Peesai Cannot Never Be Like Switzerland As Long As PAPee in Power

[makapaaa]

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=452><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>Published July 31, 2009

</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>SWISS NATIONAL DAY

</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>A proudly independent nation
Switzerland has stoutly defended its independence since 1291 and this year celebrates its 718th birthday

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By JOERG ALOIS REDING
Swiss Ambassador to Singapore

<TABLE class=picBoxL cellSpacing=2 width=100 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD> </TD></TR><TR class=caption><TD>Upholding tradition: Swiss children in Singapore celebrating their National Day with lampions near a bonfire at the Swiss Club </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>TOMORROW will be August 1. Every year, bonfires are lit on the mountains and hilltops throughout Switzerland to mark our National Day. This will be Switzerland's 718th birthday. The first Confederation was a loose alliance founded in 1291 around the lake of Lucerne. It was formed among the regions which pledged mutual support against the interference of foreign powers. Throughout the centuries, with the exception of the short-lived Napoleon occupation two hundred years ago, Switzerland has been independent both politically and militarily and, up to today, is neither a member of the European Union (EU) nor the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato). The history of Switzerland did not always run smoothly and the country has had its share of internal fights and poverty. For centuries, survival in our small and landlocked country, with hardly any natural resources except water from the mountains, was very difficult.

Presence in Singapore Migration has been a consistent feature in the history of Switzerland. A result has been Swiss colonies and Swiss companies all over the world, for whom the home market was by far too small. Two thousand and three hundred Swiss are registered in Singapore, the oldest being Jimmy Huber (84), founder and owner of BonCafe. Over 200 Swiss companies have opened their office and invested about S$25 billion here. They employ over 20,000 people, making Singapore the top destination for Swiss investment in Asia. A proud symbol of Switzerland's presence here is the historic (founded in 1871) Swiss Club, which has sports, social and educational facilities on its huge piece of land.
Because of Singapore's strategic location, superb infrastructure, excellent quality of life, efficiency and most business-friendly government, all sectors of the Swiss economy have chosen to locate their activities in Singapore. They range from the relatively small Swiss bakery to the food giant Nestle, from representatives of the high precision machine tool industry to ABB's energy distribution competence. Also included are the most sophisticated and beautiful chronometers which took the astronauts to the moon and which explains the lasting reputation of watches 'Made in Switzerland'. In addition, Switzerland is one of the world's leading producers of chemicals and pharmaceuticals, our largest companies being Lonza, Novartis and Roche. All three companies are well established in Singapore. Even though we love our famous chocolate and cheese, other products have in fact become much more important in our export statistics.
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</TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#fffff1><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=124 align=center><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top>'Many Swiss banks have established a presence here and are actively contributing to Singapore's position as the region's most important and successful centre of asset management and private banking.'

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</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top>- Joerg Alois Reding, [/FONT]

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</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top>Swiss Ambassador to Singapore

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The strength of Switzerland's economy reflects its great diversity and the growing importance of the high value segments in the service sector. This sector employs about 70 per cent of Switzerland's work force and is very much focused on banking, insurance, trading and logistics. It is of no surprise that Swiss companies in this sector are strongly represented in Singapore. This may be due to the similar characteristics of our two countries in areas such as economic policies with a focus on open markets, an increasingly highly qualified labour force and deep integration in the world economy.
World leader in private banking Switzerland is the world leader in international private banking and Swiss banks manage an estimated one-third of all internationally-invested private wealth. This pre-eminent position did not come about by chance. Generations of international banking clients have been attracted by the stability, security, competence and respect for privacy offered by Switzerland and its banks, many of which trace their history back to the 19th century or even earlier.
International clients in particular seek out financial centres that have stable and reliable legal systems and stable currencies. These clients also appreciate a predictable, comprehensible and reasonable tax regime; above-average service; good quality advice; good performance; and financial advisers who understand their culture and their professional, financial and personal aspirations and goals. Swiss banking offers all of this and more. In the classic Swiss private banking relationship, the banker takes on the role of personal counsellor to the client and his family, advising them on a range of issues far wider than the immediate remit of wealth management.



