LEAVE SWISS BANKS ALONE

Swiss financial privacy laws respect the privacy of citizens, unlike the "Orwellian" systems in places like America

In Switzerland, financial privacy laws are a foundation for individual dignity and basic property rights.

Unfortunately, the confidentiality that is the hallmark of Swiss banking is coming under increasing pressure. The global economic crisis has led some governments to intensify efforts to seek tax revenue abroad -- and Switzerland, which accounts for nearly 30 percent of all offshore private wealth, is a natural target. Earlier this year:

• Switzerland was put on a "gray list" by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and threatened with financial sanctions, leading the government to provisionally renegotiate tax agreements with a dozen countries so far.
• Most of those agreements would require Switzerland to hand over individuals' financial information for tax purposes in accordance with the organization's standards.
• The United States Justice Department went even further and filed a lawsuit against UBS, seeking the names of 52,000 account holders suspected of hiding money from the Internal Revenue Service.

Switzerland, which is home to an impressive number of global corporations, has also come under fire from the European Union for offering too-favorable tax rules, including exemptions for income earned abroad.

Today, Swiss citizens continue to vote on any tax increases in referendums (and sometimes even accept them). These healthy curbs on government contrast with the Orwellian concept of the "transparent citizen" whose every act is known to government.

[Again and again: liberal-progressive governments think it's their money...]

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