foreigners play in Switzerland. The hotel restaurant, where we were lunching, can barely maintain enough waiters to ensure the quality that a five-star needs to provide for lack of personnel, he explained.

While Europeans and Americans may often regard Geneva as the “real” capital of Switzerland, he noted half-jokingly, numerous German-speaking Swiss act as if Suisse romande does not exist. And if they do acknowledge it, they perceive the Lake Geneva region as that Latin enclave in the south. Many have never even been to Lausanne or Geneva. So clearly, there is a dire information gap affecting both Swiss and foreigners.

At the same time, my friend noted with embarrassment, he barely gets by with his terrible French. It’s a similar situation with many foreigners living in Switzerland. He has tried many times to learn the language, but most of his work with international corporations, including Swiss ones, is done in English. So, apart from going to the bakery or doing his shopping at Migros or Manor, he doesn’t really need French.

What he does need, however, is an overview of what’s happening in the Lake Geneva region, and Switzerland itself. This includes listening to WRS and reading Le News. These, he maintains, are his principal local information sources. It was tragic, short-sighted and even racist of Bern, he added, to close down the original WRS and then deliberately deny the new operation access to an FM signal. This means that without DAB+ at home and in their cars many thousands of potential listeners still do not have access.

“No Swiss politician is going to raise a finger to protect the rights of foreigners in their country, even if they desperately need them,” he noted. This point of view is shared by a surprisingly large number of Swiss, who are also among Le News’ readers. As one civil servant in Bern told me, “I now rely on Le News to give me a different perspective – one which you will not find in the Swiss press.”

As the editor of Le News, I consider this information role a crucial one, regardless whether our readership is Swiss or foreign.

Some Swiss have criticized me for being “anti-Swiss’, which is a curious allegation given that I am Swiss. We are living in a far more interesting country today than 30 years ago, when, quite frankly, it was a pretty dull place. Switzerland now commands exceptional diversity and innovation with its position as the world’s most competitive economic country according to the World Economic Forum. Much of this has to do with traditional Swiss ingenuity and exceptional governance combined with highly skilled and imaginative immigrant resources.

A few others have blatantly informed me that the country does not need an English-language newspaper, because Switzerland does not need – or want – foreigners. At the same time, such Swiss have no compunction about making money off their backs. One café owner in Vaud, whose establishment relies heavily on English-speaking parents stopping by for their morning coffees after dropping off their kids at the international schools, steadfastly refuses to allow Le News on its premises.

Doris Leuthard

Doris Leuthard

Of course, what such poo-poohers really mean is that they do not share Le News’ responsibility to explore critical issues, such as immigration, cutting edge technology or more constructive relations with the European Union, that are very much in Switzerland’s interest. And in the interests of the international community here.

What we wish to ensure is that Le News can help provide the sort of information that will enable residents and visitors, regardless whether Swiss or foreign, and including those on the French side, to understand the region better by becoming part of it – and enjoying it. This means being informed about what is happening with the arts, business, tourism events, wildlife and local politics.

And maybe one of the Swiss language schools will come up with a formula to help linguistically impaired expats, such as my friend, find both the time and will to order more than a coffee in French. And why not in German, Italian or Romansch as well?

Edward Girardet, Managing editor   ed@staging.lenews.ch

A more communal stance for humanity

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Girardet Portrait 2

While much of the Swiss summer has proved miserable, for those of us who managed to get abroad, there were constant reminders of just how globally relevant the Lake Geneva region is. Somehow Switzerland is mentioned one way or another in any media coverage of the Middle East, banking, football, climate change or Ebola.
It was the base murder of American journalist Jim Foley by ISIS jihadists in Syria that brought all this home. Not only does Foley’s kidnapping and eventual killing underline the extreme danger that reporters, mainly freelance, now find themselves in when covering conflicts and humanitarian crises, but it also accentuates the increasingly nefarious role of young extremists brought up in Britain, France and other European countries, including Switzerland. They have abandoned civilized values by going off to fight, murder, rape and torture in the name of Islam.
Even though numbers remain small for Switzerland – an estimated 40–50 residents are believed to have headed off to Syria and Iraq to fight – this is a development that cannot be ignored. It is also an issue that needs to be discussed in schools, where such radicalization begins.

http://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photo-muslim-rebel-ak-assault-rifle-image28452705

Not all are jihadists. Some have joined pro-Christian groups. But we’re not talking about idealistic Spanish Civil War volunteers. What makes everything so volatile is their need to resolve issues with sheer brutality at the end of a gun, or by beheading or crucifying anyone who thinks differently.
Even though many foreign jihadists are being – or will be – killed, it is likely that some will one day return home, together with their radicalism. This happened before when militants, including Osama bin Laden as well as European and American converts, headed off to Afghanistan in search of jihad and brought the concept of the “New Islamic Man”.
If such extremism is to be thwarted, Switzerland’s religious communities need to be more assertive. This includes the influential Islamic Centre of Geneva, which needs to condemn – clearly and loudly – atrocities committed in the name of Islam. In the same manner, Switzerland’s Jewish community needs to be far more critical of abusive Israeli military actions against civilians in Gaza or the building of illegal settlements, all of which contribute toward increased radicalization.
But why not a joint approach by all of Switzerland’s religious communities condemning what is unacceptable and condoning what actually contributes to the betterment of humanity, which, after all, is what Switzerland supposedly represents?

