Switzerland

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Switzerland Image File history File links Coat_of_Arms_of_Switzerland. ... Switzerland is a federal republic, and perhaps the closest state in the world to a direct democracy. ...

Constitution Federal Council (members) Moritz Leuenberger (Pres. 06) Pascal Couchepin Joseph Deiss Samuel Schmid Micheline Calmy-Rey (VP 06) Christoph Blocher Hans-Rudolf Merz Federal Chancellor (list) Federal Assembly Council of States (members) National Council (members) Political parties Elections Election 2003 Voting in Switzerland Supreme Court Cantons Foreign relations Human rights

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Human rights are comprehensively guaranteed in Switzerland, one of Europe's oldest democracies. Together with other European states, Switzerland is often at or near the head in international civil liberties and political rights rankings.^[1] As in other Western states, individual cases of abuse, mostly involving the use of supposedly excessive force by police, are reported at times.^[2] The Swiss Federal Council (in German, Schweizerische Bundesrat; in French, Conseil fédéral suisse; in Italian, Consiglio federale svizzero; in Romansh, Cussegl federal svizzer) is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the government of Switzerland, as well as assuming functions corresponding to those of the head of state... The table below shows the members of the Swiss Federal Council or Federal Councilors (in German: Bundesräte, in French: conseillers fédéraux, in Italian: consiglieri federali) for any given year since instauration of the federal council (in German: Bundesrat, in French: conseil fédéral, in Italian: consiglio... Moritz Leuenberger (born September 21, 1946) is a Swiss politician. ... The list of Presidents of the Swiss Confederation (1848-present) presents the presiding member of the Swiss Federal Council, Switzerlands seven-member executive. ... Pascal Couchepin (born April 5, 1942) is a Swiss politician. ... Joseph Deiss (born January 18, 1946) is an economist and Swiss politician. ... Samuel Schmid Samuel Schmid (born January 8, 1947) is a member of the Swiss Federal Council, heading the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports. ... Micheline Calmy-Rey (born July 8, 1945) is a Swiss politician. ... The list of Presidents of the Swiss Confederation (1848-present) presents the presiding member of the Swiss Federal Council, Switzerlands seven-member executive. ... Christoph Blocher (born 11 October 1940) is a Swiss politician, industrialist and member of the Swiss Federal Council heading the Federal Department of Justice and Police. ... Hans-Rudolf Merz (born 10 November 1942) is a Swiss politician. ... The Federal Chancellor (Bundeskanzler, in German; Chancelier fédéral in French; Cancelliere della Confederazione in Italian) is the head of the Federal Chancellery, which acts as the general staff of the seven-member Federal Council (the federal government). ... The Bundeshaus (Swiss parliament building) The Federal Assembly (in German, Bundesversammlung; in French, Assemblée fédérale; in Italian language, Assemblea federale), is Switzerlands federal parliament. ... The Council of States of Switzerland (German: Ständerat, French Conseil des Etats, Italian Consiglio degli Stati) is the upper house of the Swiss parliament. ... This is a list of the members of the Swiss Council of States of the current legislature (2003-2007). ... The National Council of Switzerland (German: Nationalrat, French: Conseil National, Italian: Consiglio Nazionale) is the large Chamber of the parliament and has 200 seats. ... This is a list of the 200 members of the Swiss National Council (as of January 2005). ... Political parties in Switzerland lists political parties in Switzerland. ... Politics of Switzerland Categories: Election related stubs | Elections in Switzerland ... Legislative elections in the Swiss Confederation were held on 19 October 2003. ... Voting in Switzerland is the process with which Swiss citizens make decisions about governance and elect officials. ... The Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland (Tribunal fédéral in French, Schweizerisches Bundesgericht in German, Tribunale federale in Italian) is the supreme court of Switzerland. ... The twenty-six cantons of Switzerland are the states of the federal state of Switzerland. ... Flag of Switzerland. ... Since 1848, the Swiss Confederation has been a federal state of relatively autonomous cantons, some of which have a history of confederacy that goes back more than 700 years, arguably putting them among the worlds oldest surviving republics. ... Information on politics by country is available for every country, including both de jure and de facto independent states, inhabited dependent territories, as well as areas of special sovereignty. ... Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ... This article is in need of attention. ... ...

Switzerland is signatory to all relevant international human rights instruments. It is also the depositary state of the Geneva Conventions and the birthplace of several human rights-related NGOs including the Red Cross. The United Nations Human Rights Council, of which Switzerland is a member and which it was instrumental in establishing,^[3] has its seat in Geneva. Respect for human rights and the promotion of democracy is also one of the five official foreign policy goals of Switzerland.^[4] International human rights instruments can be classified into two categories: declarations, adopted by bodies such as the United Nations General Assembly, which are not legally binding although they may be politically so; and conventions, which are legally binding instruments concluded under international law. ... Development of the Geneva Conventions from 1864 to 1949 The Geneva Conventions consist of four treaties formulated in Geneva, Switzerland that set the standards for international law for humanitarian concerns. ... A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an organization that is not part of a government and was not founded by states. ... The Anarchist Black Cross was originally called the Anarchist Red Cross. The band Redd Kross was originally called Red Cross. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... The United Nations Human Rights Council is an international body within the United Nations with the purpose of addressing human rights violations. ... Geneva (pronunciation //; French: Genève //, German: //, Italian: Ginevra) is the second most populous city in Switzerland, situated where Lake Geneva (French Lac Léman) flows into the Rhône River. ...

References

• Human Rights Watch webpage on Switzerland
• Amnesty International annual report on Switzerland, 2005
• U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices on Switzerland, 2005
• IFEX: Freedom of expression in Switzerland
• Privacy International: Privacy and Human Rights 2003: Switzerland
• Human rights policy of the Swiss federal government

Human Rights Watch is a U.S.-based international human rights non-governmental organization located in New York City, USA, that conducts advocacy and research on human rights issues. ... Amnesty International logo Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty or AI) is an international, non-governmental organization with the stated purpose of promoting all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international standards. ... The United States Department of State, often referred to as the State Department, is the Cabinet-level foreign affairs agency of the United States government, equivalent to foreign ministries in other countries. ... Country Reports on Human Rights Practices are submitted annually by the U.S. Department of State to the U.S. Congress. ... The International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX), founded in 1992, is a global network of more than 60 Non-governmental organisation that promotes and defends the right to freedom of expression. ... Privacy International (PI) is one of the worlds oldest privacy organisations, and has been instrumental in establishing the modern international privacy movement. ...

Footnotes