Swiss have rights – and obligations – abroad

Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter wants to stop Swiss venturing with impunity into high-risk parts of the world at a time when international crises abound. In mid-March four Swiss skiers were killed in an avalanche in Norway. A day later, there was an earthquake in Mexico, and a day after that a putsch in Mali. It was a busy but not an exceptional week for Christian Dussey, head of the Division for Security Policy and Crisis Management within the foreign ministry. “In every crisis I work on the assumption that there may be Swiss victims,” the 46-year-old ambassador told swissinfo.ch. “Switzerland is among the five European countries with the highest proportion of foreign travellers. Day or night, we have to be ready to react quickly as the first few hours are decisive.” Earlier in March, two Swiss hostages won their freedom after nine months of captivity in Pakistan. No sooner were they free than a worker with a non-governmental organisation was abducted in ...