Hiking hazards in Switzerland: Not just bad weather

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As Swiss meteorological records point out, July proved to be the wettest month in 50 years. Precipitation was four times higher than normal putting a severe dampener on Swiss tourism. The Lake Geneva region, Bernese Alps, Valais and Jura have all endured exceptionally high rainfall. Many resorts have reported cancellations, particularly among weekend vacationers seeking to escape to the mountains.Girardet Portrait 2 cropped

With rising rivers, including the Rhone, inundating houses, streets and railway lines, the flooding is also a reminder that no one, not even the Swiss, can control the impact of climate change and other aspects of excessive weather. The protection office at the Federal Department for Environment in Bern has warned that the rains have resulted in a “precarious” situation in the northern Alps. Soil is saturated to the point that any new storm may produce destructive surges. What is required, the office points out, is “at least 10 days of no rain to allow the land to empty out.”

One of the reasons behind the inability of soil to absorb such high amounts of water is the growing tendency to lay asphalt for roads and around housing to the point that there is nowhere for water to escape. Another curse is a rising trend to tar or cement country trails. Marked by the renowned yellow signs indicating both direction and walking times, Switzerland’s 66,000 km of hiking paths are increasingly being covered – primarily to facilitate access for farmers.

Geneva’s 346 km of trails are now 59.5% laid over – the highest in the country. Vaud’s 3,433 km of pathways are 42.2% covered, while Valais’s 8,481 km stand at 12.9%. In 2000 alone, over 1,000 km of dirt or gravel trails were surfaced, despite the known health hazards for hikers to walk on hard trails and a 1987 law prohibiting such forms of cover.

Concreting paths is creating increased flood damage.

Concreting paths is creating increased flood damage.

The Swiss Rando Association would now like to halt further surfacing. It is also demanding that the federal government, the principal funder behind recent surfacing, undo what it has implemented. Swiss Rando wants to see all hard trails reduced to 10% throughout Switzerland both for environmental and health reasons. But, as the Fribourg Hikers’ Association also points out, the summer heat can make asphalted trails “unbearable”.

And finally, on the subject of the outdoors, there are two further points of concern. One is wolves. The Canton of Valais, much to the relief of conservationists, has decided not to allow the hunting of one canine which allegedly has attacked 28 sheep and two goats.

If water cannot escape due to man made barriers, then flooding is a certainty

If water cannot escape due to man made barriers, then flooding is a certainty

The farmers are none too happy, but they also need to be encouraged not to leave their flocks untended in the mountains. If they really wish to protect their animals, one agriculturalist pointed out, they need to bring in Pyrenean Mountain or other specialised dogs, which are regarded as the most effective for scaring off predators.

As if flooding and wolves are not enough, the Tribune de Genève ran a story this week with the claim of a female hiker in the Salève near Geneva that she had been attacked by a cow while trying to cross a field. It was only by playing dead that the animal stopping trying to gore her, she said. Local farmers seemed dubious, maintaining that they had never heard of such a thing. Pointing out that a full-grown cow weighs between 600-800 kg, said one “If she had been gored, she would not have stood up.”

Bringing it all home: Our friends on MH 17

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Girardet Portrait 2 croppedThe sad news of the World Health Organization’s Glenn Thomas being one of the 298 victims killed in the downing of Malaysian Airlines MH17 has once again brought it home how embedded the international community in Switzerland is in world affairs. Glenn, a former BBC producer who represented WHO as a press spokesman, and hence a friend and colleague, had left Geneva via Amsterdam to attend the World AIDS Conference in Melbourne. He was one of at least 10 AIDS-related specialists, primarily researchers, heading to Australia on board MH17 for the global gathering.

Given the Lake Geneva region’s position as a planetary hub, many of us, whether involved with international aid, media, business, science or academia, regularly fly out from Cointrin to somewhere else. We head to international conferences, business meetings, schools and universities, or on humanitarian and diplomatic missions. We leave our families, colleagues and pets behind, and our bills on the kitchen table to be paid, dry-cleaning to be picked up, or dinners to be attended once we get back. And we don’t think twice about it.

When Glenn left for Melbourne via Schiphol Airport, he was travelling to attend a crucial conference focusing on the current state of HIV/AIDS. That was part of his job and he probably assumed that he would be back soon. We, too, assumed that we would see his usual smiling face around WHO and the Palais. Ironically, only a day earlier, UNAIDS – another Geneva-based organization – had launched “The Gap Report” designed to furnish critical information and analysis aimed at bridging the remaining gaps among people affected by AIDS. Some of those killed in MH17 were involved in this project. Glenn’s job would have been to help journalists better understand what still needs to be done in order to bring an end to the AIDS epidemic.

MH17 was cold-blooded murder, not unlike 9/11. Despite intense counter-propaganda put out by Moscow, evidence now firmly points to the mafia-style Russian rebels supported by President Vladimir Putin, who obviously has not forgotten his KGB past, for firing the surface-to-air missile. Ironically, both Switzerland – as head of the OSCE – and Geneva – the world’s humanitarian, human rights and mediation capital – are indirectly involved with the Ukraine. But how many of us, including Glenn, could have imagined that a civilian airliner flying at 35,000 feet would fall victim to this out-of-control conflict? This is why we need to ensure that those responsible for this massacre not be allowed to get away with it.

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