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[makapaaa]

Generations of experience Swiss bankers have generations of experience in managing assets not only in good times but also in bad. And this experience is proving its worth during the current financial crisis where the Swiss financial centre is proving to be remarkably resilient. Of the approximately 330 banks in Switzerland, it was only the two major universal banks (UBS and Credit Suisse) globally active in international investment banking that were directly affected by the original subprime crisis in the US. Both banks have been able to restructure their balance sheets and strengthen their capital base and, along with all other Swiss banks, remain among the best capitalised in the world.
Swiss bank-client confidentiality is very much part of the Swiss banking brand. This is subject to much misunderstanding and is often unjustifiably maligned. Firstly, this bank-client confidentiality has never been an obstacle to criminal investigation. Secondly, the Swiss banking sector is not sustained by a combination of secrecy and tax evasion. No bank relies on this as a business model.

Respect for privacy Bank-client confidentiality is an expression of the high degree of trust that exists between the Swiss state and its citizens. This trust is also reflected by the fact that the Swiss state can secure its tax revenues without having to criminalise tax evasion and without having to trample on privacy by insisting on automatic right of forced entry into bank accounts.
Switzerland at the same time recognises that in a globalised world, international cooperation in financial matters has grown in importance. In this spirit, Switzerland announced earlier this year that it would adopt the OECD standard on international administrative assistance in tax matters. This means that Switzerland will extend assistance to cover all tax offences, including tax evasion, and not just in cases of criminal tax fraud as was the case in the past.
However, the country seeking information must produce a substantiated request including, among other things, the name of the account holder concerned. 'Fishing expeditions' or the indiscriminate trawling through bank accounts in the hope of finding tax evaders or criminals, remains ruled out. Most importantly, the privacy of clients not under suspicion will continue to be protected by Swiss bank-client confidentiality.

Common values Like Switzerland, Singapore has also been a bastion of political, economic and social stability and Singaporeans share many of the Swiss values. It is therefore of no coincidence that many Swiss banks have established a presence here and are actively contributing to Singapore's position as the region's most important and successful centre of asset management and private banking.
Over the years representatives of the Swiss banks in Singapore as well as the private institutions, represented by the Swiss Bankers Association, and the official authorities of our two countries, represented by the two Ministries of Finance, the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Swiss National Bank (Central Bank) respectively, have been engaged in a constructive dialogue. All parties involved on the Swiss side greatly appreciate the open door policy of Singapore and the professionalism and efficiency of all parties involved.

Free flow of capital As a small country, our independence very much depends on the power of the law. We can negotiate and sign international agreements on issues like the protection of investments or the avoidance of double taxation but we would be in trouble if the economic and militarily more powerful nations, depending on circumstances, disrespect the law and use the law of power in international issues. In the current worldwide financial and economic crisis, the risk increases such that measures are introduced which violate the principles of open market economies especially with regard to the free flow of and efficient allocation of capital. An essential condition for the economic success of a country is the free flow of capital inside its economy as well as between the countries. Take for example the economic success of China, which led millions out of poverty.
Open mind and solidarity The Swiss are well aware that their success has always been due to the combination of the contribution of the brains and hard work of its own people and of the foreigners living in Switzerland. Like Singapore, over 20 per cent of the people in Switzerland are foreigners and English has almost become an informal national language (besides German, French, Italian, Romanch) and Islam co-exists with Christianity.
The will to take charge of one's own destiny was the basis of Swiss independence 718 years ago. We small countries have a special stake to defend the power of law in any circumstances, also on international issues. We must raise our voices in the international fora and strengthen the solidarity among all nations to uphold the value of our conviction. This would lead to greater prosperity worldwide and further improve our living condition in Switzerland, a land full of natural beauty which we would like to share with everyone.

 

[Eurekas]

Switzerland has strong brands that are multinational companies like Credit Suisse, UBS, Novartis, Roche and Lorza. What international brands Singapore have? Creative? Now even Creative is struggling badly with Apple and pther generic brands from China.

By 1999, Singapore will reach Swiss Standard of Living of 1984.

 

[Char_Azn]

I thought they shifted the goal and change it to the French model. In which case we're closer to the french models then the swiss