Новости за 03.05.2024

The Lindt & Sprüngli group has just inaugurated a CHF100 million expansion of its cocoa mass production factory in Olten, Switzerland. High cocoa prices could leave the brand-new machines underutilised. Olten, a Swiss rail network hub near the capital Bern, is where cocoa beans are delivered by cargo train to the Lindt factory to be transformed. They are cleaned, roasted and crushed to form a viscous cocoa mass that is the starter material for the production of chocolate. And Lindt wants more of it. Читать дальше...

Thierry Stern is both the owner and director of Patek Philippe, one of Switzerland’s four leading independent watch brands. In an interview he explains why the prestigious Geneva-based company produces almost all its timepieces in-house, while delegating sales to outside partners. While it may not rival Rolex – the other major Geneva brand – in terms of sales, many in the know regard Patek Philippe as the best watch manufacturer, and the most exclusive. Its most emblematic models, such as the Nautilus... Читать дальше...

Chocolate manufacturer Lindt & Sprüngli has expanded its cocoa mass production plant in Olten, canton Solothurn, at a cost of CHF100 million ($111 million). After a construction period of around three years, the expansion of the Lindt Cocoa Centre was opened on Friday. In addition to new production lines, the expansion also includes a modernised loading hall for cocoa mass, a laboratory and the redesign of the plant administration, the company announced. The expansion will lead to a doubling of production capacity. Читать дальше...

Zurich city police arrested a notorious repeat offender, known as Brian, on Thursday evening after a brawl. The public prosecutor's office has opened proceedings on suspicion of attempted grievous bodily harm. The 28-year-old has been provisionally detained for the time being, the Zurich public prosecutor's office announced on Friday. It remains to be seen whether Keller will remain in custody for longer. The public prosecutor's office has not yet decided whether it will apply to the compulsory measures court for pre-trial detention. Читать дальше...

Almost one in three people felt they had been the victim of discrimination between 2016 and 2022. Discrimination occurred most often in the form of verbal and psychological violence. These are the findings of a new survey by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO). It showed that last year, most victims of discrimination in Switzerland were disadvantaged because of their nationality, language, gender or origin. According to the "Discrimination and Racism in Switzerland 2023" survey, discrimination... Читать дальше...

The go-ahead has been given to build Switzerland's first large-scale solar project in the Bernese Oberland. The project must now forge ahead before winter arrives. Planning permission for the solar plant on Alp Morgeten in the Simmental was given by the Frutigen-Niedersimmental District Governor's Office. In future, the plant will produce electricity for 3,000 households. For project initiator Christian Haueter, the authorisation means one thing above all: a lot of work. However: "It is also satisfying... Читать дальше...

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) recently ruled that Switzerland had failed to meet its own climate targets and to set a national carbon budget. What’s behind this budget, and why does it matter? On April 9, Europe’s top human rights court ruled in favour of a group of elderly Swiss women, the KlimaSeniorinnen, who said the government's inadequate efforts to combat climate change put them at risk of dying during heatwaves. + Landmark ruling: Switzerland’s climate policy violates human rights Summing up... Читать дальше...

Squirrels could have played a role in the spread of leprosy in the Middle Ages. Researchers at the University of Basel have identified the pathogen that caused the disease in medieval squirrel bones, according to a study published on Friday. However, it is not yet clear exactly what role the animals played in the spread and transmission of leprosy, as study leader Verena Schünemann from the University of Basel told the Keystone-SDA news agency. "We don't know whether the squirrels infected the humans or vice versa." However... Читать дальше...

Two drivers of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) were killed by gunmen in Sudan on Thursday. Three other staff members were injured in the attack, the Geneva-based ICRC announced. The team was on its way back from a mission in Layba in the south of Darfur, where it had been assessing the humanitarian situation of local communities suffering from armed violence, when the attack occurred. In its statement, the ICRC called for the immediate protection of the civilian population, including humanitarian workers and medical staff... Читать дальше...

According to the organisation Reporters Without Borders, Switzerland is now one of the ten countries that best protect freedom of the press worldwide. It now occupies 9th place in this ranking, up from 12th place last year.  However, according to a press release from Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Switzerland, press freedom in Switzerland has actually deteriorated rather than improved. Switzerland achieved 84.01 points in the 2024 rating, which is based on the evaluation of five indicators, compared... Читать дальше...

May 3 is World Press Freedom Day. Franco-Russian journalist Elena Servettaz, who has been working for SWI swissinfo.ch for the past two years, writes about her difficulties reporting in Vladimir Putin’s Russia. I was only 16 when I had my first clash with the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The second was when I was 29, and the third was more recently, at age 39. In the first and last cases, I lost my job. In the second, my family received threats. But that didn’t frighten me. What scared... Читать дальше...

Today is World Press Freedom Day. The basic right to a free press is challenged in many countries in the world. China, Russia and Mexico are only the most glaring examples. Even here in Switzerland press freedom needs defending. Many of our journalists at SWI swissinfo.ch have exercised their trade in countries where press freedom is under attack. A number of them have known what it’s like to work in an unfree media environment. In the course of their work, our journalists have encountered skeptical... Читать дальше...

When our reporter Amal Mekki won a legal victory against Tunisia’s Ministry of the Interior in 2018, she was optimistic about enhancing access to information in her country. As a SWI swissinfo.ch journalist observing from Switzerland, she now realises that one judicial decision alone cannot transform reality. When I entered the Tunisian Ministry of the Interior that day, I asked a police officer: “I’m a journalist, and I’m here to submit a right-to-information request. Who should I give it to?” His... Читать дальше...

Two initiatives aimed at capping health insurance costs in Switzerland have the backing of a slim majority of voters, according to the first nationwide poll ahead of the votes on June 9. A referendum on the electricity law is enjoying massive support, while an anti-vaccination initiative has little chance of passing next month. Will Swiss voters come out in support for people who struggle to pay their monthly health insurance premiums? For now, voters seem to accept the two different solutions put... Читать дальше...