At some point between the first and second wave, Switzerland gave up on its mantle of social solidarity. We could do better, but why aren't we, finews.com's Andreas Britt asks.
More than 6,600 deaths and tens of thousands of Covid survivors left with lingering symptoms: we need to go back more than 100 years in the annals of history to find a similarly devastating situation as the one we currently face.
Spanish flu, which in Switzerland cost roughly 25,000 people their lives between July of 1918 and May of the following year, represents a far more catastrophic effect for the alpine nation at the time as the current pandemic (according to Swiss government data).
Bleak Time Of Year
We're counting far fewer victims than 100 years ago despite strong population growth, certainly thanks in part to medical advances over the last century. At the same time Switzerland – one of the world's richest nations and home to drugmakers Roche and Novartis – a mortality rate of nearly 78 people per 100,000 inhabitants, according to data from John Hopkins University.
This mixed picture of «better than it was but worse than it might have been» fairly accurately reflects how most Swiss feel at this bleak time of year – namely that we're muddling through the crisis rather than properly managing it.
Country Buckles Down
This feeling of relative failure contrasts sharply with the collective effort that Switzerland was willing to undertake early in the year. Within a (for Switzerland) short time frame, the country buckled down and found its way out of the first peak of the crisis – by reducing social contacts to a minimum and shoring up those financially hit with federal emergency funds.
The military was given a clear aid mandate, fulfilled it impeccably, and reaped goodwill. The offshoots of a new sense of public spirit and support were perceptible in society.
Balancing Of Interests
The seven-person governing cabinet won plaudits for its commitment to reducing infections, protecting the elderly and weak, and ensuring Switzerland's healthcare system continues to function. This went well as the first wave ebbed and infection rates receded.
At some point in the summer, public sentiment turned. The old trope of «every cent counts» replaced the initial focus on saving as many lives as possible. Government minister and treasurer Ueli Maurer didn't mince words: «We knowingly took a risk because we weighed up interests,» he told Swiss radio broadcaster SRF in November. Or unvarnished: death and sickness needed to be taken into account to a certain extent (to which?) to keep a lid on costs.
Massive Long-Term Damage
Early in 2020, deaths rose quickly but sank nearly as quickly in April. In the current wave, deaths rose again at the end of October to a far higher level than early in the year and remain «stabilized» at this high level for nearly two months now – between 60 and 90 people die daily of the illness, and far more are diagnosed with it. Many of those testing positive are shouldered with severe health difficulties – and their numbers are also rising daily.
A torturously long autumn revealed that Switzerland's social solidarity isn't what it once was.
Executive Counterpoint
Handling the crisis is allowed to cost money, but our willingness to pay isn't limitless, and these limits aren't determined by the virus, but by the years required for Switzerland to return to current debt levels.
The world of international business provided an interesting counterpoint: Zurich CEO Mario Greco told an interviewer that firms have a social responsibility, and need to shoulder it.
Handing Over Authority
The rights of citizens and what their elected representatives owe them are relatively clear: protect the population from a deadly illness and maintain the material foundation of their lives. Both are possible, without a balancing of those interests against each other. But it requires a clear strategy – which one?
Of course, Switzerland's democracy like most other genuine ones isn't terribly well suited to identify and offer fast, consistent solutions. When the federal government handed back control in summer, Switzerland's system of federalism showed its sluggish side: instead of conducting ancillary crisis management, cantonal governments vaulted themselves to the real seats of power in the country.
Local Sovereigns Raise Alarm
From mid-December, as local sovereigns noticed that something was amiss (see occupancy rates in hospitals), most handed back control to Bern fairly quickly. But the sense of national cohesion had vanished in the meantime.
Though the pandemic represents a crisis of federalism, Switzerland isn't likely to give up this otherwise extremely efficient small-scale structures. They should however be adjusted for future crises: more leadership, less confusion, clear communication.
Many Victims For Wealthy Nation
Our reluctance to act in autumn is unedifying: instead of quickly locking down and sitting still, we're now in the third month of a second wave. We're not much worse than other democratic nations, nor are we doing well. Switzerland mourns too many victims for the wealthy nation it is.
It seems that our moral compass went missing during this once-in-a-century crisis – see Ueli Maurer's «balancing of interests». It's time to find it again.
