Information about the Administration of Switzerland

Switzerland is also known as "Confoederatio Helvetica", therefore the abbreviation "CH". "Confoederatio" stands for "confederation", "Helvetica" derives from the Latin word "Helvetier", the name of the people who lived in the area which became later Switzerland.

The white cross on the red back (see top left on each page) has a religious background. The cross represents the cross, Jesus was put on, the red color represents his blood.
Each arm of the cross has to be of the same size and must be 1/6 longer than wide.

There are no such things as a national motto, a national flower or a national animal. However, some cantons do have a motto or an animal.
The "Edelweiss" (Leontopodium alpinum) has the status of an inoffical national flower.

The capital of Switzerland is Bern City, also the capital of the canton Bern.

Switzerland is broken up into the following administrative divisions ("top down"):

5.1 Eidgenossenschaft:

The duties of the confederation are defined in the "Bundesverfassung" (federal constitution) and include:

• Protection of the country and its citizens
• Postal services, telephone and telecommunications (PTT)
• Monetary system ("Nationalbank", national bank)
• Transportation ("Nationalstrassen" (motor ways, railway)
• Military
• Customs
• Diplomatic relations with other countries

People can take direct influence by two means:

1. "Initiative": 100'000 citizens can request a voting about a change or extension of the "Bundesverfassung" (constitution) or the "Bundesgesetzt" (federal law).
2. "Referendum": If the "Bundesrat" wants to change or extend the "Bundesverfassung" (constitution) or the "Bundesgesetz" (federal law), 50'000 citizens can request a voting about it.

5.2 Kantone:

Switzerland consists of 23 "Kantone" (singular "Kanton", also referred to as cantons or states), 3 of them are divided into "Halb-Kantone" (split states) with the following authorities:

• "Grosser Rat", "Kantonsrat" or "Landesrat" (the name varies between the cantons), legislative authority
• "Kantonsregierung", executive authority
• "Kantonsgericht", judicial authority

The cantons Appenzell, Glarus and Unterwalden do not perform elections and voting, but a so called "Landsgemeinde", an out door assembly of all its citizens. The attendees raise their hands to show if they agree with or deny a particular request.

The duties of the cantons are defined in their "Kantonsverfassung" (cantonal constitution) and include:

• Education
• Transportation ("Kantonsstrassen", cantonal roads)
• Social institutions

This is a list of all cantons in the so called "official order":

1. Zürich (ZH)
2. Bern / Berne (BE)
3. Luzern (LU)
4. Uri (UR)
5. Schwyz (SZ)
6. Unterwalden (Obwalden (OW) / Nidwalden (NW))
7. Glarus (GL)
8. Zug (ZG)
9. Freiburg / Fribourg (FR)
10. Solothurn (SO)
11. Basel (Basel Stadt (BS)/ Basel Land (BL))
12. Schaffhausen (SH)
13. Appenzell (Appenzell Ausserrhoden (AR) / Appenzell Innerrhoden (AI))
14. Sankt Gallen (SG)
15. Graubünden (GR)
16. Aargau (AG)
17. Thurgau (TG)
18. Ticino (TI)
19. Vaud (VD)
20. Valais / Wallis (VS)
21. Neuchâtel (NE)
22. Genève (GE)
23. Jura (JU)

5.3 Bezirke:

Each canton consists of a number of "Bezirke" (singular "Bezirk", districts) with the following authorities:

• People by voting and elections, legislative authority
• "Bezirksrat", executive authority
• "Bezirksgericht", judicial authority

The duties of the districts include:

• Education
• Judicature

5.4 Gemeinden:

Each district consists of a number of "Gemeinden" (singular "Gemeinde", municipalities). There are a 2929 municipalities in Switzerland. A municipality with more than 10'000 citizens is considered a "Stadt" (town), smaller municipalities are called a "Dorf" (village). However, some smaller villages have the status of a town for historical reasons. Municipalities have the following authorities:

• "Gemeindeversammlung", an assembly of all citizens, or people by voting and elections, legislative authority
• "Gemeinderat" or "Stadtrat", executive authority
• "Friedensrichter" (lay magistrate), judicial authority

The duties of the municipalities include:

• Local services (electricity, water, fire brigade, police etc.)
• Transportation ("Gemeindestrassen", local roads)
• Schools
• Taxes (they vary significantly between the municipalities !)

This is a small collection of links that might be useful for people interested in Switzerland's Administration:

1. Swiss Administration
2. Federal Council (Bundesrat)
3. Swiss Parliament
4. Swiss Federal Supreme Court (Bundesgericht)
5. List of Swiss embassies, consuls and missions
6. www.ch.ch - a partnership project of the Swiss Confederation, Cantons and Communes ("Guichet virtuel")
7. Swiss Political Links