2001

Ten years after the first youth session, the main topic was again Switzerland's accession to a supranational organization. With 134 votes to 28, the young people spoke out in favor of joining the UN. Only an international organization could enforce international climate agreements, the youth said. Moreover, the UN is a "rendez-vous of peace" (Joseph Deiss). The young people made this demand after attending a panel discussion between Christine Beerli (FDP, BE) and Ulrich Schlüer (SVP, ZH) and a speech followed by a discussion by Foreign Minister Joseph Deiss. Beerli, in particular, stressed the necessity of the UN: "But if the UN and its specialized agencies did not exist, they would have to be invented".Schlüer replied that in the UN all power lies with the Security Council, whose member China denies the two countries Taiwan and Tibet their independence, which shows the primacy of power politics over the community of values. A young person replied: "What is Switzerland doing for Tibet now? Nothing! Then you might as well go to the UN and do nothing."As a contribution to a more peaceful world, the young people demanded that the Federal Council becomes more involved in the UN as a peace mediator and works for a ban on the international arms trade. In the WTO, it should promote environmental agreements and fair trade more strongly. In Europe, the Federal Council should work for more cooperation and equal tax treatment while explicitly maintaining banking secrecy.