IT is hard not to be a little cynical about the land of chocolate, which is equally renowned (or notorious) for massive facilitation of tax evasion. Rudolf Elmer, a former banker at Switzerland's Julius Bär, got in a lot of trouble for exposing tax-evading criminals (he spoke to Wikileaks and passed data) well before "Panama" and "Pandora" Papers. We use quotes because they're misnomers, potentially misdirecting part of the blame. Prior to those leaks, almost a decade ago as a matter of fact, the billionaire-owned Reuters published "Super rich hold $32 trillion in offshore havens" (it has gotten far worse since then, with help from the Swiss along with the Dutch and bankers in London; Panama is a whipping boy to them). As usual, reality and facts are buried not too deep below the surface.

"As usual, reality and facts are buried not too deep below the surface."Where was the Swiss media all those decades? Well, the Swiss regime is curtailing their own journalism/media/press (in the video above I highlight some stories Swiss journalists told me regarding their 'sacred cows').

I've been to Switzerland more times than I can recall (my grandmother is Swiss) and one of many lessons I learned over the years about Switzerland -- and I'm truly sad to say this to be honest -- is that it can be resistant to facts and international laws. Like the Dutch, it's better at talking about it. It is a country where there's a strong sense of national pride -- sometimes to the point of blindness about one's own (collective) culpability. It obstructs introspection and can impede progress/improvements (like women's rights).

"It is a country where there's a strong sense of national pride -- sometimes to the point of blindness about one's own (collective) culpability."The fact that Switzerland betrays EPO workers is not surprising; it oughtn't shock anybody. Will Catherine Chammartin do any better? We doubt it, but one can hope (though low expectations prevent disappointment).

Christian Bock will be the subject of the next two parts in this series. ⬆