cc. With a view to the upcoming referendum on the Swiss popular initiative “Preserving Swiss Neutrality”, a “pacifist and internationalist committee for neutrality” was formed in Ticino two years ago. As the initiators themselves state, it is “composed of political organisations, associations, collectives and activists who oppose Switzerland’s rapprochement with NATO and campaign for peace and international solidarity”.
    

Ticino Association for Neutrality and Work: No to the EU – No to NATO

The following founding document provides an insight into the concerns of this association and makes it clear once again that the question of neutrality is by no means party-bound and is not merely a politically civilian conservative issue. Across the country, so-called left-leaning figures and political circles are also beginning to take a very clear stand in favour of neutrality and to highlight its significance for Switzerland’s peace policy, as well as its fundamental importance. At the same time, the Ticino association emphasises that the original aim of so-called left-wing politics – advocating for the interests of socially disadvantaged sections of the population – requires distancing oneself from the dictates of both the EU and NATO. Their demands also champion direct democracy, meaning that the people of a municipality must – in principle – be able to determine their own affairs themselves, rather than submitting to a bureaucratic and power apparatus that has never been democratically legitimised. The association also turns on its head the claim that non-alignment with the demands and requirements of the EU and NATO leads to isolation. On the contrary, it is affiliation with a power apparatus that actually restricts the scope for shaping foreign policy relations far more.
    The following text introduces this association in its own words.

Who are we?

The international environment is becoming increasingly tense and dangerous, and Switzerland is, unfortunately, pursuing a policy that is less and less geared towards promoting peace and dialogue. Instead of strengthening and revitalising its neutrality and presenting itself to the world as a reliable partner, our country is increasingly conforming to the dictates of NATO and the European Union. This undermines its credibility as a mediator, jeopardises its own national security and runs counter to the interests of its workers.
    We wish to establish an association open to all who – regardless of their political background – regard the defence of Swiss neutrality and labour, as well as the rejection of any integration into the EU and NATO, as the top priorities on the political agenda.
    We have set out our objectives and principles in a founding manifesto.

No to the European Union – Yes to sovereignty

Sovereignty is a matter of common sense: it means deciding democratically on the fate of one’s own community. Sovereignty is not achieved through an illusory, self-sufficient isolation, but by diversifying one’s trading partners, thereby breaking free from the current dependence on the Euro-Atlantic area. The European Union is an unreformable institution that interferes in the internal affairs of nation states by imposing austerity measures, the privatisation of public services and the flexibilisation of the labour market on them. Furthermore, in the service of NATO, the EU is fanning the flames of war and imposing unilateral and self-destructive sanctions, thereby driving workers across the entire continent into poverty today. Not only do we believe that the Swiss Confederation should no longer pay the “cohesion billion”, but we also call for the renegotiation of the bilateral agreements and categorically reject Switzerland’s accession to the EU (whether direct or creeping, now or in the future). This would, in fact, lead to a surrender of national sovereignty, which would have a detrimental effect on the promotion of social rights, the central role of national public institutions and the country’s independence at the international level. The signing of a framework agreement with Brussels, which would force us to passively adopt its laws, must therefore also be rejected. The free movement of persons has not only led to the deregulation of the labour market and intensified a “war of the poor” that has exacerbated the exploitation of workers, but has also – through the phenomenon of “micro-entrepreneurs” and posted workers – fuelled competition that is harmful to local SMEs themselves.

No to NATO – Yes to neutrality

War has, unfortunately, returned to Europe: our primary task is to ensure we are not drawn into it and to support the de-escalation of conflicts. The future we are striving for depends on Switzerland’s commitment to a multipolar world based on peace and mutual cooperation between nations.
    Offering our diplomatic services to put an end to the mad arms race we are currently witnessing will only be possible if we correct the mistakes made by the establishment in Bern: we must therefore adhere to a policy of “non-alignment” and recognise neutrality as the cornerstone of our country’s foreign and defence policy. We are aware that the problems stem from NATO’s expansionism and the ongoing Atlantic integration of even the Swiss military: this is the strategy by which the US seeks to tie the European market to itself and prevent it from opening up to the flourishing Eurasian economic area under Russian and Chinese leadership. In this context, we therefore also demand that the armed forces strictly adhere to the principles of neutrality and independence: no outsourcing of officer training to the US, overcoming technological dependencies by diversifying the weapon systems available to the troops, and the immediate withdrawal of our soldiers deployed in Kosovo under the command of foreign powers. Swiss universities, too, should immediately cease cooperation with NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence and other similar institutions, which have nothing academic about them but, on the contrary, draw our country and its researchers into a warmongering dynamic. Let us remain true to the motto “Liberi e Svizzeri” (“Free and Swiss”) of the first anti-fascists from Ticino: let us reject the climate of hostility towards emerging nations and under no circumstances accept the (even indirect) export of war material.

