SwissInfo

The health of the Swiss watch industry is judged not only by exports that soar from one record to the next, but also by the number of new brands founded by young designers and entrepreneurs. SWI swissinfo.ch speaks to members of this new wave of watchmakers. In the Vallée de Joux, western Switzerland, the watchmaking company Jaeger-LeCoultre has not forgotten Antoine LeCoultre and Edmond Jaeger, the founders of this prestigious luxury brand. In Geneva, Vacheron Constantin keeps alive the memory of its founders... Читать дальше...

Canton Graubünden in eastern Switzerland is celebrating its 500th birthday this year. History professor Randolph Head sheds light on the evolution of democracy in the pioneering canton and explains how democracy used to work without the concept of equality. Randolph Head teaches European History at the University of California, Riverside, and specialises in the history of Switzerland. In his dissertation, he wrote the first modern history of early modern democracy in Graubünden spanning from the 15th to the 17th century. Читать дальше...

A judge at the District Court of Zurich is no longer allowed to rule on climate protection activists. The Federal Court has declared him biased on the grounds that he had shown solidarity with them. The judge had acquitted a climate activist of the group "Extinction Rebellion" in September 2022. The trial was triggered by a street blockade erected in Zurich's city centre. At the opening of the judgement, the judge told the defendant not to be intimidated. "Keep up the good work," he said. He also... Читать дальше...

Climate campaigners picketed the Swiss National Bank's shareholders meeting in Bern on Friday in protest against the bank's investments in companies they say damage the environment and carry out fracking. The demonstration follows a decision this month by Europe's top human rights court that Bern was not doing enough to protect its citizens against rising temperatures. There was also a protest at the UBS annual general meeting on Wednesday. Switzerland recorded its two hottest years ever in 2022 and 2023... Читать дальше...

The European police authority Europol, in co-operation with other police forces, stopped four suspected thieves of antique and rare books in Georgia and Latvia on Wednesday. The gang is believed to have stolen at least 170 books from various libraries in Europe, including in Geneva. Europol estimates the value of the stolen goods at around €2.5 million (CHF2.4 million), it said on Thursday. Some of the stolen artefacts were sold at auctions in St Petersburg and Moscow. These are now effectively unrecoverable. Читать дальше...

The Back to the Roots care and support programme for adopted people from Sri Lanka will continue until the end of 2025. The Swiss Conference of Cantonal Justice and Police Directors is funding the project for another year, the Back to the Roots association said on Thursday. So far, around 70 adopted people from Sri Lanka have been able to benefit from the programme, Celin Fässler from Back to the Roots added. The findings since the start of the official funding were decisive for the continued funding until the end of 2025. Читать дальше...

Less than half of the Swiss population is aware of sexually transmitted infections such as syphilis, gonorrhoea or chlamydia, according to a survey. The government’s new "Love Life" campaign aims to increase prevention. Various motifs, which will be displayed on posters and on the internet from Friday, were presented to the media in Bern on Thursday. The campaign's main message is: "Do your safer sex check". Only then can one be "Ready!" for sex. The aim of raising awareness is to prevent new transmissions... Читать дальше...

Families in Turkey have waited years for the government to approve Zolgensma, a $2.1 million (CHF1.9 million) gene therapy sold by Swiss pharma group Novartis, to treat a rare and potentially fatal genetic disease in infants. Many desperate parents have turned to crowdfunding to pay for the drug. Rüzgar has been fighting for his life since the day he was born. At one month old, he was diagnosed with the most severe form of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a rare genetic disease that causes progressive muscle loss. Читать дальше...

The European Parliament has adopted new laws to rein in companies for human rights abuses in global supply chains. This will have far-reaching impacts on Switzerland’s largest companies. After years of debate, the European Parliament agreed this week to back two new laws that create obligations on companies to tackle human rights abuses in their supply chains. On April 23 the parliament gave the greenlight to rules that would ban products from EU export and import if they are made with forced labour. Читать дальше...

Swiss law enforcement authorities and the Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) ordered fewer surveillance measures last year. The main reason for this was fewer aerial searches, i.e. checks on which mobile phones were switched on and where. This is according to a government statement issued on Thursday. Most surveillance measures were ordered to investigate property offences, which related to a third of all real-time and retrospective surveillance measures. + Read more: Swiss government accused of... Читать дальше...