Swiss politics and political institutions: 1. Society and History

Swiss politics and political institutions:

1. Society and History

Prof. Dr. Andreas Ladner

iMPA 2013

| ©IDHEAP – Andreas.Ladner@idheap.unil.ch | | 21/04/23 |

For a very good introduction see

Linder/Iff (

http://www.swissworld.org/media/political_system_

2011/?lang=en

Very good!!!

Module 1: 5 Blocks

1. Society and History

2. Federalism and Municipalities

3. Government and Parliament

4. Direct Democracy

5. Party system and Parties

6. What about the citizens?

What do people know about Switzerland?

Cheese, chocolate, watches and Nespresso?

Banks, insurances and pills?

Innovative policy solutions, political

institutions and a special form of democracy?

Political issues

What happens to the Swiss Franc?

Immigration and the Growth of the Swiss population – Free

Movement of Persons Switzerland – EU/EFTA

Nuclear Power Plants

Banking secrecy – US, EU

……

The three pillars of the Swiss political system and the idea of power sharing

Society

Politics

Sources

Block 1

1. Society

2. History

SwitzerlandPopulation: 8 mio.

Languages: German, French and Italian

Switzerland

Language

63.8 % 20.4 % 6.5 % 0.5 % 9.0 %

Denominations

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Switzerland

Cross-cutting Cleavages

French speaking,Catholics,poor

German speaking, protestants, rich

26 cantons and 2495 municipalities

Population increase

“The biggest sorrows of the Swiss“ (Sorgenbarometer Credit Suisse 2010)

UnemploymentOld age pension schemeHealth servicesSocial securityForeignersPersonal securityEU/BilateralesAsylum seekersNew poverty...

Non-swiss residents 1900 - 2007

Refugees, Asylum seekers Integration of

foreigners, free movement of persons

EU, bilateral agreements

Global Competitiveness

GDP (PPP) per capita

The gross domestic product at purchasing power parity of countries per capita,

shows the value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given

year divided by the average (or mid-year) population for the same year.

GDP dollar estimates are derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) calculations.

Such calculations are prepared by various organizations, including the

International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. As estimates and assumptions

have to be made, the results produced by different organizations for the same

country tend to differ, sometimes substantially. PPP figures are estimates rather than

hard facts, and should be used with caution.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_%28PPP%29_per_capita

Reasons for the succes?

Neutrality, not involved in WW I and WW II

Banking secrecy

Not member of the EU

Small country, no Kings and Queens, no colonies

International orientation, innovative, niche oriented

Liberal country

Reasons for the success

Weltwoche Nr. 36.13 Robert U. Vogler: «Mythos arme Schweiz»

The Swiss state

Liberal state, minimal state or welfare state?

http://www.efv.admin.ch/f/dokumentation/downloads/themen/oeff_haushalte/intv_staatsquote.pdf

(Ratio of government expenditures to gross national product)

Ratio of government expenditures to gross national product (Economiesuisse)

Economiesuisse: Finances publiques consolidées selon caractère obligatoire (dépenses)

Expenditures (State levels and Social Insurances, 2009, percentages)

Transfers included; total: 229 billions Swiss francs

Civil servants compared

Civil servants on the different state levels

Ballendowitsch, Jens (2003). Sozialstruktur, soziale Sicherung und soziale Lage des öffentlichen Dienstes der Schweiz. Mannheimer Zentrum für Europäische Sozialforschung. Working papers Nr. 68.

Central government expenses 2009 (58 billion)

http://www.efv.admin.ch/f/dokumentation/zahlen_fakten/finanzberichterstattung.php

Transport

Finances and tax

Social Security

Others

International Affairs

Agriculture and Food

Education and Research

Defense

Expenses central government (Confederation) 1960 (2.7 billions)

Administration générale; 5.5

Police, Justice; 1.1

Relation avec l'étranger; 3.2

Défense nationale;

Formation et recherche

fondamentale; 3.6

Culture et loisirs; 0.6Santé; 0.6

Prévoyance sociale; 13.7

Traf ic; 6.1

Protection et aménagement de l’environnement;

