Swiss Review 2/2021

Swiss Review / April 2021 / No.2 5 Fifty years of women’s suffrage in Switzerland Thank you for this splendid article. I still mar- vel at Hanna Sahlfeld’s courage and dedication. Her husband also deserves amention. I followed the debate about women’s suffrage in Zurich when I was young. My family used to play down or make fun of the issue. EVA-REGINA BODEMANN, BERL IN, GERMANY Women quite rightly got the vote, and we now take female suf- frage as a given. But revisiting the issue just for the sake of up- setting the apple cart is actually unnecessary. NICK DURRER, AUSTRAL IA Hanna Sahlfeld and co. certainly did their bit, but equality in Switzerland is still a myth. For example, why is the state pen- sion lower for women than it is for men? I have paidmy contri- butions just like everyone else. I have brought up children to become decent, law-abiding, tax-paying Swiss citizens – to- gether with my husband, I hasten to add. If they want to raise the retirement age for women to 65 or beyond, women should receive the same amount of state pension as men – even on a retroactive basis.Women domore than just pay theirway. They are mothers to children who are Switzerland’s future! RI TA SCHNEIDER, AZAMBUJA , PORTUGAL Not for a singleminute in human history has deprivingwomen of the political and civil rights enjoyed bymen been justifiable. This injustice was and is deliberate, serving the selfish inter- ests of the few. URS KRAM, MEXICO Mitholz – Switzerland’s most explosive village Well, I might be all wrong, but, wouldn’t it be possible to evacuate the inhabitants of Mitholz for oneweek. Say, take themon a vacation. Then let the army go into the bunker, wire rig everything to explode, then move 10 kilome- ters away and enjoy the fireworks. It may blow up the whole village, or not entirely. Then re- build it! It seems to me this would be the cheapest and fastest way to get rid of a huge problem. MATHEW BUNDI , CANADA First, the Swiss army reneges on its responsibility and decides to look the other way. Then the same army comes up with a bright idea – and suddenly we have a problem, and quite a big one at that! Time to keep thesemen on a tight rein, I think – just like Switzerland did when it gave women the vote. MARKUS REICHER, PÖRTSCHACH, AUSTRIA Betty Bossi, the timeless influencer What? Betty Bossi doesn’t exist? Like William Tell? What a surprise! Joking aside, every year for four generations, we have made our Christmas cakes as a family using the recipes of Betty B. A gourmet link with Switzerland . CORINNE MAGNE-EGGER, PARIS, FRANCE Betty Bossi is a firm fixture in my cooking here in London – andmy “home fromhome” almost on a daily basis. My British husband sometimes makes fun of her surname, referring to the bossy cook in the kitchen. Nevertheless, even he has warmed to Betty over the years. Long live Betty “Bossy”! CHRIST INA NIEDERBERGER, LONDON, UK I have fond memories of my mother reading the Betty Bossi newspapers in Zurich. She was, for her time, an adventurous cook and enjoyed a new challenge. Since living in Australia I have lost touch with old Betty, we have our own food heroes here but I still make the soaked lemon cake and even converted some really accomplished bakers to using this recipe as their favourite! Thank you for this great article. JEANNETTE JOSEPHS, BALL INA , AUSTRAL IA Correction: In the article entitled “The timeless influencer” (edition 1/2021 of “Swiss Review”), we incorrectly stated that Betty Bossi AG generated net sales of 89 million Swiss francs in 2019. The correct figure was in fact 81 million Swiss francs. (MUL) Mailbag IMPRINT: “Swiss Review”, the magazine for the Swiss Abroad, is in its 47 th year of publication and is published in German, French, English and Spanish in 14 regional editions. 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