Switzerland without an Army

Gyan Sharan The 'Group for a Switzerland without an Army' launched its movement in the early eighties and was more or less openly ridiculed. The military-industrial complex swung into action and pounced on the 50th anniversary in September last year of the outbreak of the Second World War and turned it into a huge celebration of the army However, in the actual vote on the 'Initiative' in November the turnout was the second highest since the introduction of women's right to vote in 1971 and 36 per cent of those who voted thought that the abolition of the army would be a good thing.