Preamble and Title 1 General Provisions The
preamble and the first title of the Constitution determine the general outlines of
Switzerland as a
democratic federal republic of 26
cantons governed by the
rule of law. The preamble opens with a solemn
invocation of God in continuance of Swiss constitutional tradition. It is a mandate to the State authorities by the Swiss people and cantons, as the Confederation's constituent powers, to adhere to the values listed in the preamble, which include "
liberty and
democracy,
independence and
peace in
solidarity and
openness towards the world". The latter provision about the "openness" present a drastic contrast with the previous Swiss constitutions which were mostly oriented toward the internal isolationism. The new preamble also provides a provision about responsibility before and the rights of the future generations of the people of Switzerland. The general provisions contained in Title 1 (articles 1–6) define the characteristic traits of the Swiss state on all of its three levels of authority: federal, cantonal and
municipal. They contain an enumeration of the constituent cantons, affirm cantonal
sovereignty within the bounds of the Constitution and list the national languages –
German,
French,
Italian and
Romansh. They also commit the state to the principles of obedience to law,
proportionality,
good faith and respect for
international law, an explicit claim for
subsidiarity, before closing with a reference to individual
responsibility.
Title 2 Fundamental Rights, Citizenship and Social Goals Title 2 contains the Constitution's
bill of rights and consists of 35 articles. The 1874 constitution contained only a limited number of
fundamental rights, and some of them grew less significant as the 20th century wore on, such as the right to a decent
burial guaranteed in article 53 of the old constitution. In consequence, the
Swiss Federal Supreme Court's extensive case law developed an array of implicit or "unwritten" fundamental rights, drawing upon the case law of the
European Court of Human Rights and applying the fundamental rights guaranteed in the
European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which Switzerland ratified in 1974. In the course of the 1999 constitutional revision, the
Federal Assembly decided to codify that case law in the form of a comprehensive bill of rights, which is substantially congruent with the rights guaranteed in the ECHR, the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Title 2 also covers the essential rules on the acquisition of Swiss citizenship and of the exercise of political rights. Furthermore, it contains a number of not directly enforceable "social goals" which the state shall strive to ensure, including the availability of
social security,
health care and
housing. Title 2 refers to Swiss people as "women and men of Switzerland" as a sign of acknowledging gender discrimination in the past (Switzerland became the second to last country in Europe that granted,
in 1971, suffrage to women). The new Constitution also eliminated several archaic provisions from the previous Constitution, including a tax on brides moving into the bridegroom's household, a prohibition on cantons maintaining military forces of more than 300 personnel, a mandate requiring cantons to provide mutual military assistance, and the prohibition of
absinthe.
Title 3 Confederation, Cantons and Communes Title 3 describes in the first chapter the relationships between the Confederation, the cantons and the communes. The cantons retain their own constitutions, but in the case of contradiction the Federal Constitution prevails. The second chapter declares the federal power about areas that require uniform regulation, such as relations with foreign states, security, national and civil defence, general aspects about education, research, culture, the aspects about environment and spatial planning, public construction works and transport, energy and communications, economy in general, concerns about housing, employment, social security and health, about the rights of residence and settlement of foreign nationals, and finally about the responsibility regarding the civil and criminal law, weights and measures. The third chapter clarifies general financial aspects, in particular taxation.
Title 4 The People and the Cantons Title 4 clarifies fundamental political rights and in particular the rights for
initiatives and
referendums.
Title 5 Federal Authorities Title 5 regulates the function and responsibilities of the Federal Government. It provides for three branches of the government represented by three bodies: the Federal Assembly (two chambers, representing the Legislative power), Federal Council (the Executive power), and the Federal Court (the Judicial power). The main differences compared to the previous constitution deal with the supervisory activity of the Federal Court of the Federal Legislature.
Title 6 Revision of the Federal Constitution and Transitional Provisions Title 6 regulates the revisions of the Federal Constitution as well as transitional provisions. == See also ==