[registrars] The Heart of Europe Skips a Beat, Switzerland abandons Neutrality:-(

["Robert F. Connelly" <rconnell@psi-japan.com>]

To: "Americans Abroad" 
Subject: The Heart of Europe Skips a Beat
Date: Sat, 26 Apr 2003 20:52:46 +0200

 
THE HISTORIC CITY OF GENEVA, IN THE
HEART OF "OLD EUROPE",
VOTES TO BOYCOTT AMERICAN, BRITISH AND AUSTRALIAN PRODUCTS AND
SERVICES

By Andy Sundberg, Open Mind, 26
April, 2003

Geneva, in many ways, has been a paradigmatic
"American" city for nearly 500 years. Jean Calvin was busy here
developing his new theological ideas in the early 16th
Century, drafting doctrines that were destined to morph into the
Presbyterian and derivative variants, eventually including even the
modern day Baptist denomination so prevalent in Washington leadership
circles today.

His contemporaries were just as busy translating the Bible into English
in this same city. Today, when people quote chapter and verse from their
favorite scriptures, little do most realize that the numbering of verses
in their Bibles actually was introduced first here in Geneva.

When the Pilgrims sailed on the Mayflower. the Bible that they carried
with them had been printed in Geneva.

But there is more, much more.

When the American founding fathers looked for models of confederations
and constitutions of Republics, they turned to Switzerland and to Geneva.
Indeed, so close were the founding fathers to Geneva that their two
polities fondly referred to each other for quite a while as "sister
republics".

When Napoleon threatened Geneva in the early 1800s, Jefferson proposed
bringing the entire University of Geneva, lock, stock and barrel over to
the United States.

A Disappointed and Angry Geneva
Today

That is why what happened on the
8th of April of this year is so unusual.

On that day, as a real shooting was going on in another part of the
world, the City Council of feisty Geneva declared a rhetorical war of its
own. Its opening shot was a motion (as translated from the original
French) carrying the sonorous title of: "A Call to Counter the
Hegemonic Strategy of War, with Ethical Economic 
Policies!"

The Famous Motion

This "Motion 384", introduced and strongly supported by a red, pink and green "Alliance" that now controls a majority of the seats on the city council, reads as follows:

"Considering that:

as of today, a large number of people have committed themselves to, (among other things): not watch the Fox, CNN and MTV television networks, to no longer buy gasoline at Esso, Texaco and Chevron, to no longer drink Coca-Cola and/or Pepsi, to no longer patronize Starbucks, to no longer purchase clothing from the Gap, and to no longer consume Kelloggs products;

the City of Geneva evidently has in the past, and intends to in the future, acquire capital goods (and various other supplies) that are "Made in the USA" or "Made in Great Britain," and even has capital invested in American and English companies.

war and economics cannot be kept strictly apart, nor can war and politics, when one or several countries have turned war into a policy instrument of choice for more fully asserting hegemony;

the war in Iraq is part of an imperialist strategy as the population has now largely been able to recognize which only serves to strengthen a forced expansion of neo-liberal economic globalization;

moreover, the declaration of war on Iraq is flagrantly and cynically derisive of international law, and its authors must therefore be denounced and condemned in the international courts;

a large portion of the population aspires to redefine economic rules, including those in the international sphere, to include larger ethical considerations, in particular as concerns economic choices made by public collectivities;

sustainable development, as a fundamental principle of public policy, implies that economic choices necessarily be made with respect to environmental and social criteria, two of which include international solidarity and the fight against under-development, principles that the United States continues to spurn by systematically applying the law of the stronger; the Municipal Council therefore asks the Administrative Council to modify here and now, and for as long as the military expedition and colonial occupation of Iraq continue, its policies for purchasing, procurement of supplies, and financial investment, by substituting here and now any products and services of American (USA), British and Australian origin, with others whose origins the City of Geneva can ultimately ensure to be compatible with sustainable development, in particular as concerns goals related to ethical economic policies, and development that is respectful of democratic principles and the Rights of Man."

There was, of course, a considerable amount of opposition to this motion too, especially from the center-right Liberal Party and its ideological twin, the Radical Party. As the debate progressed, tempers flared and temperatures rose.

Those who moved and supported the motion were highly vexed by the arguments that had been and were continuing to be put forward to justify the American invasion of Iraq. But they were also especially irritated by the arrogant and threatening manner in which the U.S. Government was behaving toward those who dared to publicly disagree or even resist.

Sneers, insults and threats are not unknown in the history of this tiny Republic, but they have never sold well in this fiercely proud and independent city. So these politicians felt that it was imperative that the City of Geneva speak out in opposition to this kind of rhetoric and behavior. But then they also went much farther and in addition called for a full municipal boycott of all American, British and Australian goods and services until the occupation of Iraq ends.