Agriculture et alimentation; 12.6

Finances et impôts; 16.8

Transport

Finances and tax

Social Security

Others

International AffairsAgriculture and Food

Education and Research

Defense

Health Culture

Income central government (Confederation)

http://www.efv.admin.ch/f/downloads/finanzberichterstattung/bufi/R_Bufi_2009_f.pdf

Federal Direct Tax on income and wealth

Value Added Tax

Content

1. Switzerland

2. History

http://www.swissworld.org/en/history/

The Old Swiss Confederacy (1291-1515)

Important trade route over the Gotthard

Interest and influence of Habsburg ->

„Oath on Rütli“ to mutual help against

anyone attempting to subject them

German king Friedrich II exempted the

valleys of Uri (1231) and Schwyz (1240)

from the jurisdiction of any counts and

dukes so they would be subject to the king

The ancient political system in Switzerland

Source: http://history-switzerland.geschichte-schweiz.ch/swiss-revolution-helvetic-republic-1798.html

Catholics 1850 und 1990 (percentages)

Revolts against the Ancien Regime

From 1650 to 1790, the various revolts against the rich families in the cities

did not have any success:

The war of the peasants of the Emmental (subject territory of Berne) and

Entlebuch (subject territory of Lucerne) against these cities in 1653

The revolt of Wilchingen against Schaffhausen (1717 - 1729)

The revolt of Werdenberg against Glarus (1719 - 1722)

The revolt of major Abraham Davel in Lausanne (Vaud) against Berne

(1723)

The revolt of the peasants of Jura against the prince-bishop of Basel (1726 -

The revolt of the Leventina (Ticino) against Uri (1755)

The revolt of Chenaux (Fribourg) against Fribourg (1781)

French Revolution (1789)

The Storming of the Bastille, July 14, 1789

The Helvetic Republic (1798-1803)

On 5 March 1798, French troops completely overran

Switzerland and the Old Swiss Confederation

collapsed.

On 12 April 1798 121 cantonal deputies proclaimed

the Helvetic Republic, "One and Indivisible".

The new régime abolished cantonal sovereignty and

feudal rights. The occupying forces established a

centralised state based on the ideas of the French

Revolution.

1803: „Act of Mediation“ = Restoration of the old Confederation of the 13 Cantons + 6 new Cantons (SG, GR, AG, TG, VD, TI)

1814: Genève, le Valais et Neuchâtel join the Confederation

1815: Congress of Vienna -> Swiss neutrality

The foundation of the modern national state (1848)

Tensions between the liberal Protestant and the Catholic cantons lead

to the civil war in 1847 (the “Sonderbundskrieg”).

After a brief military campaign with federal troops, the Catholics, who

had founded a separatist federation, surrender.

1848 The modern Swiss federal state is founded in 1848. Its

constitution centralises and harmonises numerous areas which were

previously the responsibility of the cantons, such as military service,

customs, and postal services and coinage.

This leads to the creation of a cohesive territory ripe for economic

development.

Nation Building after a short Civil War (1847)

The Radical Party and liberals made up of urban bourgeoisie and burghers, which were strong in the largely Protestant cantons proposed a new Constitution for the Swiss Confederation which would draw the cantons into a closer relationship and develop into a modern capitalist nation with banking and trade (Engels).

The conservative city patricians and mountain or Ur-Swiss from the largely Catholic cantons were opposed to the new constitution.

1848: 70 per cent of the Cantons accept the new Constitution

The first Swiss government

Federation ≠ Confederation

The “Swiss Confederation” is not a Confederation!

-> Compare to the European Union!

Since then

More and more tasks are allocated to the state

sector (infrastructure, social security, risk,

sustainability)

The central state becomes more important. The

execution in many domains, however, remains in

the hands of the lower units -> increasing

entanglement („Poliltikverflechtung“)

A paradigmatic case of political integration

Small state

No royalist past

Strategically important location in Europe

Bottom-up nation building

Core principles of the political system: power sharing!

Study work

How would you describe your country compared to

Switzerland?

How do people in our country spend their money?

Swiss politics and political institutions: 1. Society and History

Documents

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