goldinitiative english
TRANSCRIPT
-
7/29/2019 Goldinitiative English
1/2
1
Volksinitiative
Rettet unser Schweizer Gold
Postfach 23, 8416 Flaach
Telefon 0041 (0)52 301 31 00, Fax 0041 (0)52 301 31 03, Email: [email protected]
Bern / Switzerland: Press conferece, 20th of september 2011
Gold Initiative: A Swiss Initiative to Secure
the Swiss National Banks Gold Reserves
Luzi Stamm, member of the Swiss parliament, Baden - Switzerland
[email protected]; 0041 (0)79 307 92 44
Today, four members of the Swiss parliament present this Gold Initiative for
the purpose of securing the Swiss National Banks gold reserves. In the coming
months, the goal of the initiative committee will be to collect 100000 signa-
tures among the Swiss population. The Swiss people will then be able to voteon the initiative, which stipulates:
- The gold of the Swiss National Bank must be stored physically in Switzerland.
- The Swiss National Bank does not have the right to sell its gold reserves.
- The Swiss National Bank must hold at least twenty percent (20%) of its totalassets in gold.
-
7/29/2019 Goldinitiative English
2/2
2
In an arguably irresponsible move, the United States Federal Reserve and the
European Union (with the European Central Bank ECB) are in the process of a
de facto devaluation of their respective currencies, by printing tremendous
amounts of Dollars and Euros. These actions strongly affect the Swiss National
Bank, as the Swiss franc runs the risk of being devaluated as well.
Until ten years ago, the gold reserves of the Swiss National Bank were histo-
rically regarded as the property of the Swiss people which could not be sold.
But in the last decade the Swiss National Bank has changed this policy and sold
more than 50 percent of its gold reserves. To a very large extent, over the last
two years this has been in order to buy foreign currencies.
The authors of this initiative believe that selling this gold was a clear mistake.
Neither the central bank, nor the politicians should have the right to sell the
peoples property. If the initiative is accepted, this would back up a portion of
the Swiss Franc with physical gold. It would also force the Swiss National Bank
to reveal the location where the gold is stored.
Reason dictates that transparency, a certain percentage of physical gold, and
a gold-backed currency which does not devalue are the principles which
should be followed by all the central banks around the world. In this, the
Swiss National Bank should serve as an example to others.
Nationalrat Luzi Stamm