No to precarious work and inequality – Yes to jobs and public services

Defending our sovereignty and opening up to emerging markets will enable us to implement social reforms and provide some breathing space for both impoverished workers and the tradespeople and small business owners who are being crushed by competition from large transnational corporations. That is why the relocation of high-value-added companies that are strategically important to the national interest must be prohibited, and the brain drain must be halted by investing in the right to education and full employment. The Swiss market, which is currently burdened in part by employers (often imported) lacking social awareness and by mafia-like interference against which the judiciary has far too few resources to intervene, can develop by focusing on three elements: public research to renew the manufacturing industry; work, with the aim of achieving the harmonious development of society; and public services as a bulwark against commercialisation, privatisation and liberalisation. We are well aware that our country’s sovereignty is measured by the unity of its people, which forges a national community characterised by a strong sense of solidarity and capable of overcoming inequalities. It is therefore essential to defend workers’ purchasing power and promote their rights: only rational economic planning will enable the country to grow, whilst also redistributing wealth fairly; and only through a more democratic socio-economic system, in which producers – rather than the profits of multinational corporations – play the leading role, can a united and thus peaceful country be created. With this in mind, we must curb the rise in precarious employment, which is eroding society and fuelling individualism. With this in mind, we are fighting for a strong public service that resists the disastrous plans for corporate privatisation and outsourcing that have been pushed forward in recent years. We therefore call for the reinstatement of the former federal enterprises: The postal service, telecommunications, public transport and the national airline must be placed back under the full control of the federal government and fulfil a genuine public mandate. At the same time, a public industrial plan is needed to increase national electricity generation and diversify supply, in order to avoid any energy shortages that would be exploited by the establishment to push for the purchase of electricity from the EU and to liberalise our energy market.

(Adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 25 May 2024)

https://www.zeit-fragen.ch/en/archives/2026/no-9-5-may-2026/ticino-association-for-neutrality-and-work-no-to-the-eu-no-to-nato

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SEE ALSO: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a81BMOvqOME&t=182s

On May 12th, 1797, Ludovico Manin — the last Doge of Venice — removed his ceremonial cap and handed it to his valet. The Great Council voted to dissolve a republic that had existed for 1,076 years. Napoleon's soldiers entered four days later and emptied the vaults that had financed Mediterranean trade for five centuries. But the vaults hadn't been filled on May 11th. They had been quietly emptying since 1571, when Venice first abandoned the neutrality that had made it worth anything.

Switzerland removed its constitutional gold backing requirement in 2000 and sold 1,550 tonnes at historic price lows. It joined Western sanctions in 2022 — the first time in its history it weaponized its financial system for a foreign agenda. Its central bank recorded a 143 billion franc loss in 2022 — larger than the federal budget. And a portion of its remaining gold reserves have been lent into the gold lending market, physically leaving Swiss custody.
The vaults look full on the ledger. The question is whether they are full in the vault.

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YOURDEMOCRACY.NET RECORDS HISTORY AS IT SHOULD BE — NOT AS THE WESTERN MEDIA WRONGLY REPORTS IT — SINCE 2005.

         Gus Leonisky

         POLITICAL CARTOONIST SINCE 1951.

         RABID ATHEIST.

         WELCOME TO THIS INSANE WORLD….

GUSNOTE: THE PROBLEMS FOR SWITZERLAND ARE MANY: TRUMP's TARIFFS, BRICS NATIONS, THE DEDOLLARISATION, THE PRESSURE OF HAVING TO ALIGN WITH NATO MEMBERS IN ORDER TO GET THEIR CUSTOM, THE WAR ON IRAN "DESIGNED FOR AND BY AMERICA TO CORNER THE OIL AND GAS ENERGY MARKET", ETC...

LOSING NEUTRALITY BEING A STEP TOWARDS SELF-DESTRUCTION...

GOOD LUCK....