overview of whistleblower persecution in Switzerland
Switzerland not only does not protect whistleblowers, its legislation provisions for their persecution. This includes hampering the freedom of the press, as journalists in Switzerland are at risk of criminal persecution when blowing the whistle. Swiss jurisprudence even allows for arbitrary persecution condemnation of those fleeing the country in order to expose Swiss wrongdoing.
How come the alleged safe guarder country of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights does not tolerate exposure of wrongdoing within its borders? And how does Switzerland actually harm the United Nations?
What is a whistleblower?
According to Transparency International: A whistleblower discloses information about corruption or other wrongdoing being committed in or by an organisation to individuals or entities believed to be able to effect action – the organisation itself, the relevant authorities, or the public.
According to the National Whistleblower Center: A whistleblower is someone who reports waste, fraud, abuse, corruption, or dangers to public health and safety to someone who is in the position to rectify the wrongdoing.
The United Nations refers to whistleblowers in simpler, less populist terms as being “reporting persons”. The extensive list of “wrongoing” which persons can report on can be summarised as violations of UN regulations and rules. This naturally includes the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Swiss fake report on whistleblower protections to the UN
In 2015 the UN had a report on The protection of sources and whistleblowers.
Switzerland submitted a report which I can only qualify in common language as “lies” to the UN.
I rest my case by performing a simple search. The text has been withdrawn by the Swiss.
UN reporting persons subject to retaliation under Swiss law
The UN goes mostly by its state independent rules and regulations. But being physically located in certain jurisdictions has implications.
The UN office in Geneva with over 9000 people working there is the second most important office for the UN. Geneva headquarters notably is home to the UN Human Rights Council and the Human Rights High Commissioner. The UN activities in Switzerland have allegiance to Swiss whistleblower laws; the non existing protection and existing persecution laws.
The UN office in New York, USA, is the most important office. New York headquarters the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (UNOIOS) and the UN Ethics Office (UNEO). The UN activities in the USA have allegiance to USA whistleblower laws; which are reputed to be some of the best in the world.
The UNEO is responsible among other things for protecting whistleblowers. The UNOIOS is among other things responsible for investigating wrongdoing.
It should come as no surprise that the UNOIOS has pointed at shortcomings withing the UN reporting persons protection. Politically speaking it can not officially point Switzerland's sorry state of whistleblowing protection as being at least partially responsible for the shortcomings.
UN personnel for various topics fall under the UN immunity in the states where they operate. However, this is not so for example with regards to Swiss retaliation laws.
A UN employee goes whistleblowing about a Swiss interested party (national, company, government, etc), then the employee is exposed to Swiss whistleblower retaliation laws such as but not limited to persecution for alleged defamation. Even the Swiss federal prosecutor can get involved. The Federal Council has been known to liberally summon the Federal Prosecutor to execute whistleblowing persecution. And if the whistleblowing involved a Swiss national or Swiss interests at large, better be warned, the UN won't be able to protect you due to Swiss whistleblower retaliation laws (well, you could Julian Assange style choose to never leave your UN office again).
various NGO reports and initiatives are smothered
The OECD has been pointing a hard finger to Switzerland for some time now. It threatened with a high level mission for December 2022. The reports were only mildly blistering for Switzerland. Then in December 2022, the OECD suddenly softens and states:
Considered Switzerland’s Phase 4 additional oral report on its implementation of recommendations 1.a and 9.a. Concluded that no concrete steps had been taken to implement these recommendations. Invited Switzerland to report back in June 2023, at which time the Group may consider additional measures.
Testament to the international power of Switzerland to keep the lid on its wrongdoing, and continue to persecute those who blow the whistle despite international standards.
Perhaps the most frightening comes from within Switzerland, where as whistleblower the David against Goliath turns always in favor of Goliath.
SwissLeaks platform campax explains the situation as follows:
La protection des lanceurs d’alerte en Suisse est absolument insuffisante. En Suisse, les lanceurs d’alerte sont systématiquement condamnés ou massivement réprimés par le pouvoir judiciaire et législatif. Dans les comparaisons internationales avec les pays développés et démocratiques en matière de jurisprudence et de protection des dénonciateurs, l’Etat de droit suisse se situe donc régulièrement dans les derniers et fait l’objet de vives critiques au niveau international.
The director of Transparency International Switzerland sais:
Un reportage de Pax Helvetica documente la protection insuffisante des lanceurs-euses d’alerte en Suisse. Martin Hilti, directeur de Transparency Suisse, y explique les lacunes de la loi et leurs conséquences.
Transparency International Swizterland has a less recent report. Since except canceling law proposals nothing changed in Swizerland, the situation worsened.
A report by Human Rights Switzerland lists some whistleblower protection obligation violations of Switzerland. Such as violations of: Council of Europe conventions, European Union directives, European convention on Human Rights, European Court of Human Rights jurisprudence, and the UN convention on corruption. It confirms with examples that Switzerland is blatantly defaulting its international obligations.
Public initiatives such as the association Defending Employees and Whistleblowers don't get the necessary attention, and are smothered, instead of supported.
A university thesis from 2019 on whistleblowing in Switzerland states:
Au cours de nos recherches, nous avons été particulièrement interpellés par le fait que, à quelques rares exceptions près, la doctrine est unanime, la protection des lanceurs d’alerte en Suisse est insuffisante, et le projet proposé par le Conseil fédéral l’est tout autant.
The press points the finger regularly as to how Switzerland persecutes those who dare to speak out. Just one example of the plethora of press articles you can find on the subject. Yet, the press itself is subject to persecution risk when blowing the whistle on wrongdoing.
All of that does not matter. The Swiss rejected whistleblowing law in 2022.
The Charles Léopold Mayer Foundation for the Progress of Humankind , a Swiss foundation which among other things is active in whistleblowing, produced an in-depth report on the current (November 2022) state of whistleblower persecution in Switzerland. Back chilling. For a quick overview, go here.
conclusion
IN SWITZERLAND, THE COUNTRY OF ALLEGED DEMOCRACY AND THE RULE OF LAW, YOU BETTER SHUT UP OR FACE THE HARSHEST POSSIBLE PERSECUTION, SQUANDERING AND EVEN ENDANGERING YOUR VERY LIFE.
When you understand that Switzerland, the protector of Human Rights, the harborer of the United Nations, is able to block the United Nations from being at the forefront in its battle for human rights, you know you deal with a criminal state of the highest order.
I plea for the United Nations swift departure from a jurisdiction, Switzerland, clearly unfit to safeguard the UN and the world's interests at large since it is actively and fully knowingly endangering the United Nations human rights protocols.
Tags: #Rights #Whistleblower
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