Swiss President faces investigation over media leaks

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
24 Jan 2023 23:51
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The Parliament's Control Committee confirms that the investigation will focus on "numerous indiscretions concerning government affairs related to the Covid-19 pandemic."

Swiss President Alain Berset attends a conference on the outbreak of COVID-19 in Switzerland. (Reuters)

The Swiss Parliament agreed Tuesday to launch an investigation targeting President Alain Berset, among others, over media leaks linked to government measures at the height of the pandemic.

In a statement, the Parliament's Control Committee confirmed that the investigation will focus on "numerous indiscretions concerning government affairs related to the Covid-19 pandemic."

Threats of conducting a parliamentary investigation have been circulating for days, amid suspicions of massive leaks of confidential information from the Swiss Health Ministry in a scandal dubbed "Bersetgate" and "Coronaleaks" by Swiss media.

Health Minister Alain Berset, who currently holds the country's rotating one-year presidency, was the face of the government's Covid response.

The Schweiz am Wochende newspaper reported earlier this month that Berset's former communications chief had systematically leaked information to one of Switzerland's largest media outlets during the height of the pandemic about confidential government plans for counter-virus measures, most notably vaccines and business reopenings.

The newspaper stated that its charges were based on evidence revealed in a report by a special prosecutor investigating the broader matter but not specifically targeting Berset.

A special working group will conduct the parliamentary probe, which will try to "clarify which transgressions have been committed in connection with government activities connected to the Covid epidemic," as per a statement released on Tuesday.

It would also look into who was behind the leaks and who they were intended for, it said.

"It will also examine which measures" Berset, in his capacity as Health Minister, and the government took to avert "these indiscretions which happened regularly," the statement added.