GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Boston shops began opening again and life in the city that has been shut down for a week by bombs at the Boston Marathon started to get back to normal. Details are emerging of the criminal actions of which two brothers are accused, with the younger one, in hospital with a feeding [...]
Fatca en route for Swiss banks, as agreement adopted by Bern
April 10, 2013 by
BERN, SWITZERLAND – The Swiss government formally adopted the Fatca tax agreement with the United States Wednesday morning, publishing at the same time the results of its consultation (French, German) with interested parties within Switzerland. Background, GenevaLunch, Fatca The statement from Bern, in full: “Both the Fatca agreement between Switzerland and the United States that [...]
Arms sales world treaty passes strongly – but debate over what it means
April 3, 2013 by
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Three countries voted against it – Iran, North Korea and Syria – but with 154 countries backing it, the new international treaty to regulate the estimated $70-80 billion in world arms trade passed in the United Nations General Assembly Tuesday 2 April. There was widespread rejoicing that the long-debated treaty is finally [...]
US public interest focuses on Supreme Court gay marriage debate
March 27, 2013 by
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The US Supreme Court moves into a key day of oral arguments Wednesday 27 March in the case of California’s ban on same sex marriage. The public debate has heated up in recent days, with polls now showing a majority of Americans in favour of allowing same sex marriage – but those [...]
Swiss university professor faces nightmarish US court case
March 6, 2013 by
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – A Swiss university professor with an American passport who was sexually assaulted 18 years ago while a student in the US has found herself dealing with the US justice system, not over the sexual violence itself, but over the 1995 murder of the alleged offender, in a nightmarish turn of events. The [...]
The messy legal side of 21st century motherhood
March 5, 2013 by
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Motherhood has never been a simple business, but surrogacy is complicating even the legal definition of “mother”, on at least two continents. In Ireland the surrogate mother of twins and the babies’ genetic mother, who is the surrogate’s sister, have won a landmark court case for their family, reports the Irish Times. [...]
Solar Impulse headed for San Francisco
February 21, 2013 by
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Solar Impulse, the experimental solar plane, is en route to San Francisco, via Luxembourg, thanks to a jumbo jet that has the same wing-span but that weighs nearly half a million kilos. The CargoJet plane landed in payerne Wednesday evening 20 February, with some nervousness on the part of observers, since the [...]
The high cost of saying I love you, in the US
February 14, 2013 by
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Americans will spend $18.6 billion today, Valentine’s Day, on gifts for loved ones, reports Advertising Age. The biggest amounts will go for jewelry, some $$4.4 billion, and just under half that amount for flowers. Candy comes in just under flowers, at $1.8 billion. The most surprising gift category might be the amount [...]
US-Switzerland sign controversial Fatca agreement (update)
February 14, 2013 by
Bern says signing seen as “positive signal” by the US for sorting out past banking problems BERN, SWITZERLAND – Switzerland and the United States signed the Fatca tax accord in Bern Thursday morning 14 February, a day after the Federal Council gave the green light for State Secretary Michael Ambuehl to do so. “Initialled on [...]
Massive US manhunt for ex-policeman likely over
February 13, 2013 by
Police await identification of man presumed to be Dorner after huge gunfight, suicide and fire GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Christopher Dorner, former Los Angeles police officer, appears to have died after a huge gunfight followed by a fire that brought down the cabin he was using, in the Big Bear Lake area of California. Dorner has [...]
