LETTER FROM BERN
Wednesday, December 7, the “Federal Bern”, as the center of political power in Switzerland is called, experienced a rare moment. The Federal Council welcomed two new ministers. In the land of secular consensus and stability, this slight reshuffling is an event, even if it is settled like clockwork and the result is a foregone conclusion.
According to the terms of a permanent agreement between the main parties of the country, where the right has always dominated, an unwritten but respected “magic formula” governs the composition of the executive: five right-wing members (one of whom centrist), and two socialists, who are systematically “minorized” but who prefer to participate rather than oppose head-on. A minister should only be replaced when he finally decides to leave his post, generally after well over a decade, against all odds: even scandals or unpopularity do not overcome their stubbornness. Such is the will of a system that prefers the long term. Since 1848, only one person has been pushed out due to scandal (Elisabeth Kopp in 1989), and two others have not been re-elected.
Also, when two members of the executive announce at the same time their decision to leave the Federal Palace after a busy career, sometimes well beyond retirement age, it is more than a quarter of the government that need to be renewed. The election takes place in a small committee, as stipulated by the Constitution. Applicants are elected by the two chambers of the Federal Assembly: the National Council (lower chamber, 200 members) and the Council of States (upper chamber, 46 members).
An incoming socialist, Elisabeth Baume-Schneider (58, canton of Jura) therefore replaced, on Wednesday, December 7, an outgoing socialist, Simonetta Sommaruga (62, canton of Bern), after the latter served twelve years in government. A representative of the Center Democratic Union (UDC, nationalist and sovereignist right), Albert Rösti (55, canton of Bern) took the place of an outgoing UDC, Ueli Maurer (72, canton of Zurich), fourteen years of presence.
Administer more than govern
The dean of the “government college” is now the socialist Alain Berset (50), who is entering his twelfth year in office. Next year he will be President of the Confederation in office for a year, in addition to his position as head of the Federal Department of the Interior (DFI). In Switzerland, we do not speak of ministry, but of “department”, which gives a fairly precise idea of the function that we want to see played in government. This accompanies the progress of the country, administers it more than it governs it.
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