Many of those who opposed the motion did so not necessarily because they too were not also greatly irritated, but because they felt that the proposed boycott was not an appropriate way to respond.

In the end, when the arguments stopped and it came to a final vote, the decision wasn't even close. There were 30 votes in favor of the motion, 17 against and 9 abstentions. The boycott was on.

What Could Be the Possible Impact?

This is could be a potentially
serious threat to American, British and Australian suppliers of goods and
services, including financial services from afar. The budget of the City
of Geneva currently runs in excess of a billion Swiss Francs ($ 715
million) per year. In addition to this level of annual expenditures there
is also a very large amount of pension fund money of the city that is
invested in a variety of U.S. debt and equity instruments.

The motion also has a significant blowback potential too. There are more
than 123 American companies established in the Canton of Geneva employing
more than 11,700 people. With an assumed average household of 3
individuals per such employee, these American employers alone provide
financial sustenance for over 8% of the entire population of the Canton
of Geneva. This doesn't include the other local employees working for
British and Australian firms, and their families, too.

With the unemployment rate currently running at 6.7% in Geneva, the
rigorous implementation of this new boycott policy could make
unemployment much worse, with the current rate jumping appreciably
higher.

The American Reaction, So Far

The local American reaction so far
has been mixed. The U.S. Embassy in Bern is ducking for the moment, and
has not made any official comment. So far there has been no official word
from the U.S. Mission to the United Nations in Geneva either. 

But the local American community in the private sector has been far less
reticent.

The Chairman of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce, Paul Polman, sent
a strong letter to André Hédiger, the Mayor (who is a member of the
Communist Party), on the 22nd of April. Polman plays a very
important role in Geneva where he runs the Europe, Africa and Middle East
division of Procter & Gamble, which has its headquarters here and
more than 1,100 local employees. His letter stated:

"The Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce, representing more than 2,200 companies and individuals engaged in Swiss-U.S. business relations, is surprised and saddened by the adoption of a Municipal Council motion by calling for a boycott of American, British and Australian products and investments by public institutions and inviting the Geneva city government to amend its purchase and investment policies accordingly. The Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce wishes to remind the Geneva city government that the United States is an extremely important trading partner for Switzerland. The bilateral trade surplus with the U.S. equals Switzerlands entire trade deficit. American companies in Switzerland employ over 75,000 workers by far Swiss and Europeans. We all cherish Genevas continued good reputation as a liberal, democratic city which supports a strong presence of international companies and the jobs they provide. We felt it was important to bring these views to your attention".

Local Swiss Reaction

Michel Balestra, the Swiss President
of the local Geneva Chamber of Commerce, sounded off in a similar vein
the following day (April 23rd) in a letter to Laurent
Moutinot, President of the City Council. Balestra said:

"As everyone knows, the prosperity of Geneva and the well being of its inhabitants is due in large part to the important role of international organizations and multinational companies that are present here. Without their participation, even the local financial sector would not have enjoyed the success it has been experiencing in recent years. The British and American companies that have set up new operations here in the last few years, or which have augmented their earlier presence here, are well known. Some have been here for many decades and provide many thousands of well-paying jobs. We can't help regretting, therefore, that the municipal authorities have allowed political questions that concern activities taking place abroad, outside of our local jurisdiction, to compromise the good relations that Geneva has had with many of these companies. We also feel obliged to remind you of the possible very negative impact of your actions on the economic attractiveness of Geneva. In these difficult times, we are astonished that our political leadership is not doing all that it can to try to create new employment possibilities."

So, What Comes Next?

Well, what comes next is still very
much up in the air. The motion has landed on the desk of Pierre Muller, a
member of the local Liberal Party, who strongly opposed the motion. His
job, as one of the members of the city's Administrative Council, is to
supervise the purchasing of products and services and spending the city's
money. He indicated that he intends to just sit on the motion as long as
he can, and hopes the passions cool sufficiently so that he and the City
can just ignore it. Time will tell.

Meanwhile, Life Goes On 

Earlier this year, Geneva promised
the Swiss-American Chamber that it would sponsor a gala cocktail party
for the presentation of the Chamber's first "Albert Gallatin"
award. This will be given to someone who has made a major contribution to
improving Swiss-American relations. Gallatin, who was born in
Geneva, left at an early age to seek his fortune in the New World, and he
found it. As the culmination of a very successful political career, he
eventually became Thomas Jefferson's Secretary of the Treasury, and in
this capacity put together the financing for the Louisiana Purchase.

As 2003 also happens to be the 200th anniversary of the
Louisiana Purchase, the city of New Orleans recently expressed an
interest in some form of Geneva participation at a reenacting of the
signing of this purchase agreement that will take place on the
20th of December. 

In a final irony, a statue of Geneva's own Albert Gallatin stands proudly
today all by itself in front of the Treasury Department in Washington,
right next to the White House. 

If only statues could speak. One wonders what he would be saying about
all of this.